The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-08-19
AN OLD TIME TRAGEDY.
Romance of the Past in Which Two
hunters Figured

hunters Figured
STERLING. GA, Aug. 1s.-Unul short
time ago Sterling was seldom heard %. aud
was visited more seldom still. Since the
completion of the Savannah, Americas and
Montgomery and the Savannah and West
ern railroads, the junction Of these roads
being one mile east Of It. the place Is better
known. Il consists only Of one residence
and postoffice all in the same oludlng-
6. NJ T. Mcleod Is postmaster. Had the
railr, ads considered the convenience OF TIE
people and bad they had an eye Tor gooo
location for g junction point and q locatlon
for station and town, they would nave
certainly not have chosen the present site,
LYONS. IN preference 70 tnis. There Is
general dissatisfaction among the people as
70 the location of all the depots on
the line of tie SAVANNA, Americus
and Montgomery in Montgomery county,
and to q casual observer the dissatisfaction
seems unsuitable. Montgomery county Is a
small county, but contains q larger PEI
centaee Of good farming lands than almost
any county in this section Of the state, pro
ducing fine crops Of corn and cotton, and IS
particularly well suited to fruit culture,
though, as yet, but little attention Is PAID
70 that industry. The lands are just high
aud rolling enough to be well drained
naturally. The forest growth is almost
exclusively pine, and the naval stores and
mill men have found II out. and on every
hand mills and stills are being established
The county is capable Of supporting larger
farming population than almost any county
of its area in the state, but at present 1t Is
very thinly populated Game IS scarce;
with the exception OF tigers, anu they OF
the blind species.
A SPRING WITH A HISTORY.
Near Sterling. and on John Adams place,
there is a spring with history. Many
years ago when this section was a wilder
ness, and game plentiful, there lived here
two men who were great hunters, and ap-
parently friends. One was named Staten
and one Bowen. They were in the habit of
going off on long hunting trips together.
Bowen was not, 1t seems, as good friend Of
Staten as he pretended to be. He loved
Slaten's wife and determined to have
her for himself On one occasion Bowen
planned a hunt, and he and Staten
went off. and after an absence Of a day or
50 Bowen returned alone and reported that
be had gotten separated from Staten.
Staten not returning, his friends and neigh
bors organized a searching party 70 try and
find him Il was presumed that he mad
been bitten by a snake and had died. One
Rube Nail, an old hunter well acquainted
with the woods, suggested that, be the
trouble what it might, Staten had, IN all
probability, sought a certain spring to
beCuTc ~ Oclub hAu
water scarce. Acting upon his
advice and under his guidance
they proceeded TO the spring
and there found the dead body of Staten.
He had been shot with rife. Suspicion
pointed to Bowen, and he confessed after
arrest that to gain possession of Slaten's
wife he had decoyed Staten of and shot
him. The wound did not prove immedi-
ately fatal and Bowen relented and con-
veyed Staten to this spring, where he secretly
Supplied him with food until he died, few
days after.
THE CoUNTY's FIRST HANGING.
Bowen was convicted Of the crime and
was hanged at Reidsville, being the first exc
cution of white man in Tattnall county.
The descendants of Staten rose to be people
of prominence and worth. Those of Bowen
never amounted to anything. This incl
dent is almost if not entirely forgotten by
the older Inhabitants, and unknown to the
present generation. The story was told to
your correspondent by one of the old
timers. Around the beautiful spring where
this dark tragedy was enacted long years
ago now live thrifty and clever
people, and, overlooking the spring,
itself stands a beautiful home. This was
wild and desolate region in those days, and
continued so for many long years. With
the advent of the railroads, the people are
waking up to their opportunities and posi-
bilities and DOMINIC the garb of civilization.
One trait they all possess / would recon-
mend to tie people of older and more
favored sections, they are all hospitable
to strangers and always offer them a warm
welcome. ESSBEETEE.