The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1891-07-31

night meeting. Every man in Nash
vile believed that Isaac Sanford, who
"knew Mcdowell in the Confederate
army" was a brave old Confederate
soldier, a comrade who shared with
him the tolls of march and the dangers
of battle; every one will know this
morning that Ike Sanford is merely an
Arkansas negro. And so of the "Rev-
erend" Norwood, s. II. Thompson, of
VIM. Hicks ct al.
They will know, too, of the desperate,
INSCRIPTIONS and ruffianly methods
used to browbeat the timid, move the
weak and induce the corrupt. They
will see exposed the weak and stupid
lie concocted to excuse Mcdowell in
staggering over the county with a
| Winchester rifle threatening to shoot
any man who testified against him and
refused to retract. They will see how
his old negro companions of the olden
time became flush with Doodle when
Mcdowell struck the county; and they
will learn how his old standby, jack
son Green, alarmed at the report that
George Cole had given away the "se-
crets of the order," hastened, in his ig-
nOrant way, to telegraph his old chief
that the enemy had got hold of the re-
cords of the league. They will learn
how Mcdowell pleaded with some in
the name of his wife and children; how
he stormed and threatened in the case
of others; how he confessed to the state
of Decentralization and corruption that
existed in his office, but laid all the
blame on his swift witness, Bum.
They will see the imposing array of tes-
| timony which he has paraded melt and
dissolve in the light sof truth. Nc
Dowell knew that all this would be
made plain when he printed his de-
tense as we'll as he knows it to-day.
But he was relying upon the inner cir
Gle of the select few who could be
trusted to shut their eyes to all evidence
and to their efforts to palm off and keep
up the deceit upon those who never see
or read anything but the ToiIer. In
pursuance of this policy Mcdowell, his
understrapped Pierce and all his bench
men began systematic effort as soon
as his reply appeared in print to in
struct the Alliance men that it was their
duty not to read The American. 1t
would be vastly disappointing to Mr..
Mcdowell to learn that the net result of
these desperate efforts has been less
than nothing.
The record of the investigation to date
is clearly summarized elsewhere.
Forty-six witnesses are brought to the
stand by Mcdowell. Eleven of these
are negroes, whose testimony is thor
Oughly discredited by the proven facts.
Ten of his white witnesses repudiate
the statements which appear over their
name and openly and publicly de-
nOunca Mcdowell as slanderer, re-
peat the charge that he was republic
can and negro leader in Arkansas and
defy him to put the fact in issue in the
courts. Numbers of others are shown
to have been open and unreserved in
denouncing him in the same way. The
whole imposing array is swept aside
with a stroke. The attacks on The
Americans witnesses are denounced as
slanderous by his own. Men whom he
commends for their honor and integrity
and Understandings in the community
indorse The Americans witnesses by
name as men of honor and Yeracity and
declare that Mcdowell himself was al
ways regarded as a republican and
member of the Loyal League in the
State of Arkansas.
We present to the testimony of a
score of additional witnesses, reputable
white mon, who sustain. charges we
have made against Mcdowell. We pre-
sent abundant additional testimony as
to his membership in the League. We
give his own confession made to Col.
Warmer. We give his confession to
Judge Pindall that his Civilization with
negroes was the mistake of his life."
| We have put upon the witness stand al
| ready nearly every reputable white
man who lives or did live in the same
township and nine-tenths of them have
pronounced every accusation to be the
truth. We have shown that public
mass-meeting composed of tho leading
and representative men OF two town
ships, in the same neighborhood where
he lived and operated, men who own
| three-fourths of tho landed property,
men whosea Integrity and veracity are
universally conceded, have openly and
publicly denounced him in unme 1sured
| terms.
! We are willing to go before the public
and before the courts. We defy McDOw-
ell to put his character in issue before a
jury of his country. The American will
make his cost bond, it will secure the
fee of his attorneys to be paid on the
day he gets his Judgment. We will
| give assurances which will satisfy
any reputable attorney he may select
| to make safe the collection of his judg-
ment, if he still clings to his miserable
and false subterfuge. We will do al
most .Gnything to get chance at Nc
Dow in the courts. If he will meet
us thef> we will put upon his character
the brand of infamy with the hand of
law. There he must show his witnesses
in their true light. He cannot mask a
negro vagabond in honorable titles and
fulsome eulogy before a jury. There,
too, he must attack opposing witnesses
with something better than the ebull-
| lent filth of black and scurvy scOun-
drel.
Will Mr.. Mcdowell decline the issue?
If so he must face the inevitable judg-
ment of every thinking man-and all
men will think sooner or later that he
will not put his cause to a judicial trial
because he dares not; because he can
not trust his reputation to the fierce
light and merciless scruting of the
courts of his country"
Then Follows the Proof.
The proof in the case is overwhelming.
The first witness is introduced to show
Mcdowell was not only a member of
the Loyal League, but actually organ
lied it, and that after his defeat and de-
parture, the League disbanded. The
witness presented is George Cole. He
is a negro, otherwise he could not speak
of his own knowledge. But he owns
the farm he lives on, and is endorsed
and vouched for by the best men of the
community, and by some leading mer-
chants of Memphis, who have had bust
ness transactions with him. This is
what he says;
"Of course knew Mr.. John H. Nc
Dowell from the time he moved into
Desha County, Ark. He came, 1 think,
in 1870. He first located on the Ridley
place, about one mile from Red Fork,
with his brother, Mr.. Sam Mcdowell.
He lived about two years ON the Ridley
place, during which time he was re-
garded as a democrat, although never
heard of him taking much part in poll
tics while he lived there. Then he
moved over to what is known as Pea
Ridge, near Medford, and bought the