The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1891-01-08
LIFE TAKERS.
South Cardinals Peculiar Congress
slonal Representation.

Washington Dispatch to the Times.star,
1t ls notable that iuur Of the men
who were elected TO important Offices
by the Farmers Alliance OF 80 lth
iarnlina have been tried for murder.
The unfortunate circumstance is MT
necessarily of itself reuroach to the
h"nored gentlem-n, but it Is, to say
the least noteworthy.
So lnng as these gentlemen we're
merely private and nnas'pirmg clti
zens the inchIems the lives were
Ut matters of general rest or con.
crrr, hu M thry are coming u con
>ress Ia make laws inr the z 'vern
nent Of the country tnese incidents,
extraordinary Ms they are, are legiti-
marely SUBJECT to the prying Of GU
riosity.
The most prominent figure in the
farmers Alliance movement of Sou h
Carolina was Gov. Tillman. lie il
me uf the fur who were tried fOr the
<ilIing Of their fellow men. Unlike
ne Others, he Was convict ed and
served a Term of imprisonment. the
then Governor of he Slats, PIckens,
refusing tu grant him pardon The
murder was committed in E lgefeld,
5. c., in n gambling room. Tlllman,
~ the story goes, brctme inv lived
n n dispute with the dealer Of faro
.ame as L. the amount CT mo ey that
I'D been bit ona rd, aud it WAS
greed that bls andrr should settle
tue dispute. lie decided adversely
3" T'lman, who thereupOn shot him
lead.
TIllman fed the State and was ab,
ent several years, returning ut the
reaking out of the war. He was ar
rested convicted 0f manslau hter and
'rrved nut sentence of two years i'm
,risonment.
Senator elect Irby, who is now a
stsid member cf Of the Baptist church
vas along in the the seventies ou
I'VE by Gnv Simpson for the alleg
dkilliug Of ii man named KilgDur in
Inurens county He decamped, VIII, n
, rewa d OF 81 500 Was offered for
i'm, and remained out of the State
mil the affair blew over VIII n he re.
urued and WAS acquitted. His next
xplot WAS to arm himself with shot
I'm while he was painting The tnwu
1 Laurens bright vermiliOn and de-
wing the authorizes to arrest him
Fr this bit IT plesantry h. paid fnr
Then some man offended him and hr
rrught one of his negroes from his
'lantatinn, gave him a horsewhip and
Htching the ,ffender unawares, held
I pis'ol 10 his head and one to the
"erops head and compelled the negro
whip the man. Other acts of gen
'le play fulness are charged up tn thu
tc' ount, hut as he has for some time
ell an exemplary life they are not re.
rrmherrd tn his discredit and thu
4hove Hie only alluded tn as part oi
- history nf man who is soon H.
AXE his sat IN the councils Of the
alton.
Shell, the Alliance mamher elect
rom the Fourth South Carolina lis
r CT, was once tried for the murder OF
man named Joseph Crews, who war
IN active Republican politician during
econstruction times. Crews had a
good many enemies, personal rs we'll
4" political, and one night, as I 9 wrs
driving along the public highway in u
'uggy with companion, he was fred
III from ambush and instantly killed.
'ir. Shell WIS suspected aud arrested
nd tried, but acquitted. To this dny
The identity of the assassin remains
Unknown.
tombstone, the Alliance member
elect from the adj lining dstrict-the
Chird-was charged with murder two
wears ago, but Nas acquitted on the
charge uf self-dtfense While trying
4 case before n Justice, he became in
volved in dilliculty wtn another
member Of the bar and shot h M dead
The evidence showed that there was
provncation, and that when Johnstone
fred the fatal shot his life was in inn
mlnent danger
1t is such an Extraordinary circum-
.tante that State should send TO
Congress three men who have been
defendants in murder trials that it is
worthy Of mention. And what MAKE .
the circumstance all the more remark
able is that all three were elected by a
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