The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-07-24
LIFE IN KENTRcKY.
Some Strange Developments IN
earthed in a Pension Case.
E,r,,,, cha tsfffet.frrF Dfauntrh

From the FlftshurE Dispatch.
sam Woods Of Ashland KY, was in
Pittsburg yesterday Mr. Woods is a
character who is known over the larger
portion Of four states He IS now about
so years of age. but owing to q sandy COM
plexiou and beard. in which time has yet
made no ravages, he is seldom judged TO
be over 40. Some years ago he was city
editor of the Erie Dispath, and when
Congressman W. A. Stone was United
States district attorney for Western
Pennsylvania, Mr. Woods was his assls-
tant
Later he was appointed special pension
examiner, and il was while acting in this
capacity that he visited Kentucky, and
eventually selected Ashland, in the heart
of the bluegrass region. for his home. He
IS an old soldier, and while trying to stop
a miunie-ball near Bermuda Hundred he
received an injury to his left hand which
is yet noticeable.
In conversation with Dispatch repor-
ter yesterday he said: THE pension
business has taken me all over the middle
states, but the toughest country L ever
struck was in Lawrence county, Ken
lucky. / am willing to lay a wager al
any time with any man that ~here are
more Winchester rifles than rocking
chairs in that particular county. Yes, l
ullSub DC lHuuCGu W DtJ liAdt LhCA . NAC
more rifles than chairs of any kind.
DEVELOPMENTS IN A PENSION CASE.
1T was while acting as special pension
examiner that l came across a case In
Lawrence county, Ky, in which there
were five marriages and four divorces.
The widow of a man named James Bowe
applied for a pension. An lnVeStlgat lOn
which | made showed that Bowe had
been married five times and divorced
four times. He was first married to Alice
Berry, who secured a divorce from him,
and he then married Nancy Clevinger.
According to the court of records of Law
renee county, BOwe and Nancy were mar
ried and divorced three times. Bowe
next married a widow named Reesy, who
had also been divorced from Isaac ThOmp-
son. The latter had killed man on ac-
count of Mrs Reesy, but was acquitted
on the ground of self-defense. Thompson
married again, but died within a few
months, and Mrs. Reesy, his first wife,
married James Bowe.
"Thompson's last wife remarked, but
desperate, named Dave Williams, killed
her husband Williams was also
acquitted. The last divorce was between
Nancy and her husband All these
parties live near Louisa, in Lawrence
county.
TARRED AND FEATHERED THE DOCTOR.
"The wife of DR. Watkins is Nancy
Clevinger's mother, and, before DR. Wat
kins married Mrs. Clevinger, the latter
and Nancy were married to twin broth
ers When the doctor married the
mother the neighbors whipped the physi-
clan, and then tarred and feathsred both
the bride and groom. The doctor was
finally forced to sell a farm, which he
owned near Louisa, and move out of the
state.
THE soldier, Bowe, whose record I was
looking up when / discovered the above
facts, died from causes which would not
allow the granting of pension.
This is simply sample of life in a
part of Kentucky, only a few hundred
miles from Pittsburg, and where a few
missionaries would probably do more
good than in darkest Africa or the South
Sea Islands"