The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1893-05-04
THE GOVERNOR INFORMED.
Senator May field Makes n Report On tho
Denmark Lyncbing.

COLUMBIA, S. c., April &c. .-Gover-
no. Tillmau received the following let
ter last night from Senator Maylield,
who tried hard o preserve law and Or
der at Denmark:
His Excellency B. r. Tillman, Cover
nor OF South Carolina. Columbia, S. C.
SIR: Pursuant To your telegram of
today L write you full statement of
the facts concerning the death of John
Peterson. The statement in the State
OF TODAY giving the testimony Is cor.
rect, as send it TO you.
joan Peterson failed IN proving an
alibi. AS Henry Williams proved one
to the satisfaction Of the people he was
turned into the Jail to await develop.
ments. But all who heard our proof
were iuly satisfied that Peterson was
IN Denmark on Thursday night an
Friday morning, and that Henry White
and Joe Witchell were with him, and
they lett the South Carolina Railroad
sectlon house after playing cards all
night.
called into the room two highly re-
spectacle cOlored men to hear the testi-
mony, and they with the 9th er gentle
men Present were satisfied that John
PETERSON 'dld spend the night at Dem
mark, and many If not most of those
present believed from the actions of
Peterson and the testimony, that John
Peterson was the man who had assault.
cd Miss Mamie Baxter.
L asked If we should take hlm before
the young lady and all answered yes.
At Mr.. BaXter's house Col. d. Paul
Solourner, ex-senator of Barn we'll Coun.
ty, proposed that only few should 20
into the house aud no reporters. It was
decided, however, that the two repor.
ters, Messrs. Watson and Price, should
90 IN, put Keep somewhat in the back
ground, so as not to excite the girl by
thelr taking notes. She was very much
excited, however. and said "he ls not
the man." We then turned away. but
MIR. McClendon continued to interro.
gate her after we left, as I was in
formed, and TO him she said, "He looks
like hlm, except the eyes and nose -
On my return to Denmark, I found tn at
the prisoner had not arrived, but had
, been carried to the house Of the negro.
Ihad White, for his wife to see if she
could identify him. But finding that Mr..
McClendou, VINO had preceded me, had
stated that the prisoner had been iden-
llhed, and seeing the growing anxiety
tor the return of the prisoner, I sent for
the party to bring him IN at once and
wired you.
The return OF the partry W th the
prisoner was the first and conclusive
:, proof to my mind that the negro was N
, imminent danger. 1t is we'll enough for
The newspapers to give sensational ac
counts; II gives the news, and papers
are saleable. But, honOred sir, 1t is i'm.
possible for me to depict to you the deep
l feeling of that crowd, who, for eleven
Q days: had striven to catch and convict
s the man wh) had on ragged the daughter
OF our th!lo" citizen, man who h I'D
lived an norable and upright life and
r risen by honest toll from ablect poverty
:, TO comfortable circumstances. In short.
w0ll-to-do. prosperous farmer.
+ 1t should be that lady might travel
8 from The mountains to seaboald alone
: unharmed. Yet while this mans daugh.
e ter was on her way to school with flow.
2 ers on her bosom, purity in her young
heart, to be seized by rufiau, dragged
aown an cmbankment and then thrown
into the mud Of the ditch and outraged
by the iiend, the weeping father saving
TO the crowd ''No, she did not recoenizs
The man and L fear, men, she never
will" Tten McClendon saving she
told me that he looked like the man, ex-
cept his nose and eyes. The testimony
was called Tor and | read it to them. 1t
ls no wonder that this man was visited
with death commensurate with the deed
charged. L did what could to delay
The execution, to dissuade them from
dong so, but at the same time 1 saw
and realized that 1t was useless to do
more. Five hundred men heard the
statements OF the girl from the lips of
tne committee who heard her say "he
was not the man." and 500 mea heard
from lips just as truthful that she said
TO him and her father that "he looked
like the man except the eyes and nose.n
1t was the general verdict he is the man,
and one and all helped to execute him,
with few exceptions.
Ihe details were given in the pers
with much accuracy, some coloring, in
the main correct. 1t is not for US of
l5arnWell 10 say what the world may
think, but L truly record the verdict
when L say "that crowd believed J Jobn
PETERSON was the man who assaulted
Miss Mamie BaXter;" therefore thew
executed him.
1t is fair, unjust, to say that Peter.
son was killed because "some negro
must die,' for he was the tWenty-flfth
man who had been brought up for ex-
animation, and with the exception of
Henry Williams, no attempt has been
made TO iDjure the suspected prisoner.
Why then did the people feel so bitter
against Williams and Peterson? Because
the injured girl said of the former "he
looks like the man"-later, "he is the
man." And had it not been for the
most positive assn ances that he could
show he was elsewhere that he escaped
or" the latter, she said, while excited,
"he is not the man"-later, to Mr.. Nc.
Clendon, she looks like him, except the
eyes and nose" That, taken together
With the failure of Peterson to establish
an allbi when once he had attempted to
do 50, and the statement OF Jos Wicthell
that Peterson was the man and of the
woman who told Mr.. Neise that she be-
lieved Petersen was the guilty man, fixed