The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1893-08-17

, anu d Ulu CuI) IN Uno OU0ef ndnQ. IL Is
I over ore mile from the spring to the
! place where she came to me; couldn't
swear to the Umbrella; DeGratf looked
| like he was scared; we were good
/ friends: L guess that is the reason he
I told me that he had shot her; | asked
| him what he was going to do about it.:
| told him he had better get: DeGraff
/ said first he was goin to whip her; he
| gave as his reason for killing her that
she had been following him about"
| ('4Ou had been stopping at the hO-
TEL" asked Mr.. Sutton. 'SYes, sir,
| replied Mike")
| r. a. WOmmack: II know Mike
/ Davis: have known him since the war:
he worked for my brother several
years and his general character has
+; always been good: | speak from what
! L know and hear people say: have al
| ways heard him spoken of as a good
| honest negro
| J. ]. Burke: ''Have known Mike
| Davis about fifteen years; never
| heard his character discussed particu-
| iarly-but think | know it myself; he
| has been around me for fifteen years:
/ he sawed wood for eight years where
L boarded: his chOrdcter is good"
| w. c. Brannon; Live about two
miles west of town; have known Mike
| Davis for twelve years; Davis told me
4 l.
Mike said DeGraff said the reason he
| didn't throw Ellen's body in the we'll
was that it was too heavy to carry
Hattie Pratt, (colored:) Il was
staying at the ZinZendorf last year
! before the fire; worked in the laundry:
! | went to the spring below the hotel
| several times: went there on Thursday
| morning, July Goth, 1892, about $50,
while on the way | saw man coming
| "a n irtr To.
| the risOncr) sitting there: he said
| there was dead woman near the
| spring: / told him | did not believe it:
] he said he would go and show me: |
went with him: the first thing that
| attracted my attention was an apron
| hanging up GA bush: she had a hat
| over her face: | told him to hoist her
| hat; lie took small cane he had in
| his hand and hOiSted the hat: he also
| hod crooked-handled black paraSol:
| saw the girl before but did not know
her name; DeGraff said he knew her
and knew the boy that went with her,
| DeGratf went with me to the spring
he looked like he was in deep distress:
he asked me to put my hand in his
breast and see how fast his heart was
beating: it was beating fast: he asked
me if | was going to tell it, | asked
him if he was going to tell it: he said
no: | followed back to him after | got
up on the hill that | was going to tell
it: DeGratf had on a brown suit of
clothes.
-Cross-examined: He had on black
plug hat; he did nottry to hurt or
threaten me; never saw DeGratf be-
fore, nor since until yesterday morn
ing: ! swear that is he same man"
II. IL. Brown: Live in Salem. re-
member death of Ellen Smith and
the time her body was found: was
working at the hotel at the time: saw
DeGrail standing in the road just be
low the spring: | asked him if he
knew where the dead woman was: lie
told me where she was: DeGratf had an
umbrella in his hand; this was be-
tween 8 and . O'Clock d. IA: | went
and looked at the body and never saw
DeGratf any more"
Cross examined: !'DeGraff made no
threats and there was nothing unusu-
al about his appearance: there were
five or six white people looking at the
body when | went up; Delfratf was
alone when | met him"
Mrs. Jane Pitts: Il am Mr.. Pitts
wife. and live on the Clcmonsville
road: know DeGraf and knew Ellen
Smith when | saw her: my children
asked DeGraff, when he came to my
house if he had another Umbrella:
DeGraff came there about noon on
Thursday, July 20tr; he asked me if |
knew the name of the woman that
had been killed; he said he knew her,
| that it was '"TuSSie'' Smith; DeGraff
said that when anything was done
| here lately it looked like the people
wanted to pack it off on him; he was
referring To the burning of a saw mill
| a few nights before; DeGratf came to
| my house about ) O'Clock 0 theeven
| ing of his arrest this year: he had
that umbrella referring to the one
| Mr.. Manly held in his HANDY; did not
| know whose umbrella it was
| Cross-eXamined: Gle was in the haO-
| it of carrying umbrella but did not no
| tice the kind it was until the evening
of the arrest: never heard DeGratf
| speak of girl until after her death;
| DeGraff said that she was lying there
cold in death: said he loved her and
that he did not kill her; my step
| daughter asked DeGralf if he did not
kill the girl: he said did not"
Mrs. Mary Lashmit: Il live in
| speaking distance of Pitts; remember
murder; DeGraff was never in my
house; he passed through the yard and
| spoke to some children; while he was
there | saw some saddle horses at
| Pitts store: no one was on them: Pc
ter asked me if l knew whose horaes
they were; he said that he reckoned
the men were looking for him: he
walked off down through the field
had nothing with him but an umbrel-
ia.n
Cross-examined: s'DeGraff came
| walking up the big road to my house.
J. j. Adams, policeman; 81 went
several times with parties to find De
Graft. shortly after the murder; on
tho 10Th of last June [ went with
Sheriff Macarthur, j. J. Cofer and NJ
Stanford to hunt him; we went tt
John Russel's; DeGraff was not there
we then went 10 old man Gideon Rus
sells, DeGraff and Russel's two SON
we're in the left hand roomi DeGraf
could hear us talking as he was VI
walking around in the house, ol(
man Russell asked who was at tn
door: the sheriff said IL was Sheriff
McArthHri the sheriff asked Russell
to strike light; DeGraff went to tw
windows and pulled the curtains back
L knew him; / told him we were goinl
to carry him back to Winston: tha1
he might kill one Of US but we woult
get him; | was holding my plsto
toward the bed; DeGraff was lying O
/ the bed between the feather an
, stEa9y ticks; he said he would give III
siFst thing neGraff said was to max
, fun qf our pistols which he called III
. | tie pop-guns; he said let ne show 20
!. some pistols; picked up three out c
his valise; told sheriff to look dow
barrel Of ones this sheriff refused t
. do; two of the pistols were in a bel
: DeGraf said he could have gotten [
: IL he had wanted to as he had
/, | rounds; DeGraff was not frightened
e he said he went to Roanoke first afte
! he left here said he got S2G on his hi
and beat a freight train 500 mile