The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1893-03-04
OLFAX. GRANT PARISH. La, SATURDAY, MARCH 4, 1893.
The OctiOn killing
Cotton, La, Feb. "a. 1898.

The OctiOn Killing
Oction. La Feb..l7. 1898.
Editor Collar Chronicle:
Having had the pleasure of read
ing an account of the killing of
Messrs. Thompson and Burton at
Oction on the night of Feb. 4th, in
both of the valuable papers pub
at Colfax, 1 find, according to my
knowledge of the facts gathered
from the inquest held over their
bodies, that both papers miss the
mark considerably.
The men were near the Spotten
grog shop, not Mcdowell hotel,
having just left Capt. Fuckers
house, where Mr.. Thompson had
just fed his horse, same being sew
eral hundred yards from the Nc
Dowell hotel. Mr. Thompson was
not juror in the West case. The
jury consisted of DR.. j. w. Bald
ridge, M. d. Andrews, E. B. Col
man, j. III. Tison, w. E. KEGS and
myself.
Thompson's body lay where it
fell until after daylight the next
morning, when it was taken into the
new Kelsoe & Waddell drug store,
where the jury viewed the body.
Burton was carried across the road
into a house occupied by one Mrs.
Lombard, where he died about one
hour after being shot, and at which
place the jury viewed his body.
This jury consisted of
DR.. J. A. Hamilton, M. d. An
drews, E. B. Goldman, Fl. S. Carl
ington, j. A. Chandler, w. E. KEGS,
and myself as magistrate.
King was shot in the leg and
foot, and must have received his
wounds from the fourth charge.
The corpses of Thompson and Bur-
ton were removed by Mr.. VIM.
Zeigler about 8 q. m. Monday, 9th
inst, and were buried the same
day at the Parsonage on Gray's
creek, by relatives.
III. B. Thompson did not 60 to
the burial of West. but remained
in Oction. He was before the jury
and insisted that West killed him
self by taking morphine poison.
While the killing of men in this
way is deplorable, and has caused
our people to feel sad, 1 fail to dis
cover any fear of bodily harm by
our citizens on account of the Kill
ling. Also fail to find our people
going heavily armed. Everything
seems to be moving along as though
nothing had happened, so far as
travel and business is concerned.
We never heard until we saw it in
print any confession from Burton
relative to name and notority.
= y AS for the men being called
out into the darkness, we found
that Capt. Rucker and the man
King were having some words,
when Thompson called King out
to where the shooting occurred.
The man West, who died from
poison on the Sd of FEBRUARY, had
been residing in Grant parish for
over year, and had been working
for a man known to us as Calvit
Smith, who is putting logs on the
railroad for Capt. Pollock's saw
mill. The first intimation of Vests
serious condition was in the incom-
plete drug store of Waddell & Kel-
soc, the same not being occupied
on account of not being complete.
II. B. Thompson found West asleep
or in stupid condition about 8. a.
m. on the Sd inst. Thompson had
bottle of whisky and gave West
drink, and told him to take a
good one. He tried to get West to
the Spotton grog shop, but West
said, mo, let me sleep a while"
Aftersa while Thompson returned
and got West up and assisted him
to the Spotten grog shop, and sat
him down by the heating stove. In
short while Thompson discover
ed that something serious was the
matter with West, and sent for his
(Thompson's) father, who is a
practising physician. DR.. Thomp-
son visited the patient about IL a.
m, and said as soon as he got there
he knew the man was poisoned on
morphine, that there was no chance
to save him from death, but gave
him medicine to ease him.
III. B. Thompson, DR.. Rucker and
Jack Corley said they found an
empty morphine bottle in Vests