The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-10-29

A,qutttais@~ Detective Abrams
and the Ola Negro - oman Who are
witnesses for the Prosecution
Abrams on a Spree.
BEAUFORT, N. O., Oct 28.
To the Editor of the News and Observer:
1t becomes my duty, in vindication Of
a community in which have lived for
over three years, to ask for a short space
in your columns.
For the past week our town has been
in fever of excitement over the "Insu-
rance cases" that have been tried The
Investigations on both side nave been
long and thorough, and it has consumed
most Of the week for the trial of two
causes brought for forgery. It. will be
remembered by the reading pub ic that
two or three months ago the p .pers we're
full of the investig tions at Morehead
City of the so called "BeauforU Grave
Yard Insurance" The broad charge
was made that majority Of the people
of Beaufort aud Carteret county we're
directly or indirectly connected with the
cases. and our town aud community was
held up to the whole world as a den of
rotteBness and fraud. Tn statements
Cf the papers were harsh, unfair and un-
true, and since that time there has been
no correction of the impression left on
the public mind.
1t is strange that during the progress of
the trials during the past week there have
been no reporters here to publish to the
world any extenuating facts that might
hca hrnT hf fN fTrrhE tn Nhr.N MEr
whole Of our citizens had UOt cOnspired
against few ''wild cat" insurance COM
panies.
Two Of the cases have been tried and
the defendants have been declared inno-
cent by twelve Of their couatrymen taken
from every section of Carteret county.
The evidence brought out by the prose-
cution in these cases has been such that
had there been no evidence for the de-
fence at all, it would not have justified a
verdict Of guilty" from jury of intel
ligent men
W. C.Abrams, OF Albany, the insur-
ance detective and the main witness in
all the cases for the insurance compan-
les, admitted on the stand that he was
paid to cOnvc ct the defendants by what
ever means he could. He was also seen
Tuesday of court after coming down the
steps from the court room by reliable
men, to pour lot of money into an old
negro woman's hand, she beingthe other
witness with him for the insurance com
panies in the first ca e. Under hot
cross examination in the second trial he
first denied giving the woman money
but afterwards said he did give her a
small amount. This fellow Abrams
figures as a prominent character through
all the cases representing the Insurance
companies, and from the evidence that
came out on trial, 1t was shown that he
had ramsacked the whole of the county
over and had picked the most ignorant
old and diseased negroes that could
be found to appear as witnesses in be-
half of the insurance companies. An
old negro woman named Hamilton, a
witness with Abrams for the prOsecu.
tiOn, said on cross. examination that she
expected compensation from the insur-
ance men.
To cap the climax, on Saturday after
noon, after court had adjourned, Mr..
Abrams, from Albany, got on a glorious
spree and tried to take the town. He
accused g Chief of Police of commit
ting perjury and made the statement
that ''the insurance companies intended
to send he last On one of the defend
ants TO the penitentiary ii it took $l0,-
900 for each man" He was taken up
by the mayor and fined heavily for dis
orderly conduct. Mr. Abrams is the
expert witness employed by the insur-
ance companies to prove handwriting,
and said on the witness stand that he
had lived a number of years in Albany,
where he had an excellent opportunity
to examine handwriting.
In the two cases tried here, the de-
PENDANTS were acquitted and ask that,
in defence of the people of Beaufort and
Carteret county, every paper in the
State that published derOgatory matter
AGAINST our people copy this article.
Our people in Beaufort and Carteret
county are as much opposed to crime an
any people in the State of North Caro-
lima and we say it is not fair that the
papers of the State should publish the
wholesale charges against them without
giving both sides of the question to the
public.
IL has been the position of my paper,
the Beaufort Herald, throughout, neither
to condemn nor uphold IN the matter,
but to wait till all the evidence on both
sides had been produced before it gave
its verdict. The defendants in the pre-.
liminary examination at Morehead Oity
last summer, introduced no evidence
whatever, and now that they have IN
troduced their evidence and have been
acquitted in these above named cases, it
is nothing but justice to them and our
peoplein general thai every paper IN the
State should publish this in yindicati0n
of our community.
Very truly,
CHAs. l.. ABERNETHY.