Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1895-07-25
A NEGRO UPRISING
TRUE STORY OF THE NAT
TURNER INSURRECTIoN
FROM HIS OWN CONFESSION
The Awful Tale Contained in an Old
Pamphlet Found in Southampton
County, Virginia, Where the Muir
derS Took Place-A Fearful Occur
renee Of Many Years Ago.

j From an old lady living in Southamp'
ton county, Virginia, the scene of the
awful Nat Turner negro insurrection
i Of August, 1881, a copy of the confess
sion made by Turner has been OBJ
tanned. This insurrection was the
most horrible of It's kind in the history
OF the country. Fifty-fiye whites, half
Of them children, and many babes,
| were hacked to pieces with axes, while
they slept, by the murderous negroes,
who went from farmhouse to farm
house on their mission of death.
Turner was religious fanatic. lie
was an intelligent negro, and although
a slave. tlabbled in scientific expert
ments. He imagined that he had FIRE.
/ auent communications with God, and
translated one of these myths of his
mind as meaning that he should band
/ The negroes together and kin the
whites. The ignorance Of the farm
negroes gave him great power over
them, and although they feared him,
/ they did as he ordered.
The confession, which tells tine story
of the awful midnight murders, was
made by Turner to I. Il. Gray, of
Jerusalem, Southampton county, Nlr-
ginia, shortly before the execution Of
4 the murderer. Only eighteen negroes
out Of sixty-odd who participated in
\ the murders were punished, and some
of these escaped the gallows. This Is
! the confession:
"Since the commencement OF 1880 |
had been living with Mr.. Joseph
| Travis, who was to me a kind master,
and placed the greatest confidence In
! me: in fact, i had no cause TO complain
! of his treatment TO me. On Saturday
evening, the Goth of August, 1t was
agreed between Henry, Hank and my
| self, to prepare a dinner the next day
for the men we expected. and then to
concert plan, as we had not yet de-
] termined on any. Hark, on the fol-
| lowing morning, brought pig. and
Henry brandy, and being Joined by
! Sam, Nelson, Will and Jack, they pre-
pared in the woods a dinner where,
about 3 O'Clock, ! Joined them. |
saluted them on coming up, and asked
| Will how he came there. He answered
! his life was worth no more than
/, others, and his liberty as dear to him.
| asked him if he thought to obtain it?
He said he would or lose his life.
/ This was enough to put him in full
/ confidence. Jack, knew, was only a
/ tool in the hands of Hank. 1t was
quickly agreed we should commence at
home (Mr. j. Travis's) on that night,
! and until we had armed and equipped
ourselves, and gathered sufficient
1 force, neither age nor sex was to be
spared. We remained at the feast un-
| til about two hours IN the night when
| we went to the house and found
Austin They all went to the cider
press and drank, except myself
sOn returning TO the house Hark
/ went to the door with an axe, for the
purpose of breaking it open, as we
4
der the family If they We're awakened
by the noise; but, rejecting that it
/ might create an alarm in the neighbor-
| hood, we determined to enter the house
secretly, and murder them whilst
sleeping. Hark got a ladder and set
| it against the chimney, on which |
assembled and, hosting window, en-
/ tered and came downstairs. unbarred
| the door, and removed the guns from
their places. 1t was then observed
! that | must spill the first blood. On
| which, armed with a Ratchet and ac-
ter's chamber. 1t being dark, | could
! not give death blow; the hatchet
glanced from his head. He sprang
from his bed and called his wife. 1t
was his last word; VIII laid him dead
with a blow of his axe, and Mrs.
lay in bed The murder of this fam
4 lily, five in number, was the work OF
a moment: not one of them awoke.
There was little infant sleeping in a
cradle that was forgotten until we had
left the house and gone some distance
when Henry and VIII returned and
killed 1t. We got here four guns that
would shoot, and several old muskets,
with a pound or two of powder
1--WE remained some time at the
barn, where we paraded; ! formed
them In line as soldiers, and after
carrying them through all the ma.
! noeuvrcs | was master Of marched
them of to Mr.. Salathul Francis's
about six hundred yards distant. Sam
4 and Will went to the door and
knocked. Mr.. Francis asked who was
there Sam replied 1t was him, and
he had a letter for him, on which he
got up and came to the door; they i'm
mediately seized him, and, dragging
4 him out a little from the door, he was
i dispatched by repeated blows on the
head. There was no other white per.
81 cn,t II, 4i,a ia unflv