The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1896-07-09
1 Strange Story Comes
from Alabama.
TRUTH STRANGER THAN FICTION,
How Circnmstantial Evidence Worked
to Inlprison Man. The Re.
suit it Brought About.

Double Springs, Alabama, which
shows the irony of fate, and is so
romantic as to almost pass belief.
The story is: That in 1874 Geo.
W. Pendleton and his wife, Octa-
via, and young son were living in
Brazoria county, near Liverpool,
Texas, town surrounded by many
broad acres and thousands Of cattle.
They had Cor neighbors MIR. Hinton
and wife. One morning Hinton
rode up to Pendleton's house, tell
ing him tina: he was going to Velas-
CO, and asked him to 60 along.
Having some business on Basthrop
Bayou, he accompanied him that
far. On the way, Hinton told him
that he was leaving his wife, that
they could not get along, and that
he had told no one of his leaving,
and left all of his property he had
to his wife. Mrs. Pendleton says
that when she saw her husband
mouat his horse and ride away that
she had . presentment of evil and
felt like begging him not to go.
While Pendleton was away, and
before he purchased Hinton's gold
watch, as he (Hinton) needed mon
ey. On Pendleton's return home
he related to his wife the circum-
stances of Hinton's leaving, and of
buying his watch. They both con-
cluded 70 say nothing about Him
toms leaving. Two weeks after
wards some one knocked at the
door; upon opening. it a deputy
sheriff slipped handouts on his
hands, telling him that he was ar
rested for the murder of Hinton, as
his body had been found in a mutt
lated condition on the bayou, near
where he had left him. He quietly
submitted to arrest thinking he
would have no trouble in establish
ing his innocence. There was
such we'll connected chain of ev-
idence against him, that the jury
found him guilty, and assessed his
punishment at Imprisonment in the
penitentiary for life.
His wife, some woyears atterward,
secured a divorce, believing her
husband guilty, and married Mr..
Dwit. They soon afterwards sold
out and moved to Atlanta, Ga.
When Pendleton had been in the
penitentiary some two and one half
years, he received letter bearing a
South American postmark. 1t was
from Hinton. He Immediately
wrote him the circumstances he was
in and urged him to come to his
relief, and upon its receipt Hinton
procured passage and returned to
the United States. of course the
governor pardoned Pendleton on
Hinton's appearance. He followed
his wife to Atlanta, and she, having
heard OF the circumstances, had left
Dwit and became raving maniac,
and was committed to the asylum.
Pendleton sought out his son and
with him went to California. There
he again succeeded In amsssing
wealth.
When his boy was p years old
he, for the first time, related the
circumstances of bis life. The son
had yearning to see his mother,
and set out to find her at inc Geor>
gia asylum. When he arrived there
they told him she had left two years
before, cured, and had gone to rela-
tives in North Carolina. When he
arrived there he found she had gone
to relatives in Winston county,
Alabama. Nothing daunted he set
out Tor Alabama, and there found
his long lost mother. He wrote to
his father, detailing the fact OF her
leaving Dewitt, and upon receipt OF
the letter, Mr.. Pendleton left for
Alabama, and was there again re-
married to his former wife. Both
are comparatively young and let us
hope that fate has in store tor them
many years of happy life.
The body found on the Bayou
was that of peddler, who had been
murdered by aegro, the negro, on
his death bed, contessnig the fact of
having killed him for the purpose
of sobbery.-Breckenr Texian.