The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-20

store, where he purchased a forty-four-
calibcr revolver.
They ate dinner and parted. Cockerill
returned to the Post-Dispatch office and
laid his revolver on his desk, covering 1t
with newspaper, and then proceeded to
make up the Sunday morning edition.
About o'clock that Saturday afternoon
COL slayback, accompanied by William II.
klopton, present United States district at
torney, suddenly entered the small edito-
rial room In which Cockerill had his desk.
Both men were armed. Slayback con
fronted COckerill, who was seated, and ex-
claimed, well, here / ann"
With that he placed his hand on his re-
volver ald made motion to draw II from
his hip pocket. Klopton also Is said to
have attempted to draw his weapon. Be
fore Slayback could level his pistol, Cock
erill had his hand under the paper in his
desk. There was sharp report and Stay
back fell forward.
The bullet from Cockerill's pistol had
passed through his heart and lungs, and
as he fell the blood gushed from his mouth
and covered Cockerills shirt front and
vest
Cockerilps pistol next was directed at
Kl0pton. He stepped across the body OF
Col. Slayback, but, as klOpton made no
motion TO interfere with him, passed out
of the room. His pistol he banded to Henry
Moore, one of the editorial writer's ON the
Post-Dispatch in another room, and then
walked out Of the building.
The shooting was nOised about the city
at lightning speed. Ten minutes later Mr.
JOY heard Of II. He found Cockerill, hustled
him into a closed carriage. and drove him
was TO gain time for elaboration. There
some other friends Of the Journalist found
him, and some one brought him a change
or clothing, and they talked over the SIT
uation. II was decided to surrender him to
the police who were securing the city and
trailing JOY. The latter drove at midnight
TO police headquarters He found Chief
Campbell there, and briefly informed him
that the friends OF the editor had decided
to give him up. He stipulated, however,
that he (the chief alone should be allow
ed TO take him. To make sure that no Of
hcers or others would accompany him,
JOY proposed that they drive by separate
conveyances and separate routes to a des-
ignated point in the city, and there meet.
This arrangement was in part prompted
by the fact that q bitter ante-bellum
feeling had been engendered as a result
OF the tragedy by the partisans of Col.
Slayback. on account Of his confederate
record, ana threats OF lynching had been
freely made in various parts of the city
where the dead man had been especially
popular. Chief Campbell drove to the
rendezvous in his buggy and Joy met him
there in his own conveyance, and the two
together proceeded to the place where
Cockrill was kept concealed.
1t was 4 o'clock Tuesday morning
when the little. party approached the pris-
on. joys visit to police Headquarters
and the fact otte that b ne WAS going to
to Slaybacks friends, and several hum
dred people were congregated in front
of the prison. They were suspected of
a design to lynch the editor, and Chief
Campbell suggested that Joy would drive
alone to the prison entrance in a closed
carriage, while Campbell and his prisoner
would drive to a side door and thus thwart
the design of the crowd. The ruse car
ried, and while the mob surrounded the
carriage in which Joy was seated, Camp
bell and Cockerill slipped into the building
unnOticed. Joy was not mOlested
Cockerill remained in confinement three
days and nights, during which Joy was his
constant companion. In the solitude of the
cell COckerill showed the ntensest grief
over the issue Of the encounter. While
eminently justified in his act by the cir
Gums tances, he weepingly depiored the
fatality that had led him to XIII Slaybac
instead of Slayback killing him.
HE has a wife and two daughters
said Cockerill, in tears. Il am alone in
ried, and who would have been soon con-
soled had / been killed instead"
On the third day the court admitted
him to bail. The sum was fixed at $4,000.
and It was signed by so many of his friends
that an extra sheet had to be attached TO
the bail bond
The grand jury considered the case. but
the evidence was so conclusively in ia
vor of Col. Cockerill that no true bill
was found. The prosecuting attorney
tried by every legal method at his COM
mand TO secure his indictment. Three
grand juries examined the facts. But
COckerill was never molested. and contin-
ued 10 edit the POst-Dispatch until Pulit-
ger acquired the New York World and
made him its editor
The pistol with which Cockerln shot
his adversary Is now IN ar. Joys possess
sion in this city. 4 has never been Tired
since that fatal AFTERNOONS of Oct ", isSl