Mexico weekly ledger., 1897-02-04
Smith Refused to AbdiCate
AND WAS SHOT AND INSTANTLY
KILLED BY HENRY TAYLOR,
ANOTHER NEGRO.
The Killing the Result of . Drunken
Row Over Who Was the BEST
Man,"Both Negroes Laying
Claim to the Homer
Taylor In
Jail.

Saturday night at 1928 O'Clock
Henry Taylor shot and instantly kill
ed Lee Smith in the rear of 1. j. Hicks
restaurant, on West Promenade street.
The principal cause of the killing
seems to have been some exceeding
ly rotten whiskey.
Taylor and his wife rent the room
in which the trouble occurred from
.D.Ferris. Saturday night they were
holding something of a levee there
and had among other attractions, pro-
vided for the guests a troupe of stroll
ing troubadours from Moberly. The
banjos and guitars were twanging
merrily and peace and happiness
were reigning supreme, when the bad
liquor began to get in it's effects on
Taylor and caused him to declare in
emphatic terms that he was just about
the 'best man that aver happened"
round in this neck o. woods; that he
was from up the country snd had had
a mess of K rays for breakfast and was
in fighting form. Physicallysspeaking,
he was the "best coon" at the party.
To this declaration Smith-who was q
game rooster himself-took exception,
asserting his own claim to this distin-
guished honor. 1t was thereupon
decided by Smith, Taylor and the as
sembled company that the question
of the championship must be settled
between them without further delay.
All superluous articles of clothing
were promptly doffed and the princi-
pals went at it "hammer and tongs."
1t was not long until what had started
in a friendly spirit became q sure
enough fight and the corabatants had
to be separated by the onlookers.
Taylor then ordered Smith from
his room and Smith refused to go.
Taylor repeated the command and,
upon Smith vowing that he could not
be made to go, Taylor shot him. The
charge from the weapon--an old army
musket-entered Smiths right side,
close to the arm pit; in fact, cutting
through the biceps muscle of the arm,
severed all of the large blood vessels
leading to the heart and tore a terri
BILE hole in the right lung. Smith fell
backwards out of the door, which
leads into Olive street, running by
the side of the building, and his life
blood dyes the sidewalk, a great pool
of it being still standing when the
scene Of the tragedy was visited by a
LEDGER reporter. Death came to
him almost instantaneously and his
body was taken to Lupton's under.
taking establishment, where it re-
manned until its burial Monday
All the expenses connected with the
burial had to be borne by the county
as Smith had neither friends or rela'
tives here, having come here severa
months ago from st. Louis.
Taylor was arrested by Policeman
Quisenberry and lodged. in the County
Jail.
Coroner Rodes summoned a jur,
promptly Sunday morning consisting
of the following citizens: JOSEPH
Botkin, o. l.. Martin, @. F.lShireman
j. AT. Brown, @. @. VOORHEES, ant
John Hill. The inquest was held il
the Sheriff's office in the Court Hous,
and lasted from IL m. until A p. m
The result of it's delibertions was tina
Smith came to his death from a gul
shot fred by Taylor and that said sho
was fired without justification.
When g by a LEDGER represent
alive at the Jail Monday Tsylo.
refused to talk and referred the re
porter to his lawyer, P. FL. Cullen
He seemed rather inclined to trea
the matter as a joke and did not ap
pear the least uneasy as to the fina
outcome of the case.
Yesterday at 9 O'Clock the spec
ial grand jury composed of J. H
Minor, w. H. Brown, WILDER Sharp
T. B. Brown, A. M. Harrison, JameI
Marshall, James Lewis, s. Q. Hill, T
B. Hit, J.. A. Guthrie, Thos. Hughes
and G. B. Horton met and returned
an Indictment of murder in the frs
degree against Henry Taylor, wit
shot and killed Lee Smith, alias Fud
ney Green, last Saturday night.
Judge Hughes has ordered a specia
venire of so men to appear on Thurs
day, February 18th, to try the case
Taylor still refuses to talk for publ
cation.