Birmingham state herald., 1897-01-08
4 PEND IN HUMAN SHAPE Murders Five Inoffensive Citizens
 and Is at Large.
 SUMMARY PUNISHMENT IT Will Be Meted Out to the Monster if Captured
Will Be Metcd Out to the Monster if Captured by Determined Men.
MURDERER AND WOULD-BE RAPIST
Receives Prompt Attention After Having Confessed His Crime-Two Steamers Burned No Lives Lost-The
 Fire Fiend at Work.

Charleston, s. C., Jan. "A special to
 the News and Courier from Sumter, s. C., says: All Sumter was aroused this
 morning when the news flashed over the
 wires that Simon Cooper had killed old
 MT Ben Wilson, his son Wesley and Mrs.
 Wesley Wilson. The first information of
 the hellish work was received about g
 o'clock, and shortly afterward Sheriff
 Pierson received a telegram confirming
 the report, adding further that Cooper had, also killed two negroes-a man and
 girl.
 Sheriff Pierson, as soon as possible,
 organized posse, and, chartering a special train, left for Lynchburg. When the special reached Mayesville the sheriff
 received information that Cooper had
 been seen to pass near the town short
 time before so the train was stopped at
 Mayesville and a part of the posse left for St. Charles and the others took the public road, coming towards Sumter. These two parties in conjuction with posses from Mayesville are securing every foot of land between Mayesville and Sumter.
 The facts in regard to the killing of the five people as received in Sumter at $50 D. m. are as follows:
 Simon Cooper went to Lynchburg yes- terday evening for the purpose of fore ing a young colored girl to marry him. The girl and her mother by some means escaped and ran into the swamp. AS soon as possible after Cooper's appear ance in the town a posse was organized and went in pursuit of him, he having left as soon as he failed to get the girl. The. posse came within 200 yards of him at one time, when he shot at them and retreated.
 IJa foroad cop,a y,aproaS to po with hin,
 and kept with them all night. He came out of the woods about daylight and went to the house of cqlored man
 named Boyle, took his horse and com
 pelled Boyle's son to accompany him. From there he went to the house of the Wilson's, about mile distant, where the horrible crime was committe. MT. Baker, who lives near by, says he
 heard considerable shooting and saw Mrs. Wilson go to the buggy house with back ito the house, Cooper following her Cooper, a short time afterwards, came out on the piazza shooting in every di- rection and forced Boyle's boy to har- ness the horse to MT. Wilson's buggy He got into the buggy and went few yards only when he met colored man, named Smith, whom he killed, and as he passed Bakers house he shot at Bakers children, who were on the piazza. Where he went no one knows at this time, but he will be found. Hundreds of brave, determined men are securing the
 woods in every direction and speedy vengeance will be meted out to this hu- man fiend.
 When the bodies of the Wilson's were found this morning the old gentleman 75 years of age, was sitting in the bed with a shot gun in his hand; his son, Wesley, was in another bed with his head split, while on the floor lay the body of the woman, her head smashed in and her throat cut Smith. the negro, who was killed on the road was found with an axe still in the back of his neck and his head half severed from his body.
 The dead people were inoffensive, peaceable citizens.
 These are the facts as we were able to gather them from the excited and de- termined men, from Lynchburg, who
 came into this city this afternoon.