The news & observer., 1897-02-10
How a Little Colored Tramp
Kept His Word.
WANTED TO VISIT HIS HOME
BUT DEATH CAME FOR HIM BE
FORE THE TRAIN.
FOUND DEAD IN THE OIL MILL
The Great Pile of Cotton Seed Sup
posed 10 Have Rolled Down and
Smothered Him While
He Slept.

He Slept.
He was small black boy, perhaps
Is years old, wearing a cloth cap and
ragged knee pants. lie stood around the
fire in Jones and Powell's wood yard
about 6 o'clock Monday morning.
Il think III go to my home in Rock
ingham," he said to another boy stand
ing by. "I'll jump the morning train and
see how all the folks are"
But he didn't go. He never will go.
Nine hours later his dead body was
! found buried in n pile of seed, in the cot
aon seed oil mill near the Southern freight
Idepot.
/ lit was about three o'clock yesterday
morning ghastly discovery was made by
. laborer in the mill. The mill
il behind with its orders and is running
night and day The night force goes on
nit six and remains on till next morning.
II was in the seed room at the southwest
corner Of the building. The wheels were
whirring sleepily and the men were work
i1ig steadily, keeping seed in the Gutom-
attic feeder that carries them to the mills
I'M another part OF the building. Addi-
son Horton was digging down q great pile
of seed in the extreme southwest corner
oftthe room. For several days they had
BEEN taking seed from this pile and it was
NOW getting quite small. As he dug
and carried away the seed at the bottom
( of the pyramid others stumbled down
in mimic avalanches TO take their place
| About 3 O'Clock he uncovered about
a foot OF a mysterious docking object.
| He put llis hand upon it 1t was hui
man body, still limp and warm. Help
was quickly summoned and the dead body
takeh out 1t seemed to have been cover
ed irt about 8 feet of seed. 1t was lying
on the side with the head a little lower
thantth feet The back was the first
part seen. When taken out the body
was karm and limp
/ The police were at once notified and
I everything left by the workmen just as
it was when the body was discovered.
! The news spread rapidly among the ne
} groes of the city and yesterday morning
great crowds Of them went down 10 view
the body and, If possible, identify it.
! The only Identification, beyond that
made by the people who saw the boy
in Jones and Powels wood yard Mon
day night, was made by colored boy,
Robert: jackson, who came here from
Sampson county, and Frank Wall, a
brakeman 0n the Southern Railway.
! The dolored boy Robert Jackson, claim
ed to have known the dead boy for about
a year. He says his name is Bill Atkin-
son and THAT he claimed Rockingham as
I his homo. Jackson says the first time
he ever saw Atkinson was about u
/ months ago, when he (Atkinson) went TO
the home of Math Crucenberry, a white
/ farmer, ia that county, and asked for
| food saying that he had no home and
/ was willing to work If he could get any
! thing to do. Crucenberry gave the boy
/ work and ne remained in his employ for
some 8 months, after which time he ran
away The next jackson knew of the
| boy was to see him here about three
months ago He then told Jackson he
was on his way to Greensboro and from
there he wonld go back to his home at
Rockingham He said he was sure the
dead body was that OF the Atkinson boy.
Frank Wall, a brakeman ON the South
ern, said the boy beat his way down on
his train from Durham Sunday night
and got off and stood shivering in the
cold at the water-tank. Wall says he
noticed how thinly he was clad and how
on the engine and warm. He claims to
have seen the boy around the train again
early Monday night
George Hudson and William Faulcon,
two other negro boys, were among those
/ who saw the boy at Jones and Powell's
wood yard One or two drivers and la
borers there also saw him and spoke to
him. This was about z o'clock and the
Ia 81 frne In foxE .affx
far as is known.
A search was made Of the boys Clothes
but nothing was found which would lead
to am Identification. He had paper bag
which contained a biscuit or two and
box of matches.
The body was buried yesterday after
noon by the city. In the absence of any
evidences OF foul play and as nobody
made application for coroners inquest
none was held. An examination of the
body was made by DIR. Wrenn, the city
physician, however. before the inter |
ment He found nothing ON the body,
beyond some heavy bruises that seemed |
toahaye been sustained in beating his way |
on the cars and the like, to indicate any |
foul play. He was OF the opinion that |
death came while the boy slept and /
the cause was that he smothered to
death.
This conceded width the theory OF the
mill men who believed that the boy had
crept intothe building, through an opening
over behind the seed pile and dug hole
into the seed and gone to sleep Then
as the base OF the pile was torn away
later in the might, the seed rolled gently
but ceaselessly down and covered the
tramp-boy, tuohed away in a softer and
warmer bed than he had known for
many day. The warmth and lfmpness
OF the body and its position when found
bear out this theory
After all did the little tramp not go
home as he had said he would?
EMANCIPATION ASSOCIATION.
The third annual meeting of the Eman-