Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1897-01-09
A HUMAN FlEND.
A Sumter Negro Kills Five People Within
Week.

Week.
Sumter county is in a frenzy of ex-
citement on account of series of the
most horrible murders that has ever
been heard of iu this state, all COM
mitted by an inhuman Negro brute
named Simon Cooper. The Negro
has killed FIVE persons within week,
and at last accounts was still at large.
The blood curdling story begins
with an Emancipation celebration held
on january l, in the little village OF
Magnolia. During the day, Cooper
got into a difficulty with another Ne
gro and shot him. 1t was the act OF
reckless desperate, and the other Ne
groes, sought to arrest the fellow. He
was we'll armed, however, and stood
his ground with such determination
that within ten minutes he killed
Negro named Grant Davis, and more
or less seriously wounded five others.
Then he made his escape.
The Negroes, and also the whites,
of the vicinity of Magnolia, were very
much excited over the affair; but for
some reason Magistrate E. ]. Good
win refused to issue warrant for the
arrest of the desperate. This was
Notwithstanding the fact that num-
Der of white people had asked for the
warrant, and offered to see that it was
properly served.
Nothing more was seen of Cooper
until last Wednesday night. He was
engaged TO be married to girl named
Eva Hickson, and hearing that she
had turned against him on account OF
his Emancipation day crimes, he re-
turned to Magnolia on Wednesday
night, armed with a Winchester rifle,
and gave it out that he proposed to
either marry the girl or kill her. The
girl, however, had heard of his coming
and made her escape to the woods.
Finding the girl gone, Cooper went to
the cabin of her sister-in-law, Eliza
Hickson, near by, and fired into it six
times; but without inflicting any in
jury. Then he compelled a girl named
Julia Ellison to 90 with him into the
woods after Eva Hickson, and did not
allow the Ellison girl to return home
until the next morning.
In the meantime, party Of white
men, learning that Cooper was in the
neighborhood, tried to arrest him.
Leveling his Winchester, he warned
them not to advance, swearing that he
would kill the whole crowd. They
continued to advance, however, and
after firing a few shots without dam
age, he fed to the woods and escaped.
On Thursday morning at daylight,
Cooper appeared at the house of
Thomas Boyle. colored, and demand
ed a horse. Boyle demonstrated; but
when Cooper drew his pistol, gave in.
Then taking Boyle's son Isaac along,
Cooper rode away, saying that he
would send the horse back by the boy.
Boyle at once left to tell the posse of
white men the direction in which
Cooper had gone. 1t twas Immediately
after this that the bloody work of the
day commenced in earnest.
Accompanied by the boy on foot,
Cooper rode to the house of MIR. West
Wilson a short distance away, and
calling to Mr.. Wilson in his house,
demanded the use of buggy. Upon
Mr.. Wilson's refusal, Cooper fired at
him through the window and killed
him. Then Cooper went into the
house. He was met by Mr.. Wilson's
aged father, whom he also killed with
his rifle, shooting him in the heart and
in each side. Next the feud bought
Mrs. Wilson out of the house and
made her 70 with him to the barn af-
ter harness for the horse. Upon their
return, he shot her in the back of the
head. A Negro named Preston Smith
came up about that time, and after
telling Smith to get down on his knees,
Cooper shot him dead. Next the Ne
gro knocked Mr.. West Wilson's head
with an axe, and then sinking the tool
up to the eye in the head of the
dead Negro, got into the buggy with
the boy Isaac and drove off.
Isaac Boyle, a few hours later,
brought the horse and buggy back.
He said that Cooper had forced him to
20 along and had threatened to kill
him in the event he should attempt to
escape. According to the boy, Coop
er ravished Mrs. Wilson before he
killed her, and then went through the
house and stole sum of money. He
gave the boy Isaac SIS bill. In tell
ing Isaac about the murders, Cooper
laughed about it as though it were all
a good joke, and expressed himself as
we'll satisfied with the days work.
Some of the people of the neighbor-
hood were suspicious of Isaac Boyle's
connection with the matter, and had
the boy committed to Jail on the
charge of being an accessory to the
murders. Boyle, however, is half
witted fellow, and there is reason to
believe that the story of himself and
father to the effect that he was forced
into the whole thing by Cooper, is
true.
Cooper is said to be grandson of a