Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-07-27


they were going to do he did not
know; but he did know that Eliza
Goore was not at home, and that the
object of the two men in taking him
along was to get the old man to open
the door. When he knocked at the
door the old man asked who it was,
and when he gave the information the
door was promptly opened.
Immediately, Amzi Donovant and
Frank Castles jumped into the cabin,
seized the old man, threw piece of
rope they had brought along for the
purpose, around his neck, and choked
him to death. Then they tied the
dead mans hands and his feet, and
running a pole through, each resting
an end on his shoulder, they carried
the body about three-quarters of a
mile to an old we'll into which they
dumped it and covered it with stones.
"And why, did you not tell all of
this before ?" the Negro was asked.
"Oh they told me that if ever
told it they would do me the same
way"
Frank Castles was arrested during
Saturday, and he corroborated the
story of the boy except that he claim
ed to have had nothing to do with the
murder. He had only helped Amzi
Donovant to carry the body to the
old we'll and cover it with stones.
Amzi Do9ovant was not arrested until
Sunday morning, and he refused to do
any talking.
Sarah Donovsnt told story that
corroborated the statements of Angles
Castles and threw additional light on
the situation. 1t was to the effect that
Eliza Goore was party to the crime.
Eliza had left home with the under
standing that Frank and Amzi were
to do the job in her absence. When
she returned to Amzi's house, she
found that the matter had not yet
been attended to, and she went after
Frank and brought him to Amzi's
house. Then the two took some rope,
and accompanied by Angles, went to
Ben's house. Shortly afterward she
heard the old mans voice asking who
was in the yard, and then after the
opening of the door came the noise of
a sharp struggle. Eliza Goore had
but little to say about the matter !;
but in her actions generally showed
that she was very uneasy.
Although the whole country was
wonderfully excited over the story, it
was almost too horrible for belief
Yet it was determined to push the in
vestigation to the end, and during Sun
day number of men looked into the
old we'll on the Thompson Gwin place.
The we'll was originally about 80 feet
deep but had been filled up to about
60 feet. A lantern, lowered to the
bottom, was extinguished by poisonous
gases, and after these gases had been
expelled by means of bellows, Mr..
John Harvey Montgomery descended
to the bottom, where he found lot of
stones. Upon the removal of these,
the remains of the old Negro, in a
badly decomposed condition, were ex-
posed to view, and raised to the sur
face.
DR.. J. H. Saye made post mortem
examination. The Negroes skull was
badly cracked; but the boy had said
that the body had been dumped into
the well headforemost, and in the
opinion of DR.. Saye, this and the sub
sequent pelting of the stones to cover
the old fellow up, were the cause of the
fractures. The ropes were still fast
ened around the neck, hands and feet,
and there was every evidence that
death had been produced by strangu-
lation. DR.. Saye so testified.
After all the testimony was in, the
coroner's jury-Mr. o. J. Gwin, fore
man-rendered verdict to the effect
that the deceased-Ben Goore-had
come to his death from strangulation
at the hands of Amzi Donovant and
Frank Castles and that Eliza Goore,
and Sarah Donovant are accessories
to the killing.
The full facts as to the motive Of
the crime have not yet been devel-
oped. One story is that Amzi Dono-
want accused old man Goore of having
copjured child which afterward died !;
and another story is of too intimate
relations between the old man and
Donovant's wife. When asked why
she had not told of the murder pre-
viously, Sarah Donovant gave about
the same answer that had been given
by Angles Castles-that she had been