The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-27
CHRISTOPHER SURRENDERED.
SLAYER OF LIZZIE WILLIAMS GAVE
HIMSELF Up TO DETECTIVES.

He Had Been Holly Pursued since
the Day Following the Homicide
and Probably Thought That SUR
render Was the Hest Course for
Him to FONow-WhereupOn He
Sent for Detectives Barrett and
shea and Gave Himself to Them.
Found In KeIIy's Alley, Near Gas
house niII-says the Shooting Was
Accidental and Tells Long story
to Prove Il.
Columbus Christopher, known to the po-
lice and his intlmates as 'Bowery Kid"
| and charged with The murder OF Lizzie
Williams, was arrested yesterday morning
! by City Detectives Barrett and shea, IN
Kellys alley, one of the very worst sec
tons of the city, in the neighborhood of
| Gashouse hill.
Early Tuesday morning Christopher shot
the woman in the back with a revolver,
the ball lodging in the cavity of the stom-
ach. The shooting passed unknown TO the
police until much later in the day, when
the woman was removed from her home
on West Jones street, near where the
shooting was done, to the Georgia In
| Urinary There she died on the same after
noon. In the meantime Christopher had
| succeeded In hiding himself and since
then the detectives have been searching
for him high and low.
Detectives Shea and Barrett have been
| especially diligent in the effort to arrest
the alleged murderer aud have been close
on his trail since they first begun the
| hunt. Yesterday he was arrested and
brought to the station house, where he
was locked up TO await the action of the
coroners jury. 1t is quite possible that
| the inquest will be held to-day.
No adequate motive for the shooting has
yet been discovered. There was no rela-
| ton existing between the man and woman
| that could have induced a murderous at
| tack or served to explain its commission.
| So far as is known there We're no wit
| nesses to the shooting and no statement
made by the woman prior to her death has
yet been brought to light. There was no
quarrel preceding the homicide and there
| has yet been absolutely no reasonable eX-
| PLANTATION of its cause. Christopher him
| self says ii was an accident and tells
circumstantial tale of the manner in which
it occurred. This he related in his cell
at the station house to a representative
| of the Morning News. Stripped of its
| dialect and repetitions, it Is something as
| follows:
"On Monday night late I was taking a
| friend of mine, who was drunk, to his
| home, and was near the corner Of In
| dian and West Broad streets. with him
when the woman came up. I knew that
| her name was Lizzie, but nothing more.
/ had seen her only few times and only
| knew her very slightly. She spoke to us
| and when l finally succeeded in getting
| my friend in the hack ! had called, he
| insisted that she should come with us no
/ 90 I'm md ct1iaf faY. he lea
! ably drunk, she consented. After we were
| all in the hack I noticed that my friend
| had a revolver in the top pocket of hia
| coat and, afraid that he would use il, or
| that in his condition 1t might be fired ac-
| cidentally, I took it out of his pocket and
| placed 1t in my own.
1--WE drove to my friends house on Guy
| Ter street, where 1 got out of the hack
| with him and got him in bed ! then
drove with Lizzie to her home, near the
| corner of Guerard lane and Jones street
where I dismissed the cab. stayed here
| for little while talking with Lizzie and
| a friend of hers, called Rosanna, and
then started to go. Lizzie said she would
| walk with me as far as the corner and we
started out of the house together"
GAS we reached the street, Lizzie said, so
| you took the gun away from him.? l an
swered yes, and drew it from my pocket,
| adding that it was not much Of a gun. She
!
| the cartridges. so that I might let her have
it. As I was doing this she walked ahead.
| The weapon had been half cooked ana I
was trying to operate it so that / might
withdraw the cartridges, when the ham
mer slipped from my finger and the re-
volver was exploded. Lizzie told me that
she had been shot, but for a time could
not believe it. ! helped to carry her into
the house and after we had reached the
light l saw that the bullet had entered her
back Then l went for a doctor and cali
ed at the offices Of three or four. None
of them would come unless 1 paid him in
advance. This l could not do. l went
back to the house and saw Lizzie again.
1 still had no idea that she was badly
hurt"
when next heard from her it was
said that there was much excitement and
1 thought it best for me 10 lie quiet for
dav or two / did so until this morning,
when I went for Detective Shea and sur
rendered myself 10 him. ] never intended
to shoot Lizzie, / had no reason 10 do it,
and / am innocent of any crime"
Christopher Is an unusually intelligent
negro, and his story, at least, sounds wei
and quite possibly is true. AT any rate, it Is
consistent with the few known facts -
the case and with itself and offers about
the only solution of the mystery that has
vet appeared 1t bears testimony to
Christopher's ingenuity. II not TO his hon
esty. He tells it with enough OF detail to
lend an air of truth to the narrative and
with an apparent frankness that is quite
engaging The weak spot, of course, in
the story is his failure 10 surrender himself
In the first instance, but for this he offers
some sort of explanation and at least NULL
fes its effect by his action IN sending for
the detectives and surrendering himself to
them.
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HpINSNVICN SHIPPING.