The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-09-24
sUMMERELL's GUARDS STORY
Honeycutt Says He Resigned Because
of the Rough Treatment.

of the Rough Treatment.
The first witness was J. d. Honeycutt,
hall clerk at the Central Prison. He
said he had been connected with the
penitentiary about eleven years, sery-
ing in various capacities on the Pow
ell, Halifax, Caledonia and Northamp-
ton farms.
Supervisor McIyer, of the Caledonia
farm, the witness thought, treated his
men well and humanely. He knew him
on one occasion to shoot a man; the
convict was a bad man and wouldn't
allow anybody to come near him. He
was in the stockade. The gun was
loaded with small shot The witness
said he never knew McIyer TO unmerci-
fully whip man. Good crops We're
made and so far as he could tell the
administration of his farm was eco
nonical.
At the Northampton farm the witness
was corporal of the guard.
"Why did you leave there?"
..Gapt. Summerell was most too
rough
To whum?''
I've heard him talk rough TO guards
and oyerseers. He treated me pretty
well, but / didn't know when he might
treat me otherwise, so | resigned"
WAS he rough to convicts?"
"Yes, at times.
.'Will you cite some instancesg
Joe Macon"
did You see him whip Joe?''
II saw most of it. / don't know how
many licks they struck him. Three of
them whipped him Summerell, Russell
and Safer. He worked that afternoon
and then remained in the stockade sew
eral days
''Summerell is a good overseer with
the exception of his cruelty, isn't hep
Il believe SO.
employees AFRAID TO TELL.
Mr.. Honeycutt said the average man
employed under Sunmercll was afraid
to express himself freely in regard to
the treatment of convicts. The Wit
ness considered him a man of great
passion and strong prejudice.
"Did you see any marks male on
Mazon's body!" Fish
II saw the blood There was a good
deal of it. He was whipped all over"
''Did you see Russell's whipping!'
YES, and Saters too. Sater's whip
ping was very severe. He seemed to be
very much delighted with the opportun-
ity to beat Macon and spoke about it
afterwards. After Safer finished Sum
merrell whipped him. i did not see
any blood while Russell was whipping
him.
Are the hands required to work
harder there than ON the other farms 2"
''Yesn
Are they worked too hard?"
AT times they are"
Are they worked in such a manner
as to injure their health"
II think they are.
Are the overseers on Summerell's
farm more severe than OIL other farms y
II think they are. 1t doesn't take
man long to find out that Summore,i
wants him to treat them that way"
NO CRUELTY AT THE PEN.
The witness said he'd never seen a
convict whipped at the Central Prison
until the blood was drawn. Mr.. Honey
cult was ON SummerelFs farm when
both Tom Brown and George Dixon
were whipped, but he didn't see them.
He understood that they were very
severely punished.
Wasn't it Summerelfs custom to take
his lash to the field with him?'
Yes, | think he carried it every
day."
The witness said he had had no in
, timation that he was to De examined by
the committee.
s'Is Joe Macon very bad negro:
Hes never been any trouble since
his return here. He was whipped With
in an hour after he got TO Northamp-
ton."
do yon think the conyicts have the
same kind of feeling toward the other
supervisors that they have toward Sum
MERELY"
mo, they do not. The truth is every