Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1900-01-26
FAMED FOR MURDERS.
WICKEOEST COUNTY IN UNITED
STATES
IL In North Carolina, Where shootings
Are tho Recreation OF Its Desperate
Inhabitants-A Merry sherln-George
Pritchard's Record.

scene of more murders and homicides
than Mitchell county in the remote
western pa1t Of North Carolina and ad-
joining the Tennessee line. Most of the
tmen served in the union army, and
there have been many combats be-
tween them and the ex-confederates.
The county is also full OF moonshiners,
and they fight anybody and anything
that interfere with their distillation OF
BLOCKADE whisky. These people hate
Ia negro, and do not permit blacks to
live in the county. Into two townships
in the county a negro is not allowed
to enter. Not long ago railroad COM
pany was building road through a
part Of this county, and the men served
notice that negroes could not work on
the road in that county. The COM
pany withdrew the negroes and the
work was resumed.
The latest killing was done by Sheriff
George X. Pritchard, brother of United
States Senator Peter C. Pritchard. A
moonshiner and desperate named
Honeycutt recently killed United States
Deputy Marshall Greer, who tried to
arrest Honeycutt for running block
ade still" Honeycutt defied arrest,
and Pritchard and one of his deputies
named Blalock went to arrest him.
The desperate was found, and he
opened fire and killed Blalock, and was
Killed instantly by Pritchard.
George X. Pritchard is popular with
the republicans of Mitchell county, and
is serving his third term as sheriff.
III the discharge of his duties in trying
ITO enforce the law he has been COM
PEELED to kill one man in self-defense
for each term he has held the Office.
The first man to fall was Avery Parker,
a merchant of Bakersville, the county
seat of Mitchell county. Parker, when
sober, was good citizen. capital fell
low, a loyal friend and a magnanimous
foe; but when drunk he was des-
perate man. 1t was his custom to get
on spree, defy the law and hazard
the lives of good people. He became a
bully of the most vicious type. Once
on a Sunday, when Sheriff Pritchard
was out of town, he ran amuck in
Bskersville for a whole Gay and OPEN
ly defied the laW. He did it willfully,
boastfully and with malicious intent
Pritchard returned to town, armed him
self with proper papers and sufficient
weapons, and started to Parker's store
to arrest him. Parker saw him COM
ing and opened fire on him across the
street. With unfaltering nerve and
desperate courage Pritchard slowly and
steadily approached the store house,
in which Parker had prepared himself
for the emergency amid a fusillade of
bullets from a repeating rife. He
didn't try to return the fire until he
was inside the store door, when he
used his pistol with accuracy. Pritch-
ard found, on entering the building,
that Robert III. Young. Parker's son-in
law, was also shooting at him. Bullets
flew thick and fast for some seconds,
and then the building was filled with
smoke. But when all was over and
the atmosphere of the room became
clear Parker lay dead on the floor.
Young was wounded painfully, and
Pritchard had caught bullet in the
hand. The news of the affair spread
rapidly. Parker's friends became
aroused and formed a mob to Stay
Pritchard. They had heard that the
killing was in cold blood and without
cause Pritchard armed himself and
prepared to defy the whole gang, but,
the truth becoming known, the aveng-
ers dispersed and went to their homes
satisfied
Munroe Garland was the second to
fall before Pritchard. Garland was
desperate of the most bloodthirsty ma
ture. At the time he was killed six
people, among them two women, were
suffering from wounds inflicted by his
gun. He was killed in 1897. Pritchard
took his deputy, c. F. Blalock, with
him to hunt Garland, who was then
defying the law and threatened the
sheriff and his deputies. They found
Garland at William Moseley's, near
Magnetic City. Just before the officers
reached Moseley's house Garland left
it and took a footpath leading to the
woods. He had not seen his pursuers.
Pritchard followed behind, and when
close enough sprang toward Garland
and caught him by the arm. AS he did
so Garland yanked from his upper coat
pocket a 44-calibre revolver and shot
him through the right lung. The ball
went through the body and lodged just
inside the skin near the shoulder
blade. Then a fight for life ensued.
Pritchard shot Garland through and
through several times, and then fell
exhausted from his bleeding wound
In the meantime Blalock was fired at
by Garland. Returning to the attack,
he too, sent several balls through the
desperate, who fell at his feet a corpse.
Everybody who saw him thought that
Pritchard would die, but he said he
would soon be up. In three weeks he
was out of bed. He recovered fully
and was soon as vigorous and robust
as before. Garland would have died,
the doctors who examined him said,