Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1902-06-14
A Murderer's
Story

\
summer night, of the year 1854, when
slight rattle at the window blinds
arrested my attention. Reaching for
my pistol, cautiously unbolted and
| opened the door leading out on the bal
cony. ! was confronted by cringing,
anxious, scared-loolling man, whose
face, or should say form, was not en-
tirely unfamiliar. At that date my
factory, on the upper side of Canal
street, was thelast building toward the
rear Of the city. The two roadways
for a considerable distance were I'M
paved, and the neutral ground" as
! we called the green stretch which di-
ded the municipalities was an I'M
trodden tangle of noxious weeds and
swamp grass. Some distance above,
on the opposite side of the street, two
or three small, detached cottages, sur
rounded by low fences, struggled I'M
evenly along the narrow sidewalk.
Still further up Canal street woods
cotton press" was the only occupied
lot for quite distance.
was daily at my factory, and occa-
fonally clerical business detained me
| in the Office after nightfall.
Ny shabby visitor thought recog-
nized as a tenant of one of the before
mentioned cottages, though had never
! met him face TO face, as we walked on
| opposite sides of the broad street. He
called me by name, and whispered he
was in great trouble, and had been
watching my Office several nights hop
ing to see light there that would in
/ dictate my presence. / told him TO
/ come in and close the door and tell me
his trouble. In response to his inquir-
1 ing look, assured him there was no
| one besides ourselves about the build
ing. By the light of the room saw he
was all in tatters; his clothes, of good
material, were torn by thorns and
briars and despatched with swamp
| mud.
"Why, man." said, "where have you
been? And what is the matter?'
"Oh, Mr.. Winn, am in great trouble.
1 have killed a man this three nights
| ago, and I run away and hide in the
swamps all days. And only nights I
creep out and watch for your light.
want you to help me. 1 want you to
hide me. Do something!" he added,
| and the tears raced down his careworn
face and dropped upon his ragged coat
front.
| "You have been in the swamp back
here all that time? without food and
in all that mud? only wonder you are
not crazy. Here, take drop of brandy
and brace up, and then we will talk it
| over"
! I saw he was verging on a complete
/ Al l.
seemed a trihe more composed. as
sumed a very reassuring manner. and
cheerfully said:
"Now. tell me all about il. Maybe
can help you. Mr. don't even know
your name. You say you have killed a
man. Don't you live in one of those
cottages across the street? Haven't
| YOU family? I see a woman around
| there sometimes"
| fired the questions at him 10 get him
| quoted down, for he was fairly
shaking now with nervous excitement.
| Eyes, yes, live there. Ihave a wife;
Ihave no children. You don't know m e,
but have always known you since you
come out here. And there's nobody
but you, Mr.. Winn, can help me now"
1 Tell me all about ii now; it's getting
late, and both Of us are tired. Wen see
what we can do to help you. What is
| your business ? and where is your wife Z?
and how did you happen to kill man?
and where did you doit? Brace up and
tell me the whole story"
well, ! am in a shoestore down on
Levee street, and they sent me to La
fourche on business. This is Friday,
isn't it? Well, got back Wednesday
night; it was after dark when the boat
| got in, and took my bag and walked to
my house. My wife she go TO Pass
Christian while bin gone, and so the
house was shut up. I open the front
door and struck a match and lit the
lamp in the hall. Then I just chance
TO look into my parlor, and there was a
man standing in there in the middle of
the room; big man; heap bigger than
me, standing there looking straight at
me; his hat on like he just come in. 1
say 20 him: What you doing here p
or something that way. He look back
at me, fierce like, and he scowl at me,
but he never said word. / know he
heard me, for he scowled and frowned
and he come one step nearer me. He
look so angry and so fiery that knew
he would harm me if he come any
closer, so put my hand to my pocket.
You know, Mr.. Winn, out here by the
swamps, where there's no houses and
no police, a man has to have a pistol
handy when he goes around out here,
especially after dark. Well, put my
hand to that pistol pocket, and that
awful looking big man, so much bigger
than me, went TO his pistol, too. As |
pointed at him I see he was quick, too,
and his pistol was pointed right at me.
So I fred-quick-and fired first, for
he fell, struck right in the hea6-be-
fore he had a chasce 70 fire. know I
killed him dead, he fell so sudden. And
the noise just shook everything, he was
such big man, so much bigger than
me-"
1 poured out stiff drink for the
wretched man and bade him pull him