The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1903-02-26
TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.
Ernest Haywood Shoots and Kills J.
Ludlow Skinner on Principal Street
of Raleigh in Broad Daylight-Both
Were Prominent in Business and
Social Circies-Peopie Shocked and
Stunned by the Awful Occurrence
A Scandal ct the Bottom of it.

RALEIGH. \. {. February 21.-The
greatest social and criminal sensation
Raleigh has ever known developed at
1920 O'Clock this afternoon when, on
Fayetteville street, Ernest Haywood.
one Of the best known lawyers Of Raj
eigh. shot and instantly killed J. Ludlow
Skinner. OF the firm OF Johnson, ThOmp-
son & CO.. cotton brokers. Both men
are OF social and business prominence
Haywood is q grandson OF the late State
Treasurer John Haywood and son OF the
late Dr. f. Burke Haywood, and one OF
Raleigh = leading lawyers. Skinner was
| q grandson of the late Mr.. Ludlow. OF
New York. and IA son OF Rev. DR.. Thos. r..
Skinner. of Raleigh. one OF the best
| known and ablest Bapt:sts in the South.
At least hundred persons must have
seen the shooting. certainly that number
saw the victim Of Iiaywood's revolver
| as he reeled and fell upon his face on the
| car track in front Of the post office and
! Marlborough House and not 10 yards
| from the court house.
HAYWOOD was Immediately taken into
! custody by Deputy Sheriff Separk, upon
whose testimony he was committed to
| iaiI BY Magistrate Maroon without bail
| for murder Separk' : evidence was that
| he was in the court house and heard a
| shot and walked ont He saw another
| flash and heard Il second shot: that Hay
| wood was standing on the sidewalk III
| front Of the post office: that Skinner was
! III the street and made Il motion as II to
| throw his hands towards his pocket,
| then turned, staggered and fell on his
| face on the street car track Separk, as
soon as the second shot was fired, ran
| toward Haywood and called the latter,
who said. An right and took Hay
wood by the arm: that Haywood asked
him to take him to his OHaywood's) Of
| fee: that on arrival at the office he asked
| Haywood to give him the pistol which
| he did.
One witness, Of the horrible affair said
! he was IL few minutes before ii occurred
| i'll the lobby 81 the post Office and saw
| Skinner there. reading Il letter lie went
out on the sidewalk and in few min
utes heard the shot. turned and saw
Skinner walking rapidly away across
the street. Haywood was standing Oh
| the sidewalk within il few feet OF the
post office and he saw the latter raise his
pistol and aim al Skinner, who was
| then ONLY a few feet from the curb OF the
very wide sidewalk. He then heard Hay
wood fire and saw Skinner walk in an
irregular way to the edge OF the street
with high and waveling steps: then sud
denly move in Il sort OF It circular stagger
and fall on his face. Haywood put his
pistol in his pocket. walked South Il few
steps. then started back when Scpark
called him.
The body uf Skinner was placed III
johnson drug store and was aftcrWard
| conveyed to his late home where the alI-
| tDr-v was held. 1t he request Of tCrO-
| ncr Jordan, Hr. Knox performed he atl-
topsy. Coroner Jordan says this showed
that there was only one wound. this
being on mesian line Of left side, about
three inches below left nipple. It grazed
| the heart. passed through the lung and
severed the aorta or great artery. It
was such wound as to cause almost
instant death.
1t was ten O'Clock when the formal in
| quest began at the court house. Health
Officer Sale and Chairman Green, Of the
Board 81 County commissioners. were
among the principal witnesses. The
| shots fired at Skinner were at very short
| intervals and the coroner said he could
not say which Of the two struck him
The general opinion appears to be that
it was the second shot. as such q wound
would naturally cause death in Il few
| moments.
1T the inquest Chairman Green testified
that after the second shot he saw Skin
ncr put his left hand to hia side and a mo-
ment later fall.
| e. b. Edwards, Jr. saw Haywood
fire the second shot; saw Skinner walking
across the street with his back toward
the post office; saw Haywood in the act
OF replacing the pistol i'll his pocket
| Haywood had only Il few minutes be
fore the shooting been in the office OF the
Register of Deeds and il appears; was
going up the street as skinner came out
of the post office and started across the
| street. Some persons say Skinner never
saw Haywood when the first shot was
fired and it wascertainly the second shot
which killed him. 1t does not appear
that there was any talk between the men
or that they were nearer together than
several yards.
\ pistol was found in Skinner's left hip
pocket 1t was a new weapon and had
not been discharged. As he was not ac-
customed to carrying Il pistol it looks
as if he anticipated trouble.
Raleigh has been deeply stirred by the
awful occurrence. Both men stood high
in popular esteem; both We're quiet gen
tlemanly men and the idea of either kill
ing the other was of course never thought
Of though in quiet way the Raleigh
public has known that trouble was
brewing. Whisperings of this and that
thing have been heard for months. but
no one dared to talk it openly: it was al
ways with bated breath Now that a
man has been slain the truth will come
at least the stories will he told. Hay
wood was manager for the Tucker estate
the property OF Mrs. Rufus Tucker. the
mother of Vim. Tucker whose widow.
Mrs. Gertrude Tucker, is sister IL the
wife of Ludlow Skinner. the man slain.
Efforts We're made at first to put the
| whole trouble on the settlement of this
estate. This may have had something
to do with it, but behind it allis another
story. Haywood. i'll managing this
property, was thrown in close contact
with the entire family including the
widow. Mrs Gertrude Tucker. 1t has
been talked that Haywood married her
a secret marriage-but no one dared ask
him openly. Since the tragedy his coun-
sci say he is not married: it is apparent
that the prosecution will say he is mar
ried-or that he should have been. In
any event it is the same old story
Raleigh thought we'll OF both men but
it can be said that ut this time public
| OPINION Is against haywood. tor 1t Is
plain t nat he shot his man down in cold
blood. with generalization; that proba-
bly, Skinner never saw his SLAYER until
after the fatal shot. ii then
haywood : defence is already outlined.
lie will say that skinner met him and
Knocked him down; that both men
reached for their PISTOLS that he was
quicker than skinner and shot first. On
these alleged facts haywood will seek a
writ of haheas corpus.
While haywood claims self-defence for
his act the State has numbers of witnesses
who saw the killing and if there was
any fight. any knock down. they did not
see it. One witness of the shooting says
he was i'll the post office lobby: saw
Skinner there talking to some one: that
Skinner was not at all nervous and
smiled; that he walked down the steps
with him on Fayetteville street that the
| first shot tiraI ,,-hnr, SlipDn,