The Savannah morning news., 1903-11-24
CHARGED PE0NAGE.
Continued from Tenth Page.


Continued from Tenth Page.
Of land. and it was in these enterprises
hat the negroes paid out of imprison-
1nent we're worked.
Thomas ]. Mcclellan is a prominent
oitizen of Ware county, having served
saveral years as sheriff. William F.
IVA wiley, who is Jointly indicted with
McClellan is a young attorney of Ware
county, being a graduate of the Uni
I,arsitv of Georgia, and member of
one of the best families of the state.
The McLeods and Mr.. Lester Will
hanson are prosperous planters and
are highly respected in the commune
Ties in which they live.
In addition to the white men who
we're indicted, two other cases were
made against negroes who assisted in
+ha transactions, and that the ends of
iustice may not be defeated the names
Of these will be withheld until they are
seized.
the Jury the negroes who were held in
nAonage were subjected, unlawfully, to
yiolent treatment, and were whipped
for the slightest offense. and when
they escaped from the camps they were
hunted with bloodhounds, and severely
Strapped when they were captured.
1t was also charged that number of
the negroes had been convicted for
minor offenses, given thirty days by
+he court at which they were tried
and then sold into peonage, from which
they did not escape in several months.
Mr.. Robert Toomer, a prominent
Young attorney of Waycross, is in the
CITY and is the legal adviser of a num-
her of those under indictment. 1t is
expected that all of the cases will come
up before Judge Speer to-day, when
+bev will be divided into several
classes. The indictments against the
Messrs. McRee constituting the class
which charges that the men were held
in illegal bondage, William F. Crawley
and Thomas Mcclellan constituting the
class which effected the seizure and the
McLeods and Williamson the parties
who actually transacted the sales of
the negroes.
MIR. McRee's Statement.
Mr.. Edward McRee said last night
that he could only offer ignorance of
the law in such cases as defense for
his violation. 1--WE have only been
guilty of the same offense, as hundreds
of other sawmill and plantation opera
tors have been guilty of. We always
treated the men that we're secured by
paying their fines, justly. They were
given plenty to eat, and as soon as they
had worked themselves out of our debt,
at reasonable salaries, they were al
lowed to go their way. We consulted
LAWYERS before accepting any negroes
under the terms which have been de-
clared illegal. AS soon as a decision
was rendered we refused to take any
more prisoners offered to us. In all
cases where we paid a negro'S fine, we
would first get his consent to go with
US All negroes would prefer to go to
1orf of iV,6i taI 20
going into the state penitentiary and
county chaingangs. 1t has been a Gus
tom that has been followed since the
war.
Want the Matter Settled.
I'VE have a friend along with us now
who said that, though no charges had
been brought against him he wanted to
appear before the grand jury and state
that up to the time the first discovery
of the existence of a statute making it
illegal to hold prisoners under con-
tract in which he was paid out of the
custody of the law, and held to work
for the person paying him out until
his obligation had been hquidated, he
had been guilty of a violation of the
statute just as hundreds of others
have, and rather than wait to be
brought up at another term of court
he wanted to go before the jury and
make statement anu get the ldltSr
settled.
Il don't believe there was a lawyer
In the state who knew of the existence
of such a statute until the first case
was brought up in Alabama. We are
anxious to have the matter settled, and
came down here to tell just exactly the
conditions under which the rule was
operated. 1t is a, we'll known fact that
negroes have learned to rely upon saw
vii 4 fY1ry to no
out of trouble. and then work out the
amount of their fines with them"
Mr. McRee made the same straight
forward statement to the jury, and his
friends believe that the matter will be
stated sa satisfactorily to the court.