Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1904-06-08
Two Men Killed in BrOwnsbtfrQ
Saturday Night

Two Men Killed in BrOwnsbur
Saturday Night
Il The quiet of the early S@nda
morning. hours in Brownsburs
1 fourteen miles north of Lexington
was rudely broken by a distressin
tragedy which was enacted nea
midnight Saturday night last, re
sulting in the shooting to death o
two men, Join w. Wade and Ar
thur Blackwell, by j. Edwar,
Mccormick, son of Henry A. Nc
Cormick of Brownsburg.
The victims in thi9 sad afi'ai
lived several miles from Browns
burg. Young Wade was the sol
of Love s. Wade, who lives be
tween Brownsburg and Rockbcidg'
Baths, and :Blackwell's father
w. II. Blackwell, makes his home
near Decatur. The two men killeC
were accompanied by several com
paniOns who went to Brownsbure
with them evidently with the in
tention of creating IA row. 1t is
said the were drinking.
The cause of the trouble dates
back year or two, when Ed. Nc
Cormick and John Wade had diff
ficulty. Rece" thy young Nc ormick
and the father of Wade came to
blows, thus keeping up the strife.
The feud eliminated Saturday
night when the two men and their
friends sought out young McCor-
mick with the evident purpose of
chastising him. The story of the
crime, of how Mccormick was
met up with in J, A, Shaw's store
and tOrmentod, insulted and threat
ened, how he was followed, way
laid and attacked, and how he
fired on his pursurers with such
deadly aim, is all told in the testi-
mOny at the ooroner's inquest,
which follows.
After the shooting, young Nc
Cormick and his father returned
to their home. and the young man
spent the night away from home,
fearing the survivors of the party
might make attack On him. In
fact he was not absolutely sure
that he had killed the two men, al
though he had seen them fall
when he fired. He was arrested
Sunday morning by Constable j.
F. Wade and held until after the
coroner's inquest when he was
brought to Lexington to Jail, hav-
ing waived preliminary examina-
ton, preferring to have the inves-
tigation before a grand jury of the
Circuit Court. He was in charge
Of Sheriff Il. A. Sterrett.
The coroner's inquest was held
Sunday in the undertaking estab-
lishment of w. H. Kelley before
Justice j, a. BARKER and Messrs.
j. 4. Brooks, B. +, McClung, Sr.,
j. ". Culton, @. H. Wade, j. h.
Brown and j. w, McFaddin, who
served as jurors,
The first witness to testify was
j. A. Shaw, who said:
"Last night Jno. Wade approach
ed Ed. Mccormick in my store and
asked him if he had said that he
(McCormickl intended to whip
him (Wade). Eds reply was that
he did not want any trouble, Wade
then roi led up his sleeves and
shook his fist in Eds face and said
i am going to whip you He said
further, IF you think you can
stand that (meaning his fst),
come outside / entreated Wade
not to have any fuss in py store.
Aftes a while Wade went out and
Mccormick stayed in. ! kept my
store open longer than I intended,
because ] saw trouble brewing, aad
did not WANG 90 force Mccormick
opt, hoping the other parties
would leave: About q quarter TO
twelve O'Clock I'D. Mccormick and
his father left my store, passing by
Tom Wade and George Zombro
sitting on the stile. About the
time they stepped off the pavement
Tom Wade got up from the stila
and whistled several times, which
! took as q signal: Tom Wade and
zombro followed on behind the
McCormicks. IN a very little
while I heard talking below Glenn
mer's house, and then I'M
medlately 1 heard several shots,
probably eight or ten shots. l
took a lamp and went down and
found Blackwell and Wade lying
in ehe road, blackwell dead and
Wade gasping for breath
The testimony Of J.W. Clemmer,
who lives just below Shaw's store,
and who was in his house AT tko
time Ct the shooting, except at the
last two shots, when he'was on his
porch, agrees in the main with
Mr.. Shaw's. There are two i'm
POI tant differences, however. l'hey
are that ~. Mccormick passed
down considerably ahead Of his
son, and that the last two shots
were fired from in front Of Nc
Oormick's house.
In an interview with THE GA
zETrE's representative. the pris-
oner, now in jail, said yesterday,
that he and his father passed down