Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1905-03-11
ORIGIN OF THE FEUD

pIDDiSS you LHdL. . post NOW you uOh
remembah the mother-in-law feud of
Breathitt county. Nevah heard Of It?
"P'haps you didn't know 1t by that
name. Some called it the Howard White
feud, othahs the Garrard- Baker feud,
and still othahs the Garrard-Baker-
White-Turner-Ho Howard feud altogethah
TO the savin' Of time; but among the i'm
mediate friends of the deceased families
ii was known as the mother-in-law feud,
as | tell you
If you'd go through some o. them
theah mountain cemeteries you'd see
grave aftah grave decorated with wood
en- boards with this inschipshun on EN-:
'Mahtah to the cause Of the mother-in-
lawi'
"Mothers-in-law kick up good deal
of rumpus in all pants of the wuhld, but
this one didn't do thing to Breathitt
county.
"As say, the Garrards and the Bakers
had about killed each othah off and were
waitin' TO the children to grow to shoot
In size SOS to continue the pufformance
when the White-Howards took turn.
Then come the Baker Whites, then come
the Howard Turner's and the feud of the
mother-in-law.
This was whut occuhd. Wilkerson
Howard and Will Turner had hot wuhds
about something or othah, disremem-
bah jest whut, and VIII Turner he went
deliberately to Wilkerson Towards
house and shot his mother-in-law. Shot
her in the ahm. No, not outright-jest
in the ahm.
Now, Wilkerson Towards mother
in-law was one of them tall, narrow
chested, angular, raw-bone, hoarse-
voiced wimmin whut natchully runs
everything in sight Wilkerson, he
couldn't call his soul his own fo his ole
mother-in-law. His wife want much
bettah. Neithah wah his Children.
THE ole lady happuned to be quiet
about that time. Want sayin' nuthin' a
tall. Jest settin' in the cornah of the
fiahplace, smokin' her ole cob pipe and
studyin up devilment TO the next day In
all probability. Had done all she could
TO that day and was restin' on her
aims, when Will Turner shot one on
EN-
Then he lit out, and it was high time.
They say theah nevah was a madden
man in Breathitt county than Wilkerson
Howard was that night. He called all
the Towards together, and theah was
Breathitt county. That's all theah was
to that.
"Fust and last that little shootin' of
Will Turner's cost Kentucky all in all
about SO or 60 lives, to say nuthin' of the
money spent in lawsuits a-tryin' to
convict the pahties whut participated in
the various and sundry wars that ragged
all around that mother-in-law TO yeahs
and yeahs and yeahs in Breathitt county.
But to begin with, with constable of
their own choosin', the Towards, ten
on EN-, includin' sheriff whut belonged
to the family and jedge or two, they
set out with the purpose of KILN Will
Turner on sight under covah of a writ
ten warrunt TO his arrest on the
change of shootin' with intent to kill
without KILN.
but, as said befo', VIII got inklin'
of it and lit out. He went to Texas and
stayed theah TO a solid yeah while the
Towards killed off his immediate family
and burned few towns time or two
to keep up the interest.
"Wilkerson Howard was ve'y matter
of fact about plannin his campaign. He
got his men togethah and organized a
camp. He prepaid TO- war and KEEP
things goin' by shootin' right and lef
at anything he thought had the look of
a Turner or relative or a sympathizer
of po Wills.
Then, by'm by, Will Turner he come
back from Texas-Texas amt no sort of
state TO a Kentuckian, bawn and
brought up on fab watah and double
barreled shotguns-and they killed him
on sight.
IF he'd bin alone in the wuhld the
mattah might "a ended then and theah,
but he had relatives, not many, but few
that Wilkerson Howard had lef' around
in spots TO- tahgets. These relatives
took it up and spread that feud so far and
wide that, as I've explained, it got so
many names it would make you hoarse
to call their carriages through a mega
phone.
And all about motheri n-law, you
say. You thought them there feuds
mostly stahted with some pretty CURL a
marryin' of a opposin' PATTY or some
fellah runnin' away with the daughter of
the man his father had killed? But with
a mother-in-law!
They do a good many original things
in Breathitt county. They don't stick
to no special rule for nuthin', exceptin',
of cose, in the mattah Of shootin'. Take
aim! Fiah!' is their special rule TO
that
But you ali right, | reckon, and it was
an unusual thing, that motherin -law
feud, and I'll tell you the reason they
fit so bitterly ovah it. l had it direct
frum pussonal friend of Wilkerson
Towards whut wore a mailed shirt and
got. close enough to him occasionally to
converse onmo' or less intimate tums.
Does seem a strange thing To me