The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1905-11-22
DAN MURPHY'S CASE
Being Recalled by His irrest at
swainsboro, Georgia

Being ecalleu Dy DIS TIest aI
swainsboro, Georgia
The Man Wha Assassinated Treasur-
er Copee, of Orangeburg County.
Will Serve Out His Term.
The story of the career OF Dan Muir
ply. the escaped convict who Is said
to have bsen cap ured at Swainsboro,
Ca, has re called some singular II CT.
dents in connection with the occur
ence. 1t was published in The State
on Tuesday of last week that the
amount taken from the body OF Treas
urer Copes vas $40, 600. The State
OF Wednesday says the accuracy OF
this statement has been q lestioned by
two former cit ms Of Ofangebu G,
one of whom says that the murdered
treasurer had on his person but 81 600
and another former citiz n OF that
| place states that The amounJ was not
more than 1925.
In one particular they both agree.
TIE money was LOT found by The null.
derer. Treasurer Copes had the bulk
OF the money in his pocket where 1t
was not discovered. TIE money which
the assassin secured was not more
Than s23, principally in pennies. Toe
;owaraly murderer perhaps did not
stop to open the hand bag, whose
weight M doubt deceived him into
thinking that it Contained currency
of value when as a matter Of fact ~
was filled with one cent pieces. And
UPON that depended the conviction OF
Murphy.
Tine crime startled the State and
for some time there was no clue. II
is said by 4 of these Otangeburs
gentlemen that the case was ferreteo
out by MIR. Geo. B. Ktttrell, a man OF
Inquiring and Investigating turn Of
mind, VINO got bis first clus from an
examination Of the subscripti N books
Ut a county paper. He disc ,verec
that just 80 days before the murder a
man from some point In florida had
subscribed for this paper for a short
period. On investigation 1t was
found that the paper was going to the
fictitious address given, but had been
taken out Of the postt fife by Dan
Murphy. Ii there Was any mJtlVe a;
al In this move 1t was that The man
planning the robbery might know the
dates on which the county treasurer
would make his rounds from town to
town In the discharge Of bis duty a.
taxgatherer, as was permitted under
Che law OF that time.
In this way Murphy's name was
for the first tin Q connected wll1 the
aft sir, even by suspicion. MI pny was
Then followed and it was found that al
d remote place in Collector county he
nad exchanged a large number OF
pennies for silver. This was another
INK in tie chain.
"Finanly it was discovered that Mu
ply had q shot gun which showed
certain characteristics notic+d IN
connection with the shells fired In the
gun which killed Mr.. Copes. The
vlunger struck the shell IN a peculiar
manner which correspondent exactl,
6iUn Murphy's gun.
t1lnnoo fon q 70 BON In 0nnnQnftOr
with Mu phys stolidity when arrest.
ed aid mis- refusal to say anything IL
ans wer to charges or to excuse him iell
IN any az. wound the rope around
dis neck, Tae evidence Was circum
stantial in the m sin, but had be been
.unycent he might have proved al
.lioi, when his neck WAS III danger.
However. he w.u.d say nothing ano
would tell nothing Of his movements
OF 10 days preceding the killing.
AS %1ecouated yes. erta y, he was
c nvlcted and SCI tenced u Oe hangeo
Ind the very afternoon before the ex
cution he was given a Communication
f sentence on an alibi framed up il
Augusta, it Is said, by relatives OF
Murphy. This alloi was d%iscrediteo
oy the people Of O;angeburg to tht
aytent that they cried out In crit. C ,sn
OF the governor who at that time
granted the c mnu:.ation and Of tht
attorneys employ ed by Murphy's
RELATIVES.
1T is said by parties who knew
Murphy at school that he was not 8
nan Of nerve, but was a skulkine
coward, and that he was a BLACK
sheep all OF his life, his main Cccupa
zion after being grown having beer
.he peddling Of liquor at negro camp
neetirg3."
The county paper Murphy subsrrib
ed for while In Florida was TIE Lines
and Democrat. He did not subscrib.
In a fictitious name but In his own
name, Tue amount of m)ney MI.
Copes had with him when assassinated
was 5000. 90. All Of this money, e1
cept about thirty dollars In change
Mr.. Copes had in his pocket. The
small change was In a sac el In the
back Of his buggy. When the 'assas
sin had done his dastardly act Of as.
sassinating Mr.. CJpe5, he hurriedly
grabbed the satchel which he evident
ly thought contained all the money
Mr.. Copes had collected that day, and
in this way be failed to get what he
mad assassinated Mr.. Copes TO get.
The amount The assassin got was 30
dollars, much of which was Ia cop
pers, which Mr.. CopeS generally CARR