The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1905-03-29
TIE TURN OF THE TIDE.
Numerous Convictions of Murder and
Several White Men May be
Hanged.
By w. HI. McCaw.

criminal cases ir this State have beer
notoriously lax for the past quarter Of
a century with the result that murders
and other forms Of violence have in.
creased steadily and the State has
gotten an unenviable reputation
abroad. But owing to the good work
of pulpit and press there has beer
substantial evidence recently Of the
pendulum swinging the other way not
only in those counties which have al
ways had an unusually large number
Of homicide cases, but throughout the
state. generally. Spasmodic change OF
sentiment has manifested itself in this
matter through juries in particular
sections-in Pickens, Greenville, Oco-
nee and Spartanburg counties, for in
stances number Of times. But a
general change of mind throughout
the State has just begun to show itself.
There are just now seven men un-
der sentence of death in this State,
with the strong probability that four
Of these will be hung within the next
few months. Four out Of the seven are
white men, and two of these are men
of means and influence.
The first hanging will be that OF
Marion Parr, the cotton mill operative
Of this city, who while his case was
about to be taken to the supreme
court confessed freely to his preacher,
.acknowleG ging that he was guilty of
murder and saying he deserved to and
was ready to die. Parr is to be exc
cuted here on the 18th OF next month,
and it will be the first legal hanging
Of a white man this county has seen
in 40 years.
r. A. Adams, the Colleton white
man who escaped jail after the SUI
preme court refused his appeal for a
new trial, afterward recaptured after
the governor offered reward Of
81, 900, is to be resentenced at Walter
boro next week. He is an ignorant, but
a rather influential and well connected
man in his county. He killed Jacques
in rage after looking him up to quar-
rel with him about a piece of prop
erty. Adams viii hardly get g. commu-
tation
There are two hangings set for the
5th Of May at Florence, and it is not
unlikely that both Of these will take
place, although the supreme court has
not passed on the fate Of the white
man convicted there a few days ago
of the murder Of a negro. The time in
which he had to perfect his appeal
having expired it is presumed that
nothing will be done to save him. Sam
Marks, the negro who had to be
brought here pending his appeal to
the supreme court to prevent him be,
ing lynched, is to be hung at Florence
on the 5th of May for the murder of
the white man Hill Langston.
The most important case, IS that
coming out of Oconee county, where
the noted Hoyt Hayes case, whose
commutation created so much feeling
there against the governor, originated.
Earle Rochester, leading Oconee
farmer of that section and considered
a fine citizen and desirable neighbor,
is under sentence Of death for doing a
neighbor to death with a shot gun. He
and this neighbor quarreled about the
neighbor's cattle getting into Roches-
ter's crops, and matters went from
bad to worse until Rochester met him
in front of his (Rochester's home and
waited for him with a, shot gun. The
matter is now pending in the supreme
court. It is said that on the morning
Special Judge Mccullough, Of Green
Vile, who presided ct the trial, was
making his way to the court room af-
ter the verdict had been rendered
against Rochester he met and stopped
to caress a beautiful child playing joy
ously and with light heart in front of
the court house. He is very fond of
children and panied and shocked
look came into his caressful eyes when
he asked her who her father was and
she lisped .Mar Earle Rochester" ("
The night before he passed sentence
he did not close his eyes, and it said
that he voluntarily promised to assist
the attorneys for the defense before
the supreme court or the governor or
both.
The case against the two desperate
blind tiger negroes, who killed Mag
istrate Cox when he went out to ar
rest them from Fountain Inn last
May as they were hauling load of
liquor in a buggy and who have been