The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1909-03-17
W. B. r. C0RSlN AND BRO. CHRIS
SHOT TO DEATH.
They We're Serving a Warrant on Bob
BeIcher and Some One Of the In
furiated Family Shoot the
Brave Officers to Death
-Four of the Palmer's
and Bob Belcher
in Jail.
Oconee News.

dllu OUu OCiGuCi
in Jail.
Oconee News.
The coroner's inquest in the case OF the
killing, WAS he'd Tuesday morning. The 1--we
ulLle Gibson boys, VINO lad spenS Tue nrs'
part Oh The nignL at Tie Palmer home, were
sworn. Tine little ieiso"s ran however,, ~
suon as Inc first SHOT was hreu ahu We're aple
To give very uttie testimony as 10 which one
done The suUot!Ls.
Ihe substance vi their testimony Was tna'
the officers Knocked ~ the door ahu were IL
Ius.u aumltlauce uutll they luld Ihell uauIts
They were Lnen admitted ana Boo belchei
Iur whom The UiEcers mad u warrant oh Tie
cnaige vi suOoliug up Z mail DoA, Ian ana
ulIuued INTO Tie iuft. w. Is. +. CurDih LOOK
"A land ala Uegan 10 sea- Gu for tue boy. be
climbed Oh top vi u .lOve ana look ed mo The
loft and seeing Belcher'S foot took h0M % Il ana
,Uus in the dcG " dragging nan Out UNeh BetcheF
Jeu to TIE floor and me Oyicer' covered htm U3h'
has DiStOL, IngIs WAS eunIe Iesis.a.ce unu
nulu.u ", BUb's mUlper, VINO trieQ " get hei
son away ucm The Officers. We. r. CoI bins
pistol was Caught by Belcuer anu Tie weapon
Was discharged IN tue nuuee, ana IL Was SAID
me bal. struck j. b. Palmer III lie uauu.
Inc ~utiicers aud IuuI mempeIs OF Ine 1amis
scutt ieu 10 The uoor wish Beicher rs prisunef.
Shots lCere fired just outside the dO0r as me
purity reached the outside ana then tie too Hute
OUyS ran. tL.J eiU,peu sohe iitL'e uistanc.
Ilulu the house nnu heard TWO ioua gun re-
porls, ana SAW numerous FLASHES, tneh all
was quiet. They were Tie only ulslnleresteo
witnesses from Inc mouse. %,
Tue testimony OH. b. Palmer. las rife ana
daughter Uas DISCOUNTED and contradictory. j.
D. IaIuel WAS quee.Ivnsu Oh,y As 10 n.!noi
details and was cauLluneu not " ulVuISe any
thing that might tend 10 lncrlnluhL. hlm
Bell. BuU BriCner, Lou Belcner anu Charlie
Paimei, were not sworn as tney are lne par
ties Suspected OF hQriug committed the mvTaer.
IL, .vsuuuUuy Va sherry W. ~. hay UdS
Gerry damaging to Bob Betcher. hI. A. tes-
uusu InaL When j. b. ta,mer lalkeu WILL
. IA. = nI1 NM Kan fAb
mad Billed CoiUiu, and That he had uuthlLg
" 40 win IL. his report 10 lne ener4u IL
ciuueu a request to send doctors out ~ has
place that NE CUrolns We're hnoL ~ pieces
lnere. " nen the sheriff and utner Un1ceis
reached Tie sceue, upon entering Inc nuuse.
Charlie Palmer Inaue all elliott 10 uoWh
officer CanLIell, making u lnnse a. MS throat
DuIwas quseted ny Sherin Kay.
The COrbinS carried nothing out q ptStot edch
and there lUere four guns IN the FdtWeT house
butn Tie meu nele nI.Ieu uy ioaus v. NIL ".
shot, the wounds being Inflicted at such
short range as ~ bore smooth holes about al
Inch aud u hall In diameter.
Solicitor NJ. l.. BUnham, is making every
effort 10 have The case tried at Tue presthi
term OF court, ana. each and erery, M"-dOtu,ng
citizen of this community earnestly hopes mat ne
MAJ succeed in hauing justice meted Out 10 me
guity party or pdrt,eS at once.
liz wnu.e c.mmu1,ty ueeRiy monrhs lne
death OF THESE Two officers. W. Is. r. Corotn
has probably done more than aug dozen men to
put dozen iOUteSSReSS and illicit diStittng III .nis
COUNTY, auu Lis ueaLu 10 uep.UiSu " every
good cltizen. By the better element he wds the
most highly respected man IN Oconee, ana oy
the iduie$S the UorSt feared.
Que VI The most suocKlag tragedies In the
history of this community, occurred Monday
night about 8 O'Clock, at the hons vi j. 3.
Palmer, about one and a half miles from town
on the Westminster road.
A warrant had been placed In the hands oil
Deputy Corbin, charging one of the Palmer
boys with destroying a mail box on The ROAD
near his home. and on Monday night, he and
his half brother, Chris, whom he had depL-
tized 10 assist him, went TO the Palmer home
to make the arrest.
II is supposed they reached the Palmer
home sometime about half past eight or nine
o'clock. They acre refused ddmittance at first
but gained access to the room in some ttasy, anu
secured tue boy aha Started OuL Will him.
The family followed them into the yard anu
commenced u hand to hand fight TO keep the
officers from taking the boy. In the mlx-up
one OF the Palmer women got shot in the leg.
and old man Palmer was shot through the
hand.
capes and returns to the house and securing
q double barrel breecb loauipg gun, returned
to join in the Fight. He only fired two OF
three shots, two OF which took deadly effect.
chest, and producing instant death. The
Shots were fired at close range, as the cloth
ing Of the dead men bore marks OF burned
powder. c.-,,,o .,, u.s
% wv go @tNJ SShS '~
found near the house and about 8 feet from
his body, half cooked and loaded, while Chris
pistol, q magazine, was found empty, and
within 8 or 10 feet or bis BODY.
The Pdtmer'S sag that neither Of the men
told Uhat they Wanted Whem they came in, out
just got the 6Oy ana started Of, anu they
Lnlnnlng 10 protect themselves In their W
home, fired The shots in self defense.
J.R. Palmer walked TO town and reported
the killing 10 sheriff Kay, saying that Bob
done the shooting.
When the Sheriff arrived. three women and
two men were in the house anu foul shot
guns lying nearby. They all loudly protested
their innocence, but went peacably 10 jail,
and later one OF the women told how 1t hap
pened.
About nine o'clock Tuesday morning the
Coroner arrived on the scene, after q jury had
been ~impanelled they viewed the dead bodies
nesses were summoned. 1t required several
hours to TAX The testimony, which is very
conhicting. The jury alter remaining out ~
minutes, returned the following verdict:
We find That W.. B. F. Corpin and c. D.
Corbin came to their death On the night oi
March the Sth 1909, from a gun shot wound al
The hands OF Robert L. Belcher, Charley
Palmer, Lou Belcher and J.B. Palmer"
These tuo men Uere good citizens Of Their re-
spectre communities. aLu u0 DIaSer Lueu could
be loud tuan Luese TWO brothers, who stuck
together TO the last minute and died fighting.
w. B. F. Corbin leaves his aged mother, b
wife aud several children, two OF which, Jim
and Ebert, live In Alabama. Chris Corbln,
who lived in the Little River section, leaves
q wife and Two children 10 mourn his untime-
ly death. The sympathy OF friends ano
acqualntaipces are extended to these two
families In this their most trying hour.