Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1910-05-19

SOEIlMM.

All persons who remember incidents
Of interest that occurred In our county
during the war or the reconstruction
period, are cordially invited to contri-
butte TO this column. All articles will
be published In the order Ia whio
they are received.
John j. Pettus was the "war
governor" of Mississipsi. He
was nominated by the Democratic
State Convention which met in
Jackson July 4th, 1859. Not long
before or after that date he made
his appearance in Oxford and
spoke in the Court House. was
Ia year old boy at the time, but
| remember well that the room
was crowded and the vast audi
ence hung with breathless inter-
est on every word that fell from
his lips. After rpcounting in a
general way certain matters per-
tanning to the welfare of the State.
he then entered on a discussion
OF the great question then aeitat-
ing the minds of the people. In
tones OF mingled reptoach and
sadness he told the story of
Southern wrongs at the hands of
the rapidly growing aggressive
party of Abolitionism; with not a
little degree of bitterness he re-
lated how we had simply plead
to be let alone in the exercise OF
our constitutional rights; how we
had compromised and oompro-
missed only to find that every sur
render we had made only en-
couraged the Northern fanatics
to step on the ground thus sur.
rendered and raise another de-
mand for more. and then with
livid thunderbolts of vengeance
flashing from underneath his
heavy eyelashes, and with n
voice literally grooming like the
the roar OF a volcano belching
forth its angry fires, and leyeliny
his hands as if in the aot Of firing
a gun, he said: 1.-The next COM
promise we offer, and the next
demand we make, will be with
our guns leveled at the breasts
of the unfeeling tyrants and say
ing, we fight, We die, but we yield
no more"
1t is simply impossible to de-
scribe the wild thunders of ap-
plause that shook that building.
Fists OF vengeance were raised.
loud yells of defiance we're utter
ed, sinking down to a hoarseness
that meant death aud fury to any
one that dared at that dangerous
moment to speak a word against
the most determined resistance,
quick, sure, and terrible to any
and everything that smacked OF
further concessions.
Another thing happened about
the same time that famed the
fires of resentment into red hot
flame. Somewhere in the neigh
borhood of Abbeville a northern
man, a sort of mechanic believe.
was found holding secret eau.
cuses with the negroes, and in a
sneaking way informing them of
the plans being laid by the Ado.
lition party for their freedom.
The reports flew like fire through
dry stuoble over the country,
doubtless growing while they
were going, and the man was ar.
rested and hurried to the Oxford
Jail. The csse was tried before
Esquire Robinson, Gas | remem-
berg, but the excitement was so
great, and the testimony so utter
ly unsatisfactory as to anything
OF real criminal character, that
the prisoner was ordered to iail
to await another trial when the
peoples minds were cooler. That
night, however, the Jail doors
were somehow opened, the pris-
oner taken thence and carried to |
The woods north of town. There
ne was given the worst thrashing
oy ten to one he ever had in his
life and ordered to make tracks