Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1910-12-23
STATE NEWS NOTES
Weekly Budget of News Items Gathered by Our
Special Correspondent at Jackson.
FEARFUL TRAGEDY RECALLED.
Governor Asked to Extend cIemency
to Whit Owens.

to Whit Owens.
Jackson.-One of the darkest TRACE
dies in the annals Of North Missis-
sippi was revived in the public mind
by the petition for the pardon of Whit
Owens. which was presented to Gov.
Noel, numerously signed, and by the
fact that young man named Mont
gomery, resident of Sardis, Pamela
county, is here opposing the granting
of clemency. Mr.. Montgomery is a
son OF one of Owens alleged victims.
The facts were that Whit Owens
was indicted jointly in 1910 in the cir
cult court OF Lafayette county, with
Orlandus Lester, William Mathis and
William Jackson, Lester and Jackson
being negroes. for the murder of John
A. Montgomery and Hugh Montgom-
cry, his son.
The two Montgomerys were depu-
ties Of the United States court, and
on the day of their death were given a
warrant for the arrest of William Mat
this, based upon an indictment OF the
United States court at Oxford, on the
charge of unlawfully distlling whiskey
or 'moonshining." They arrived at
the residence of Mathis, in a remote
section of Lafayette county, late In
the evening, and found him engaged In
some domestic duties which It was in
convenient for him to leave. He beg
ged earnestly to be allowed to finish 1t
and would go to Oxford as prisoner
the next morning. The Montgomerys
kindly consented.
Orlandus Lester, negro, was en-
ployed by Mathis, and was working
with him on the affair, the suspension
of which for the accommodation of
Mathis the officers did not insist.
On the trial Of the case it appeared
from the testimony that after the Of
ficers had retired for the night, Mat
this, Jackson and Lester went into
the room, found them asleep in bed
and killed them with guns, after which
Mathis moved their bodies to a point
near the center Of the building and set
fire to the house, burning it down over
the bodies of the victims, believing
that thereby he could destroy all evil
dence of guilt.
1t was shown by evidence that Whit
Owens, for whom pardon is sought,
was the father-in-law of Mathis, and
resided mile and half or two miles
distant orlandgs Lester one , Of the
during the night at the home of Mat
this, the latter sent him (Lester) to
Whit Owens house to ask Owens, as
directed by Mathis, to come over and
bring his gun and help kill the revenue
officers. Lester testified that he deliy-
cred the message to Whit Owens, who
declined to go, giving as his reason
that IF he left home his wife would |
raise racket and disturb the neigh
borhood;" that Whit Owens sent his
gun and some buckshot back to Mat
this by Lester with message to the
effect that Mathis, Jackson and Les
ter could do the work well, and they
must not let the revenue officers es-
cape.
Mathis and Lester were hanged at
oxford in the autumn OF 1902. Jack.
son was sent to the penitentiary for
lie. Owens, on reversal of his case,
got change of venue to Marshall
county and was tried at Holly Springs
n August, 1902. Also in the Septem-
'er, 1902, term of the circuit court in
county. at Oxford, he was
convicted of the previous murder of
hampton Williams, witness against
datthis and himself for moonshining,
nd was sentenced to be hanged for
hat also. This case was also re-vers-
d, and after his conviction in Mar
hall county for the Montgomery MUIR
er and sentence to penitentiary for
fe seems to have been lost sight of.