Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-11-17
MYSTERIOUS IDENTITY.

AS 10 whether some smooth Scoun-
drel did a great wrong to Rev. w. A..
Ferrell of Gaffney, by impersonating
him in filtration with a young wo-
man Of Atlanta, or whether Rev. w.
A. Ferrell himself was the flirt and
has attempted to turn a remarkably
cunning trick in order to re-instate
himself in such good opinion as he
may have had, Is question that Is
interesting the people Of the Cherokee
county seat, and the circumstances
make a story that might have had a
place in the Decameron.
Some weeks ago, 1t will be remem-
bered, a defendant answering to the
name and title Of Rev. w. A. Ferrell,
was before Recorder Broyles of Allan
ia, on complaint Of a young woman,
fendant Rad sought her acquaintance
on prete;t Of marriage under false
pretenses. The young woman's story
was to the effect that on the receipt
Of a letter from the preacher asking
her to appear at a certain place,
wearing a ribbon in such a way as to
facilitate Identification, she responded
after having arranged to post a police
man nearby and had the man arrest
ed. The alleged Ferrell admitted the
young womans charge, but justified
married and desirous of securing q
wife, he was certainly within his
rights and the recorder upheld his de-
fense.
Now it happened that Rev. Ferrell
was well known in Gaffney, where it
was also known he had a wife and
children and the Gaffney people were
so much stirred up over the matter
that they proceeded to send the Rev.
w. A. Ferrell straightwith to Coven-
try. They were rightfully agreed that
a man who would do such thing,
much less a preacher, was not deserv-
ing of the recognition Of decent men
and that he certainly had no right to
preach in a respectable pulpit. The
whole thing was naturally very hu-
initiating to Rev. Mr.. Ferrell.
But last week there came an ex-
planation of the whole affair that was
of sensational interest. Rev. w. A.
Ferrell, himself, went to the newspa-
per offices and to a number Of promi-
nent Gaffney peoplt showing a paper
ia, and setting forth in effect: The
man tried before me recently on the
charge of improperly flirting with a
young woman and giving his name as
ReT. w. A. Ferrell, was an imposter,
and not Rev. w. A. Ferrell at all. /
know this, for the real Rev. w. A.
Ferrell has appeared before me in his
own proper person, and that the man
who was tried does not look anything
like Rev. w. A. Ferrell"
This letter, Of course, was cltnch-
er, and 1t set tongues a-wagging ev-
erywhere. People began to wonder
who could have been the scoundrel
who used the preachers name, and
why. So great was the interest that
some Of the doubters began to inquire,
and after they had developed rumor
that the preacher was away from Gaff-
ney about the time of the alleged At
lanta incident, there came along a
story to the effect that the man who
had gone to Recorder Broyles the sec
ond time was not w. A. Ferrell at all,
the real w. A. Ferrell who had ap-
peared before the recorder as defend
ant.
Editor Baker of the Cherokee News
and Editor DeCamp Of the Gaffney
Ledger, wrote to Recorder Broyles
about the matter. Editor Baker merely
cited the facts of the story; but Edi-
tor DeCamp went further and conceiV-
ed the happy idea Of sending the re-
corder a printed portrait OF the real
Ferrell that had been used on a hand
bill some time previously: The re.
corder wrote back that the portrait
bore some resemblance to the man he
had tried on the flirting charge; but
of course he was not willing to make
any positive statement unless the real
Rev. Ferrell would come to Atlanta
with a delegation of Gaffney citizens
who could identify him. The record
er promises that If the Gaffney people
will identify their Mr.. Ferrell, he, the
recorder, will say whether or not the
Gaffney Ferrell is the man he tried
on the Irritation charge.
AS to whether Rev. Mr.. Ferrell will
go back to Atlanta to have the whole
matter cleared up, has not yet fully
developed; but of course If he does not
II would amount to the same thing.