The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1911-04-07
A FLORIDA TRAGEDY
OF THE LONG AGO
BLOODY MURDER GNAWS ONES
CONSCIENCE AND HE is
FORCED TO CONFESS

| seven apparently lnSlSnlncanC lines
wedged in between advertisements ap-
peared on an inside page of an Ala
bama state paper one morning last
week and to the man who knew not the
history of the case the little story
with a single line OF small type for its
headlines was of little interest. But
upon that little item, "The Funeral of
John l.. TrOtman," hangs a tale of
great consequence to Floridians who
knew John Cason, the man who killed
Hunter Pope, probably his dearest
friend, in Madison, in 1876, thirty
| five years ago.
Funeral of John L. Trotman
Troy, Ala, March 19.-The funeral
of John L. Trotman was held here this
afternoon. The remains were laid to
rest in the family plot in Oakwood
cemetery. The services were conduct
ed by Capt. L. H. Bowles, lifelong
friend of Mr.. Trotman."
Now, Mr.. Trotman of Troy, Ala,
was no more nor less than John Ca
son, once of Madison Having shot
Hunter Pope he fed from this state to
Texas, and it is supposed that Troy,
Ala, was as near to Florida as he
ever dared to come again. The peo-
pie of Madison, even, will not know
until they read this story where John
Cason has been in hiding all these
years. Old residents of the state will
remember the story of the tragedy,
but for the benefit of the new genera
ton it will be briefly related here
again.
In 1876 DR.. w. Henry Pope, an uncle
of Hunter Pope, was playing billiards
with John Cason. A difference arose,
some words were passed and one of
the gentlemen struck the other with a
billiard cue. Hunter Pope, straight,
tall, young and handsome, was a great
horseback ride, but was lawyer Zone
of the best in Florida at that time),
and his law office was near the pool
room in which his uncle and John Ca
son were playing the game of bill
| lizards, which resulted in row. An
seems, ran to the law office of Hun
| ter, and told him that John Cason was
| fighting his uncle, the doctor. Hun
ter's ire was aroused spontaneously.
He rushed to the billiard room and is
said to have told Cason that he would
settle with him for his uncle's differ
ence. More words were passed. Ca
son knew that he had aroused the
Pope blood, which ran hot. Hunter
Pope entered a nearby grocery store
shortly after the trouble in the pool
room. Cason passed the store and
shot him down through the open door
or window, whichever it was. Hunter
Pope, who was then admitted to be
one of the brainiest men in Florida
and power in the legal world, died
several hours later. His assassin fed
the state and went to Texas.
Cason Admits Murder
In Texas John Cason married and
rom there moved Floridaward, stop
ping and making his home at Troy,
Ala. In the meantime he had changed
his name to John L. Trotman. He liv-
ed there and prospered, rearing fam
lily and taking high social position
in the community. He was ]. L. Trot-
man of Troy, Ala, and one of the best
citizens of that town. He regretted
his act, and once, when he met man
from Florida, he told him in conf
dence that his name was John Cason,
that he had killed Hunter Pope, a
bosom friend, that he had been sorry
for it ever since, that he believed he
had slain unnecessarily the brainiest
man in Florida. He said to the Flor
ida man that he had often been tempt
ed to open his heart to the good peo-
pie of Troy and tell them all that he
was a murderer and that his name was
not Trotman. The Floridian promised
that he would not give him away to
the people of Troy nor to the people
of Madison.
Some years after that confidential
talk, about five years ago, Trotman
surprised the whole community at a
Methodist revival by confessing in the
open meeting that he was John Cason
and that he had killed Hunter Pope.
There was little said about it at the
time Cason, as Trotman, continued to
live and thrive at Troy until the other
day, when he passed away. The ac-
count of the death of John Cason
reached Florida in the shape of the
above little story from the Montgom-
cry Advertiser, but only those who re-
| .,,o,,,horod tho oonfoccion of fhn Met h