The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1913-09-04
son ACCUSED WITH FATHER.
Young Ben Walker Implicated in
Harter killing.

hampton, september Line cOrO'
ner's jury Of inquest over the dead
body of Chief of Police J. B. Harter
Of Allendale. who was killed yester-
day afternoon at Lena. this county
this afternoon rendered verdict
that the deceased came to his death
by pistol shot wounds from pistol
in the hands OF J. F. Walker, aided
and abetted by Ben Walker. his son.
Ben Walker, the 1S-year-old son OF
Joe F. Walker, was arrested to-day
and the coroner's jury implicated him
in the shooting Of Harter.
The inquest was held at Estill to-
day at u o'clock and Attorneys J. NJ.
Patterson, R. P. Searson, Jr., and J.
Henry Johnson, of Allendale, con-
Quoted the examination OF witnesses
Tor the coroner. while George War
!en, Esq, of Hampton, was present
looking after the interests of Walker,
though he did not examine any of the
witnesses.
B. J. Peoples was the first witness.
He testified that he heard Walker
make some threat against the Allen
dale policeman.
Testimony of Eyewitnesses.
Oscar Carlton. J. B. Prosser, T. j.
Mcintosh and J. E. Young, all eye
witnesses to the killing, testified in
substance to the following statement
Of facts. On Sunday afternoon at
about o'clock Mr. Harter was sit
ting on a bench on the depot plat
form at Lena in company with the
Rev. Mr.. Langston. of Columbia, and
Oscar Carlton; J. F. Walker and his
son, Ben, came walking down the
railroad from the direction of their
home. On arriving at the bench the
elder Walker demanded his pistol
from Harter, who stated that he did
not have it, and when the request
was refused Walker hit Harter over
the head with a pistol; Harter at
tempted to resist, out was pushed
back by Walker repeatedly, while
Walker and his son, Ben, kept up a
continuous fire in the direction Of
Harter, the Younger man standing
on the left of his father.
Each witness swore that he did
not see Harter shoot at all; that after
the shooting they walked about thir-
ty yards to the place of the shooting
and found Harter gasping and dying;
that there was 3S calibre pistol
with one empty cartridge in it lying
half way between the dying man and
the edge of the platform, presumably
the property of the dead man.
Say Walker Made Threats.
1t was testified by several witness
es that Walker had repeatedly
threatened the life of Harter because
Harter had officially taken a pistol
from the prisoner at Allendale year
ago. 1t was stated by one eye-wit-
ness to the taking of the pistol that
on that occasion Walker swore he
would kill Harter the first time he
caught him out of Allendale. Ben
Walker was arrested and lodged in
Jail to-day.
DR.. Lawton, who held the post
mortem examination, testified that
four 3S-calibre pistol balls entered
the front of the body and passed en-
tirely through the body, one of which
went through the heart, and two 32-
calibre pistol balls entered the left
arm, one of which was cut out and in
troduced in evidence.
The doctor also stated to the News
and Courier correspondent that he
dressed a slight scalp wound on
Walker after the difficulty. One OF
the witnesses stated that Walker was
bloody. Several testified that Harter
never rose from the bench on which
he was sitting.
J. F. Walker to-day referred all
questions to his attorneys, Messrs.
Warren & Warren. These gentlemen,
when asked for a statement, said
that the defence was self-defence.
Beyond this no statement was given
out
Mr.. Harter's body was buried at
the family burying ground about fif-
teen miles from here, to-day.