The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1915-02-23
Sidelights On The
Oliver Murder
f. L. L.

1t is but a pathetic trick of fate
that A. D. Oliver, variously dubbed
banker" millionaire" and king
of Climax" and eagerly sought after
during his life by many adventures
such as himself and by certain class
of curious, tickle people, should have
! lacked, once he was stricken by an
assassin's bullet, even one friend 10y
al enough to keep vigil over his dead
body until it could be placed in its
last resting place in the potter's field.
But such was true.
Throughout the two nights that in
tervened between the tragic death of
neral last Friday, his body lay locked
up in the office room of his bank"
at Leesburg, clad for it's journey to
the grave, with not single friend to
count the slow hours as they dragged
along. About the room were the
costly new fixtures that had Just been
installed and the new vault, which
had not yet received a penny of the
money that it's owner was supposed
to possess. Not living thing was
there to mark the midnight vigils
over the mutilated body, except a few
spiders that spun slowly but diligent-
ly their silver webs in the beams
which filtered from an electric light
through the uncurtained windows, or
here and there mouse or other tiny
creature creeping along the bare floor
or walls.
Only the public spirit of the peo-
pie of Leesburg saved Oliver from
being buried without a coffin A pub
lie subscription was taken up to de-
fray the expenses of a casket and
other necessary cost incident upon
a funeral. Then the dead adventurer
was laid away between two outlaws,
who had paid the penalty very much
as he had done.
But here is observed another
strange element in this mixture of
pathos and eternal justice. The body,
even before it had been placed in the
casket, was literally covered with
flowers sent in by many sympathetic
lands. Though there was no one who
would keep the last sad watch over
the dead, yet many, some governed
perhaps by genuine motives, others
probably by mere idle whims, sent
flowers to brighten the scene of
death.
So it was at the grave. A vast
crowd assembled at the church, and
later at the cemetery, to hear the
words of the preacher and to see the
earthly remains of this strange, err
ratio man of mystery laid away.
There was something morbid about
it all, however, for it did not ring
true. At the church, when the min
lister had said the last word and ut
tered his last prayer, the rude, curl
Gus crowd arose and left even before
the remains of the dead man had
been removed. At the grave, too,
there was a note of idleness, vulgar
curiosity, like that which had char
acterized the throng who came from
all sides to view the body of Oliver
as soon as it became known that he
was dead.
There is an interesting study in all
this for psychological Investigation. 1t
is tendency that appears to be man
ifested more and more by the Ameri-
can people on such occasions as this.
Whether it is normal or thoroughly
wholesome one is a debatable ques-
ton.
Few things are so tickle or so dan
gerous as the spirit of the mob. Many
Leesburg people say with candor that
on the night of divers assassination
a veritable mob shouted for the death
of Roy Black, a former partner of
Oliver in his bank at Smithville and
one of the men who prosecuted Oliver
last September on a charge of lar
ceny after trust. The following day
this tickle, volatile mob spirit had
changed. The first cry had been for
the death of Black. The second was
for that of Chance and the men who,
it is alleged, assisted him in the muir
der. Tomorrow some other person
may be marked by the spirit of the
hysterical persons who jump at con-
illusions. At the time, however, pub
lie sentiment, if such a thing as rep
resentative public sentiment can be
said to have crystalized upon any
definite explanation of the killing,
may be said to involve mainly
Chance and those who are supposed
to have been associated with him.