Americus times-recorder., 1919-11-13
SAM DUCK WORTH.
HUSBAND, MOTHER
AND 2 NEGROES
ORDERED HELD
Terrible Crime Revealed
At Home OF Cropper
Farmer

Sam Duckworth was arrested near
Lilly, in Dooly county, this forenoon
and brought to the Sumter county
Jail by Deputy Sheriff Summers and
Special Deputy R. E. Price. He de-
MED any knowledge of the death of
his wife, but broke down and wept
when asked if he wanted to see her
slashed body. He was placed in the
same cell with Walter Wilson, who
is held for the murder of Joel Edge.
One of the most heinous crimes in
the history of Southwest Georgia was
discovered last night on the farm of
Green Perry, about z 1-2 miles from
Americus on the Leslie road when the
body of Mrs. Pearl Duckworth, wife
of Sam Duckworth, was found in a
well not far from the house where
the couple lived, with her throat
slashed from ear to ear She had evil
IDENTIFY been murdered before being
thrown into the WELL Her body was
covered with bruises where she is said
to have been beaten fo1 several hours
yesterday by her husband, and the
well curbing was smeared with blood,
indicating that struggle had taken
place. Ten or Is feet from the well
was found a pool of blood, near
which was two-bladed pocket knife,
the larger blade of which was open.
The coroner's jury which sat all
night in the inquest held by Coroner
Ed Jenkins, of Leslie, returned YER
dict recommending the holding of the
wc1d~.. hu5~--4d, Sam Duckworth,
niJ nota5f I'D ty5o negroes, Sidney
and Lizzie Ware, who lived just acress
the road from the Duckworth home.
The mother and the two negroes were
brought to the Sumter county Jail
by Sheriff Harvey, but the husband,
up to late hour this afternoon, had
not been found, and is believed to
have left this section.
Indicates knowledge.
The mother was held after some
statements made by her to Coroner
jenkins which indicated a knowledge
on her part of the crime, and later
her refusal to discuss it in any way.
The negroes were held when it was
discovered that Sidney Ware hau
accompanied Duckworth to Americus
yesterday afternoon and then had
made statements concerning the time
OF his arrival home, which were said
to have been discovered to be untrue,
and when his wife told of having first
learned of the disappearance of Mrs.
Duckworth from the mother.
officers searching the vicinity of the
murder discovered a still in the edge
of a cotton patch not far from the
house, and near it three barrels of
beer. In the house was found guam
! tity of freshly made liquor. The me-
gro, Sidney Ware, told the officers
that Duckworth had been drinking
heavily yesterday and had beaten his
wife severely during the afternoon,
kicking her down several times. He
stated late in the afternoon a man
from DeSoto, whose name he did not
know, came in an auto to the Duck
worth home and bought a pint of IL
! quor from Mr.. Ducl1worth.
Come To Americua.
He and Mr. Duckworth then got
into the auto with the man and rode
to Americus, getting out near the
home of Judge Littlejohn on Taylor
street. The DeSoto man proceeded
toward town in his auto, the negro
/ said, while he and Duckworth sepa-
rated and did not meet thereafter. He
appeared at the inquest about IL
o'clock last night, stating that he had
/ just returned from Americus. 1t was
discovered, however, by further in
/ quiry that he had returned several
hours before.
81 received call from Mr.. Perry
betwene and o'clock last night to
come to his place, as a woman had
been found dead in WE'LL" said Cor
oner jenkins today. "T arrived there
about $3.50 o'clock Mr.. Perry told
me that he had been called to the
Duckworth home, about 800 yards
boy Of the Ware family. who came
from his own home, by little negro
running telling him that Mrs. Duck
worth was in the well.
Mother And Child All Alone,
According to the information htat
we gathered, the first intimation of
the killing came when Mrs. Duck