Evening star., 1921-04-07
DENIES Staying
IN NPEONAGE CASE
'Innocent as Man Can Be, -
Says Williams, When TAX
ing Stand at Trial.
BY the Associated Press.

! dence in tie trial of John S. Williams.
charged with murder of one of eleven
negroes who met death after federal
investigation into alleged peonage
started on his farm, was concluded
here today.
! The only witness for the defense
was Williams himself. who told the
jury, .! am as innocent as man
! can be.
| Williams said he h"r -e'H f,' ~
agents he might be technically guilty
! OF nsonrgo. il III il = ~.
| federal laws were correct. ard said
! ClyGc Manning. negro f"''e7 boss. IN"
! told him the agents said Manning
| was as guilty as Williams was
Wii'iHnts confined his remarks to
the cases of Lindsey Peterson, Harry
| Price and Willie Preston, three
nearn"s drowned in Newton county
F.; He IS snec:nc' lly on trial for the
death of Peterson.
/ Court recessed for lunch when Will
| liams loft the stanI and the argu-
ments were assigned to start at the
! afternoon session. each side to have
three spe" kcrs
| Rena Manning. wife of Clyde Manning.
| testified in confederation of her hus-
/ hard's statement that on the night
! Peterson. Willie Preston and Harry
carried them and Manning and Charlie
; Chisholm off in his car.
| Williams Makes Defense.
! Williams took the stand as the first
! defense witness. to make a statement in
! his own behalf.
ii have never had any kind of cr;mi-
nal charges against me or nv boys be-
! fore this" were among the first words
of Williams to the jury.
He said his four grown sons were
among the first in the county to answer
| the country's call to war.
Like most farmers, l have bonded
out ne groes and worked them," he con-
tinreh.
Williams said he paid thas"
wages. He then told Of the federal in
vest;gation that started last February.
He asked the Department of Justice
agents to ten him exactly what peonage
was. ard said. on being tod that wy!
ing bonded negroes was that, he told
the federal agents he nigh. nav re, 4,
technically guilty. and that most
Georgia farmers were, if their definition
was correct"
Quotes Federal Agent.
you lying scoundrel, you ought to
have your neck broke Williams Sa!n
cne of the agents said to Manning, after
comparing the version Williams a-''
gwen about the recapture of Gus Chap
man. d negro who had run off and that
Manning had captured. Chapman had
been brought back after attacking Man
nng's wife. the defense had explained.
Williams said Manning denied to the
agents that he knew of the capture of
Chapman.
The surroundings are much better
than We expected" agents told him, he
said. and added: You may be technical
~ guilty of peonage.'
The agents commented that the farm
hands were well fed and we'll dressed
Williams said.
Mr. Johnny, you amt treated me
right; you made me out liar right
before those agents" Williams said
Manning told him afterward.
They told me ! was just as guilty
of peonage as you were. he also
quoted the negro as saying.
The last nj ght Preston, Price and
Peterson were seen. he said. tneJ
came to him and said they wanted to
visit their homes. but would return.
They asked for and got SIS each, he
added, and he offered to take them to
the train. Charlie Chisholm and Clyde
Manning got so cents apiece from
Last He Saw Of Them. reg
That was the last 1 ever saw of
those boys" he said, referring to
Peterson. Price and Preston.
Williams said he asked Manning
next day and the latter replied:
They went off last night"
whoever put the bodies in the
river QIu L. LOT puEpOSG, he Sdlu
IF I had done this crime. gentlemen,
would have had plenty of time to
ge. where they could not put their
hands on me-" ne testified.
Williams asserted he was falsely
accused" and added. what they done
to him tManning) to make him accuse
me. / don't know
He said Clyde Manning's mother
asked him to take Clyde Manning and
others of her children-take care of
81 !, a
control them. He told of paying doc
tors bills and Of trying Ito make
them do right"
Jury Hears Manning.
Fear for his own life was the motive
that prompted Clyde Manning, negro
farm boss, to help kill the eleven
negro farm hands employed on the
plantation of Williams. the negro told
the jury in the Williams trial yester-
day. Manning asserted on cross-ex-
animation he did not want to help
kill them, but was afraid to disobey
Williams, who, he declared. was try
ing to do away with the negroes for
peonage conditions on the Williams
farm.
They wasn't a-bothering me-" said
Manning. a coal black, short, stock
lily built man of about $50 pounds.
and l didn't want to get 'em out of
the way, but" he added later. Mr..
Johnny said, It's their necks or
yours
They, was stubborn and a-beg-
ging." Manning said, simply, in his
version of the death Of Peterson and
Willie Preston. and me and Charlie
rolled 'em over the bannister Of the
bridge"
Harry Price, another negro taken to
be drowned. jumped off the bridge
himself Manning said. when he found
there was no hope for him.
Don't throw me over; I'll get over"
Manning quoted Price as saying, and
added that the negro. with a cry of
Lord. have mercy. flung himself
into the river.