Year: 1869




particulars of most singular and fearful tragedy,
which recently occurred in one of the mountain
counties of this State. The gentleman from whom
we receive our information has requested us to give
neither the name of the county in which the horrl
BILE scene took place, nor the names of the actors in
| it; in the first place, because the families Of the
parties are among the best and most respectable in
the county, and should not be subjected to this ad-
ditional modification for an act which they can in
no manner be held responsible; and, in the second
place, because publicity would now, in no way, SUBJ
serve the ends of justice, as the guilty party has
already expiated his crime by so fearful punish
ment. We will only preface our account of the
matter by stating that our information was derived
from well-known and highly esteemed gentleman
of this city, and may be safely relied upon as per-
fectly correct in every particular.


In one of the mountain counties Of Georgia,
there lives two families, each before the war noted
for its wealth and refinement Since the war, the
families, (whom we shall call respectively r. and
l., J though they had, like nearly every one else,
lost everything by the conflict, still retained the
high position in society which they had for some
long time filled One of them, the LIS, lost sever
al of its members, as we'll as it's fortune, by the
war, and at the commencement Of our story consis.
ted of Mr.. L., a gentleman ffty-fve years Of age,
his wife, nearly the same age, and an unmarried
daughter of about twenty-five. In about quarter
of a mile of their house lived one Of the RS, a
young man, who had recently married very beau
tfu young lady of the county, and having left the
g hu ,colf n
small tract of ground The two families lived
some distance from the county town, in sparsey
inhabited section of country, and being each the
nearest neighbor of the other were, Of course, on
terms of great intimacy. Between the young wife
and the daughter of Mr.. L. fast friendship was
soon formed both being nearly the same age and
of similar tastes and disposition, and relying upon
each other for company in the daily absence Of the
two gentlemen who were engaged in superintend-
ing the business of their farms.


A few days since, Mr.; R. informed his wife that
he had received letter which would compel i'm
mediate attendance in Atlanta where he would
have to remain for several days. and as it would be
inconvenient for him to take her with him to that
city, advised that she should ask her young neigh
ber to stay with her during his absence. The next
morning he set out in his buggy for Atlanta, and
his wife, during the morning, went over to LIS
house for the purpose of inviting her young friend
to stay with her. When she arrived there she
told the young lady of the absence of her husband ;
Representing how lonely she would find her house
at night, from the fact that she employed no
house servant, and her cook, together with the few
aborers employed on the farm slept at the NEGRO
quarter" nearly half mile from the dwelling
house. and ended by asking Miss L. to spend the
nights with her until her husband returned. The
young lady, after consultation with her mother,
readily assented to the proposition and promised to
come over during the afternoon. Having accol4l-
plished her purpose and feeling very much reliev-
ed in mind Mrs. R. returned home, and spent the
day performing the usual household duties. When
the morning had passed away and the afternoon
came and then sunset, without bringing her friend,
she felt no alarm, but thought that the latter had
decided not to come until after tea when the father
across the field, which separated the two houses,
would escort her. Accordingly the evening meal
was eaten, household affairs arranged, and the cook
dismissed for the night to her distant cabin at the
"quarter." About o'clock, Mrs. r. began to
feel little uneasy, as Miss L. had not yet come,
when a servant came up to the house and brought
note from her expected friend, stating that she
would be unable to spend the night with her as
she had promised, for her father, from some cause
or other had positively refused to give his consent
to the arrangement After delivering the note the
servant took his departure and the bravo woman
prepared to spend tho night by herself Feeling
that she had protector in large and fierce yard
dog belonging to her husband, she took him into
her bedroom, and after securing the house, sho
lay down and resigned herself to sleep.


About 10 O'clock she was awakened from her
slumbers by noise in the house and the angry
growing of the dog, and discovered that the hall
door had been forced, and that some one was stan
ding at her room door, seeking an entrance
Speaking as loudly as her fright would let her,
Mrs. R. asked, "Who is there?' a mans voice,
which she did not recognize, replied by telling her
to "open the door," Again she asked the same
question: and again received the same reply the
stranger adding, that if she refused, he would
''break the d-n door down." During this d.
aloguc, the dog, still growing orouchod upon the
aoor as if ready to spring Thinking to intm-
date this man, who sought her ruin, Mrs. r. cried
to him that if he forced the door she would shoot
him. Laughing scornfully, the ruffian threw his
weight against the light door, burst it open, and
entered tho room-when, quick as thought, the
savage dog sprang forward and fastened on his
neck The man, astonished at this sudden attack,
attempted to kill the dog with knife which he had
in his hand, but unsuccessfuly, and the powerful
animal dragged him to the ground, and still retain
ing his hold upon his throat. Stunned at first by
this unlocked for dcverance, the woman, in few
seconds, regaincd her presence Of mind somewhat,
ran screaming from the house, never stopping un-
til she arrived at the place of the lis where her
cries soon aroused the family Her tale was rapidly
told and the servants were preparing to go the
scene of danger, when suddenly Mr.. J.. was miss
cd, and his wife, almost on the instant, as if struck
by sudden prescntiment, screamed, "Mcrctul
God! it must be my husband!' With cry of
horror the party set forth, and as fast to the
house of Mrs r. as the latter had run away from
it few minutes before Arrived there, they
found tho man still on the floor, and the dog still
grasping his throat Beating him away from his
prey they found the suspicious of Mrs l.. but too
correct it was hor husband-but the toeth of the
dog had done their work, and the man was
dead.


It appears that he had returned to his home at
s. O clock on the previous evening, and hearing OF
the departure of r., and the intention OF bis daugh
ter to spend the nj ght with the young wife, he