| Show 7 A DETAILED Dk description SCRIpT 10 X 0 agthe THE CANE creer CREEK I 1 0 1 aw 73 butof C THE ahe lle lie following flowing graphic account accod of the tenness massacre from thea pen pea of elder B 11 roberts will he be read with great in teresh it iti J I 1 appear eq in ji th the thu nak sak ama amican Amm can of august 15 to fameian vim eian elan several articles haye already appeared in y res ecton s horrid butchery that took place pace at the house of james condor head of cane creek about 11 sunday fc morning but we vye hope you will not refuse us communication as wt we ere ire a re able to re represent present the affair as related by two of 0 the mormon elders who were at the scene of the murder and narrowly escaped with aio also alo as related d beair garrett who lives near mr nir condors residence si here let me say that we do not ask eve you oti oil to compromise any ally position you have taken in to thu thi mormon question by allowing this article to appear in your columns colu inns inus we speak of this because we are aware of the reluctance luc tance of editors and public men generally toa tot publish or consider with fairness lal lai ruess anything said by a mormon or in defense of one we know whereof we speak for we have written replies to several articles and editorials of infamous character which were calculated when to culminate la in lust just such guch acts as this in lewis county as ignorance has considered itsell itself anen newspapers have freely advocated the use of violence tar and feathers shefree the free use of hick ory rods shot guns etc etc to drive peaceable law abiding men practically carry out these infamous suggestions and they have done it more mu than once A mormon elder by the name of thompson gave gavel out an appointment to preach at of james can dor sunday morning august cowhen beaud a companion elder berry arrived on cane creek the latter part ot of the week they were joined by two elders who had come up from mississippi sip bip 1 these two to were J H gibbs anaw and W H jones jons who had formerly labored in lewis and hickman counties and had lately been visiting county seats speaking in court houses and other dallsas hall sas they could secure them on the mormon question gibbs thompson and berry met at the house of james condor some little time before the hour to commence meeting and occupied the time in singing hymns and conversing with the members of he church and friends gathered in jones stayed at mr nir garretts reading mr garrett lives a mile and a half hilf or more above condors residence ottie sometime ottle tiffie before the time of meeting jones dones started for the place of appointment and when some three tareq fourths of a mile from garretts a mob of some twelve or fourteen disguised inear men rushed from tile the thickets upon him presenting theli theil guns uns and calling upon on him to throw up f his Is hands which he themo thero fall sall saying that he was unarmed they compelled him to climb the fence into a cornfield corn field cross it and eo up a hillside hill side punching himat him at times with the muzzles of their guns after making some inquiries n ul of him film they left him guarded by four men with orders to shoot him if he aftem attempted ted to escape they then leftin eft inthe the direction of Condor Condor shouse ahouse short shortly r I 1 however thoy they came back and made further inquiries about the elders preaching they again left taking all but one of their numie number luhowa icho was s left to guard jones with orders to kill him it be e showed any disposition to escare escarc after aften the mob left jones had hir who claimed had comee cometo to befriend the elders and promised to let jones escape ordering him to run on ahead of him mm which the elder did for some distance A As they canns to a stand tand they hard one gun in the direction of condors house a brief pause then several guns in quick succession jones guard exclaimed my gouthey God they have shot among the women and chil drell turning to his prisoner he told him to run jones pid nid sohl with pistol drawn all the time they continued to run for perhaps three of a mile when they came to the forks of abroad a toad road here the guard left his prisoner rl As they parte parted althe the elder to told I 1 d his friend not to go back to the mob or take any part in the affair jones made his way to shady grove hickman county where lie he arrived monday for the rest it 19 Is related by elde eide elder eider er thompson who escaped from Con condor condors dors dorl house and ani mr nir garrett who ilves on canu Cane Creek greek but was wag not at condors on sunday ile he statts staffs his par part of it as lus told him by those who were there they had bad just finished singing a hymn when a mob rushed up to condors front gate a condor gondor standing anding by his gate was s suited baad bu f ed to his two sons who were out in his orchard the rest of the inoa ran on to th the house ehouse elder gibbs had just lust taken up his tiegs to look over some texts text riv lolito to sneaking when a man disguised which afterward proved to be e david hinson came in at th fr crossed the room took ewh har bar mifot suspended ed on hooks over the back door and then alm aim at elber eiber elder eider gibbs who was under considerable excitement hinson shot him the charge chang e entering the body under the arm he ilek elterm clutched the wound and fell against a bed w without saying aarold A A gun was now thrust in at the back r i i dor door leveled at elder diio thompson ampson elder berry gras grasped P e d it with both hands but seemed n not nob 0 t to struggle as if to wrench wren chit it from the phd opa one who vh heldia hel heid held dit it an instant later som bjone shot himo himm and without he e fell heavily to the floor ding without a struggle in the tumult tu elder hider thompson rushed for f or the ahe baak door toor As lie he came cania out of atthe housea house a gun was drawn down oh bw him but that instant a woman with a babe baboin in her arms passed between him i and the weapon which was lowered I 1 and he escaped to the woods while this was transpiring the condor broth ers ran from the orchard to the house As martin condor a boy of 19 entered the house lie he grappled with david i hinson and tried to wrench a gun from i him hinson drew c a derringer and i snapped it at condor but it failed to go off some one else then shot young bondor condor killing him instantly and hinson stepped steppe dout out of the front door while martin condor was struggling with hinson his half brother james it hudsen canup ran up to the loft to get his gun As he came back two men clutched him but he succeeded in wren wrenching chin partly aa away and shot david inson hinson II who was standing in the door yard As hinson fell some home one said ill have revenge 11 aud and shot young youg hudson who lived liv i ed about an hour and was the only one on c who was ivas not instantly killed A volley was now tired through the window wounding wo i i mrs nir s condor C n d i c ir in the hip but the greater part r 0 of it t entering the dead body of ja elder eider ider lder berry who lay upon the floor the mob took hinsons heinsons llin Hin sons body with them when they retired and the rest of the dead were buried near condors house such Is the story of the outrage as reported tome to me from the sa sources arces named doubtless those whose hands are now reeking with innocent blood will strive to palliate the wrong they have bave committed they will have their reasons to put forth and strive to justify their hellish crimes but I 1 know those thos elders eilers and I 1 know they are innocent innone N of any crime in fact there is 19 nothing so far as I 1 can learn that is even al lebed against them only they were teachers of an unpopular faith that was the head and front of their offending some three months ago as near as I 1 can learn a notice was handed to them warning them to leave the neighborhood on pain llin of violence or death and it might be as well here tosy that that klud kind of thing thin is very common in our experience as missionaries in this instance as in nearly all ather such auch cases it was treated with silent contempt tor lor we reason like this are we not in a christian land of liberty where every one is free freeto to utter his honest thoughts there being a positive provision in the constitution that freedom of speech and odthe of the press shall not be interfered with every everyone one being free to follow what reason and the of his own conscience shall deem best in religion so ion lon long iong as he interferes not with the rights of others we have a consciousness that we have harm barm edno one interfered with no one and we claim the sacred privilege to exercise the rights of free men under the laws of the land what ever of opprobrium may attach to our names iiames because weare we are mor alor mons it will yet be known that weare geare td are firm frienda friend to virtu ustice and liberty wor eor one as said bryon 1 I want men to be free from from mobs as mangs tangs from you yon as me we are using every ien jen endeavor deavor to get the bodies ot the murdered ment men t that at we may take them honesto ho th their ir wives and children whose so society I 1 t t they Y sacrificed for a season that t they theo e might teach men what they understood to be e the gospel of christ rist r and where friendship may perform over their bul bui let torn bodies the lat last rites that man performs concerning the perpetrators of the horrid deed we have nothel nothing to say the laws of this state lave nave been shamefully autra d buu but bu we suppose there is sufficient state to vindicate its special efforts on our part to push the matter we shall work in harmony with tho officers of the law W we e have haye no vindictive feelings that cry for vengeance bhoge in the hands hanas of the tiie state and in tha hands bands bogod bf God yours respectfully res B 11 ROBERTS |
