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turned State's evidence against Allen Matbea, was sent to Duplin county jail.•rbe ntooreavllle Tnftedr.| Charlotte Observer.]At 10.45 yesterday morning, Mr. W. G. Fowler, the Mooresville merchant who was waylaid, knocked .down and beaten and robbed, Tuesday night, while on his way from his store to his dwelling in that loWn, died. He remained in an unconsoioas state to the last, and consequently could give no Information as to the identity of the perpe* trator of the outrage. An examination of his skull revealed the fact that it had been fractured in seven different places,showing that the highway robber undoubtedly intended to kill his victim before takingkisj^money.ight before la* Mr. J. F. McLean and another citizen of the place arrested two negroes, Jo Gillespie and Jnle Davidson, and yeaterday morning they wire takenbefore Justices Harris and Walker for trial. As there were no witnesses to the ocourjeocf, of course there was much difficulty in obtaining testimony other than that which conld be draws from the two men. Finally, however, Gillespie confessed to being implicated in the crime.but asserted that he watched while Davidson committed the deed. The latter denied tbis, and bis testimony tended to convict Gillespie. At 12 o’clock the court adjourned for dinner, leaving the prisoners in charge of officers.By this time two or three hundred people had collected in the place,and considerable excitement prevailed, having greatly increased after the announcement of the death of Mr. Fowler. The conduct and assertions of the accused men forced the conviction that one or both of them were guilty. So determined were the crowd to ferret out the matter that two or three men took Davidson out of the hands of the officers and, placing a rope around his neck,liebung him up for awhile to make him confess what he knew. He persistently refused, and in the meantime Mr. Isaac Harris and Mr. John Shepherd entered the room and prevailed upon the men to take him down.The trial v?aa resumed Id the afternoon,aiding to adjoarn till this morning at 9 o’clock, when it is believed that one or the other of the men can be induced to make a confession. *In the meantime, however, It is greatlyfeared that the people of the town and will beconeighborhood will become so incensed that they will lynch the men without farther testimony. Oar information is that many of them are firmly convinced that both men are guilty,aod public seatimenthas been so grossly insulted by the outrage upon an esteemed bitizenlhat it will he difficult to restrain them. Indeed, so intense was the feeling there yesterday throughout the
Newspaper Details
Wilmington Weekly Star
Wilmington, North Carolina, US
Fri, Dec 27, 1878
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Iredell C.
NC, USA 07 Oct 2019
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