AN AMERICAN HORROR.

Evening Star, Issue 4252, 12 October 1876, Page 4

AN AMERICAN HORROR.

Governor Chamberlain, of South Carolina, has forwarded to Congress the following perspicuous statement concerning the affair at Hamburg, in that State:—

On the 4th of July instant, a company of State militia (colored) were marching along one of the streets of Hamburg. The f street was over 100 ft wide, and the com ; 'pany was marching in columns of four. While so marching it was met by two young white men in a buggy, who insisted on . keeping their course in the street without regard to the movements of the militia, and drove against the head of the column, which thereupon halted. Some parleying took place, which resulted in the company yield-' ing, opening their ranks, and allowing the ■ jbnng men to proceed on their course. On tKe following day the young men referred to took out warrants of arrest against some of the officers'of the militia company, who were j 'u \ i/-■"; -• •/'' r. 9i.j',:i

brought before.* trial justice for trial. The trial, was afterwards adjourned till 4 p.m. on Saturday, the Bth inst. Before that hour arrived on Saturday, many white citizens from the country around Hamburg began to gather in the town armed with guns and pistols. The militia company, in the meanwhile had assembled at their armory in the village, and at the hour set for trial the defendants did not appear. At this point it has been, stated in despatches and newspapers that the militia officers, having defied the authority of the trial justice, the citizens were called on to assist the trial justice by acting as his posse. Nothing of the kind, in fact, occurred. The militia failed to appear, because of their fear of injury at the hands of the armed white men, and the trial justice, after formally calling them, took no further steps to cause their presence in his Court, on account of the excitement and the evidence of an impending conflict. While affairs were in this condition, there being, according to all accounts, from 200 to 300 armed white men from the surrounding country in the town, a demand was made by the whites for the surrender to them of the arms of the militia. An hour or two passed in negotiations concerning this demand, the whites informing the militia company that if the arms were-not given up in a short time (most cf the witnesses say in half an hour) the whites would open fire on the militia. The militia refused to deliver up their arms, saying that the demand was wholly unwarranted and illegal, and that they had reason to fear for their lives if they gave up their arms. A brisk fire was then opened by the whites upon the building in which the militia were assembled, and soon after ene of the attacking party was killed by a shot from the militia in the building. A piece of artillery was thereupon brought across the bridge from Augusta, loaded with canister, and fired .several times at the building. This had the effect to cause the militia to endeavor to make their escape from the rear of the building. The town marshal of Hamburg, a colored man, who was leaving the building, was instantly shot by the attacking party. While thus endeavoring to escape from the building, twenty or twenty-five of the militia were captured by the attacking party and kept under guard for several hours. Finally, about two o'clock on the morning of the 9th of July (Sunday), after consultation among their captors and with complete apparent deliberation, five of the captured militia men were marched out, one by one, and shot to death in the presence of a large body of their captors. The rest of the captured party were either turned loose or broke loose and ran. They were fired upon as they ran, and three of them severely wounded—one of them probably mortally.

Attorney-General Stone thus succintly re* ports this part of the affair:-"Six men took A. T. Attaway out of the 'ring.' He and his mother begged for his life, but in vain. He was told to turn round, and was shot to death by the crowd. David Phillips was next taken out and was similarly killed Pompey Curry was next called out; he recognised among the bystanders Henry Getzen and Dr Pierce Butler, and called on them to keep the other men from killing him. He ran, and was shot as he ran, one bullet striking him in the leg below the £nee. Afterwards Albert Mynlart, Moses Parks, and Hampton Stevens were killed. Stevens did not belong to the company." The Attorney-General, who has personally visited Hamburg, thus concludes his official report to me:-"Making due allowance for errors m minor details, the facts show that the demand on the militia to give up their armß was made by persons without lawful authority to enforce such a demand, or to receive the arms had they been surrendered ; that the attack on the'militia to compel a compliance with a demand was without justification or excuse; and that after there had been some twenty or twenty-five prisoners captured and completely in the power of their captors, and without means of making further resistance, five of them were deliberately shot to death and three more severely wounded. Such was the affair at Hamburg. If you can find words to characterise its atrocity and barbarism, triviality of the causes, the murderous and inhuman spirit which marked it in all its stages, your power of language exceeds mine. It presents a darker picture of i human cruelty than the slaughter of Custer and his soldiers, for they were shot in open battle. The victims at, Hamburg were murdered "in cold blood after they had surrendered and were utterly defenceless No occasion existed for causing the presence of a single armed citizen in Hamburg on the day of this massacre. No violence was offered or threatened to any one. It is, indeed, said, as usual, that ' the niggers were impudent, but the evidence shows that all the actual physical aggression was on the part of the whites ; that they had made a demand which they had no right to make and that when that demand was refused, as as it should have been, thev proceeded to'enforce it by arms, and crowned their success in enforcing their demands by brutal murders."

| Governor Chamberlain concludes his despatch with the following vigorous protest : —" Shame and disgust must fill the breast of every man who respects his race or human mtureas he reads this tale. To me in my official capacity, wherein I have done my utmost, at no little risk of personal and political distraction from my political friends, to remove abuses and restore good government and harmony to our people, the occurrence of sueb an appalling example of human passion and depravity comes as a deep mortification and discouragement. * * * I am glad to testify to the horror which this event has excited among many here who have not been wont to heartily condemn many of the past bloody occurrences at the >Soiith. Nothing, however, short of condign and ample punishment can discharge the obligation of society and our State toward the authors of such a causeless and cruel massacre."