Conclusion
So many murder cases…
Here is another from the Vicksburg Daily Whig from February 27th, 1861: "Shocking Affair - On last Monday, John Ray shot a small boy about twelve years of age with a double-barreled shotgun. It appears that John Ray had been harboring a negro for some weeks past, and the boy's mother find it out, told it to some of her neighbors, whereupon Ray loaded his gun and went to her house for the purpose of shooting her, but the boy coming to the door first, he discharged both barrels at him, but did not kill him. Ray was pursued by a number of our citizens, captured, brought to town, and the case was tried before Harvey Murphy, Esq., on Wednesday last, when he was bound in a bond of 2,000, which he failed to give, and was accordingly taken to the Athens jail. His brother Jeff Ray was also bound over in the same bond, for attempting to kill one of the officers with an axe while endeavoring to arrest his brother, John Ray, and failing to give the required bond, was assigned a birth with his brother. The boy is now in a fair way of recovery." Wow! This is an attempted murder case, but significant for the high level of violence involved, for how the violence spread, and the issues of race underlying the case.
Here is a murder case in which race was also clearly an issue, from the Daily Evening Citizen of Vicksburg, from May 2nd, 1861 - "A Master Shot by His Own Slave - G.W. Wilson, Esq., Washington County, in this state, was monstrously murdered by his negro man George, who was a confidential servant. Mr. Wilson was fired upon with a double-barreled shotgun, fifteen shots taking effect in the head and neck, killing him instantly. The negro fled, and, at last accounts the citizens were in hot pursuit of the black fiend." Again, I have not done a systematic study, but it appears to me that there are as many white-on-black murders as there are black-on-white murders. What might be surprising is that whites are frequently prosecuted, convicted and sentenced for killing blacks. It may also be surprising the number of whites that were killed by blacks, especially slave owners and overseers killed by slaves. It may be that Southerners historic fear of a slave uprising were perhaps well-founded. Contrary to popular misconception, not all slaves were happy and content with the conditions of their enslavement, as the frequent reporting of murdered overseers and owners attests.
Here is one from the Natchez Daily Courier dated April 17th, 1861 that is very vague in details, but certainly there must be an intriguing story behind a murder committed by a father and son - "Thomas M. Lyons and Thomas Lyons, father and son, were convicted of the murder of Charles Landrum, at the late term of the Circuit Court of Jasper County and sentenced to be hung on the first Friday in May next." Given that no one was identified as black and the names were provided, this appears to have been a white-on-white crime. Did the Lyons attorneys seek a pardon for them from the Governor? Why or why not? How heinous must the murder have been if both father and son were sentenced to hang?
So many murders in Mississippi, so many questions to answer…
