USA > Illinois > Williamson County > History of Williamson county, Illinois, From the earliest times, down to the present, 1876, with an accurate account of the secession movement, ordinances, raids, etc., 1914 > Part 9
USA > Illinois > Williamson County > History of Williamson county, Illinois, From the earliest times, down to the present, with an accurate account of the secession movement, ordinances, raids, etc., also, a complete history of its "bloody vendetta," including all its recondite causes, results, etc., etc. > Part 9
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History tells the fateful tale. The terrible record is written in blood, and the world stands aghast when the book is opened. He was informed that a bunch of bones would be rammed into his face if he repeated the sentence.
There was no high-wrought, inflated tone about Henderson. No straining or twisting of style, but all was plain, simple, easy and natural. He was compelled to toil for the necessaries of life, and bravely bore the frettings and raspings of this cold, dull world. To his friends he was warm-hearted, candid, earnest and honest, and would risk his life for them at any time. To his ene- mies he was cautious, daring and dangerous. He was a man of but few words, but wore a mild, firm fearless look. He is gone! and the silver-dusted lilies and trailing willows will throw their flickering shadows over his grave, made green by the lichen-fingered touch of time forever. Soon after his death his wife became a lunatic, and died on the New Year day following. On Saturday, the next day, after Henderson was shot, Jaston Ditmore was plowing alone in his field, one mile west of Henderson's, and about ten o'clock he was fired on three times in rapid succession, five of the balls striking him, one in the breast, one in each arm, one in the
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side and thigh; but he soon recovered, and left the country. No reason for this shoot- ing can be given, unless it was that he saw the assassins of Henderson. He was in no known way connected with the Vendetta. When the inquest was held over Henderson, the Coroner issued his warrant for the ar- rest of John Bulliner and James Norris, but they ran at large until August 25th, 1874, when Deputy Sheriff W. J. Pulley arrested Bulliner at Crainville. He was kept under guard at Marion until September 3rd, when he was taken before Judge Crawford on a writ of habeas corpus, and was admitted to bail in the sum of $3,000. In October fol- lowing they were both indicted for murder. Bulliner was put upon his trial, and had four witnesses from Tennessee, who swore that he was there at the time, and he was ac- quitted by a jury.
Soon after Ditmore was shot, John Rod and one other man were riding beside a field, three miles northwest of Henderson's, and two miles north of the Eight Mile, when they saw a man fall down in the weeds in the field. Thinking something had happened to him, Rod went over to see; when he got within ten feet of the man, he rose and fired on Rod, shooting him through the thigh, and then scampered away. It was rumored
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that this was Thomas Russell, but rumor had him everywhere, so there is no telling.
On Sunday morning, August 9th, 1874, George W. Sisney went out to his barn lot, and two assassins who lay concealed in the fence corner near by, snapped their guns at him four times, but 'being wet with the dew, they did not fire. He was shocked, and called to one of his boys to come to him, when the assassins rose and walked off, and he stood watching them for over two hun- dred yards. He did not tell who these par- ties were, but at the October term indicted Timothy Edward Cagle and James Norris, for an assault to murder him, claiming that they were the parties. Cagle is nineteen years old, an orphan boy, slim, awkward built, fair complexion, very pleasant and agreeable. He once had a difficulty with one of the Sisney boys. He worked for Da- vid Bulliner thirteen months, with James Norris. After he was indicted he went to New Orleans, but returned, and in March, 1875, gave himself up and lay in jail until September, when he went on trial. I had opened the case for the defense, when it was nolled on account of Sisney's death.
About this time rumor was afloat that Dr. Bentley, of Marion, had cut some balls out of John Sisney, supposed to have been
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received when David Bulliner was killed. On the 17th day of August, W. H. Bentley published an affidavit, stating that he had never cut any ball out of or known of any being in any of the Sisneys, and that the ru- mor was false. John Sisney was not believ- ed to be guilty, but made a very convenient scape goat for those who were.
During the month of August, "Field" Henderson and Monroe Bulliner accidental- ly met in Marion, and had a talk, and agreed to meet at Carterville, and compromise and have no more trouble. Monroe said he would get John, and "Field" said he would get all the Hendersons, and meet him on a set day. "Field" saw the Hendersons, and they said so far they had nothing to do with the troubles, and were not going to have; but "Field" went to Carterville by himself on the day, and Monroe, John and Vincent Hinchcliff met him.
Vince took him out to one side, and said, "'Field,' these boys did not kill your Uncle Jim. I know they did not. All they want is to be let alone. The next man that is kill- ed, the last one of the Hendersons will 'be killed or run out of the country. You fel- lows, by God, can't kill everybody. The people won't stand it."
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"Field" said, "Don't say you fellows, I have had nothing to do with it."
Vince replied, "You are the only one of them that has any principle. Old Jim had but d-d few friends; I was one only through fear."
He said he had sent for the boys, two new shot guns, and they had not come, and that is why he knew they did not kill his uncle. Here Monroe and John come out, and John asked 'Field' where Sam Hender- son was. "Field" said he did not know, that he was afraid to stay at home and work. John said:
Sam is in the bushes, and if my enemies do not come out and face me like men, I will go into them myself."
But they all agreed to be friends and have no further trouble. "Field" was to tell Sam that he could come home and go to work and that they were not to hurt him; but Sam never came home. This was the first time that "Field" knew that Vince was an enemy to him. He used to deer-drive with his uncle Jim, and he was astonished at his talk.
On Sunday, October 4th, 1874, Vincent Hinchcliff rode out north about a mile, to see a sick man. Coming 'back about noon, and two hundred and fifty yards from his
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house, several ruffians had concealed them- selves in a skirt of timber, on the east side off the road, which had been fenced in, but had grown up with small bushes. They fir- ed on him sixteen times, four shot guns and twelve pistol shots. He and his hrorse were both shot dead on the spot. Robert, who started down at the first shot, turned the rise, and what a scene was there to greet his eyes! What a radia of woe surrounded his heart! What a halo of shame! With an agonizing spirit he looked and saw Vince lying face downward on the cold earth, shot to death by unerring missiles from the mur- derous shot gun. And the bright sun looked sorrowfully down, a silent witness to this deed of unhuman butchery. And in the woods near by were heard the screams of joy and fiendish yells of these ruffians, holding a regular kickapoo dar dance over his remains, while the smoke from their guns was ascending high up in the dome of day as a signal to the surrounding country that an- other victim had been offered up. Who does not wish that he could have cut fire-brands from the flames of torment ,and with un- sparing hand scattered them relentlessly through that forest? Humanity would have directed the stroke, and civilization coun- tenanced it. Heaven help the assassin
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whose unsteady aim had left Vincent Hinch- cliff uncrippled for he had arms and he would have instantly wielded them with a dexterous hand, and unbarred the gates of perdition for two hell-deserving assassins. At two o'clock of that day two men blacked were seen crossing a field three miles east of Vince's, but were not recognized. At the October term, Fielding G., and Samuel Hen- derson were indicted for this murder.
On the night of the 12th day of Decem- ber 1874, Captain Sisney and George Hind- man, a young relative, were sitting near a window on the south side of Sisney's house, playing dominoes, when an assassin came on the stoop in his sock feet, and shot through the window as Sisney. About forty shot struck him in the right arm, and car- ried away the muscle. Hindman was bad- ly wounded in the neck and arm, from which he recovered. Sisney's arm withered away. This was a random shot, fired into a family, and the wickedest one ever fired in the county. Marshall Crain said he did this shooting, and that there was no one with him. But the tracks of four persons were seen next day, and the sock-footed fellow made leaps that would have strained Mar- shall Crain considerably. At the April Term, 1875, Timothy Cagle was indicted for
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an assault to murder each of these parties; but on what evidence I am unable to tell. After Sisney's death, both cases were nolled. Marshall Crain also said that about this time he tried to kill Milton Black, who had fought "Big Terry," and that he way- laid John Sisney, and came very near kill- ing Worth Tippy, one day, believing him to be Sisney.
On the first day of January, 1875, "Field" Henderson was in Carterville, and Monroe Bulliner went up to him and asked him to explain why he had inquired of the chamber maid at the McNeil House, where he slept. "Field" said he had not done so. Monroe then asked him to go to the girl and see. "Field" said he would not go, for he had not done so. Monroe said that he was satisfied, but a crowd gathered around who took "Field's" refusal to go see the girl as evidence of guilt. Rough words were ex- changed and revolvers drawn, and "Field" commenced backing off. He displayed re- markable coolness and courage. Any other man would have crouched like a spaniel at their feet; or risen like a demon to confront them; but he silently withdrew and boarded the train. The crowd got on also. Monroe came into the same car with him and they talked the matter over, but the crowd was
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barred up in the baggage car by the conduc- tor, who stood in the door. The train ran a half mile to Crainville, where all parties got off, and "Field" came on to Marion. It aft- erwards turned out to be one of Bulliner's friends who inquired for his room, in order to get a pistol he had left there. Monroe
Bulliner, Wesley Council, J. M. McCarthy, Hugh McCarty and John Moore, were indict- ed for a riot, for this affray, and were tried at the November Term of the County Court, 1876, and acquitted. When "Field" arrived in Marion, he went to the residence of J. D. F. Jennings, State's Attorney, to see if he was indicted for the murder of Hinchcliff. Jennings told him he was 'but to keep out of the way until Court. "Field" went home, five miles north of Marion, and Jennings came running up town and told that "Field" had been there with three revolvers, and tried to kill him and "played thunder" generally. And he had the whole town in great excite- ment. It was published in the papers, and went the rounds, that "Field" Henderson, the famous outlaw and desperado, had tried to assassinate the State's Attorney for do- ing his duty. The truth is, he displayed no weapon, but acted as gentlemanly as a man could, to my certain knowledge. I was Hen-
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derson's counsel, and we followed Jennings' advice.
In February, the Deputy Sheriff and an- other man went out to arrest "Field," who, when he saw them, ran up stairs, and when they came in below he climbed down the stoop and started off through the field. They took after him and fired on him six times. He returned the fire three times. After his escape he went to Kentucky, where he remained two months, and in April, 1875, came back and gave himself up, and was ad- mitted to bail on motion, on the 13th day, in the sum of $5,000, which he gave, and at the October Term we went to trial, and prov- ed by fifteen good men that they saw him near a church at the very hour Hinchcliff was killed, twelve miles. And the State's At- torney, after this evidence was in, entered a nolle.
During the summer of 1874, there was an organization of fifteen men, near Car- riers Mills, in Saline county, who extended their operations into this county. They call- ed themselves "Regulators," and dressed in disguise, and went around to set things in order. They did not injure any person, but simply notified those who they thought out of the line of domestic duty, and even in fi- nancial affairs to flank into line again. They
-F 12
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generally gave the victim such a scare that he was willing to do anything to 'be in com- pany by himself. Such a band is a disgrace to any civilized country ; but no serious re- sults or disparaging influence came from this one. Rumors were currently circulated of the good they were doing. Lazy, fellows took a scare, and blistered their hands at work; quarrelsome women turned to pray- ing, and brutish husbands became as loving as Adonis, under the potent influence of this country clique. There was probably an or- ganization of a more serious character in this county. Several men were taken out and whipped, and some ten or fifteen noti- fied to leave the county. This was during the year 1874-5.
On the night of the 23rd of October, 1874, a party of twenty men in disguise vis- ited the family of Henry D. Carter, in Northern Precinct, and ordered him to leave the county within forty days, whereupon a fight took place, and twenty-two balls were lodged in his house. In a few days fifty-two men met in arms at the County Line Church, in daylight, and ordered six of the Carters to leave the county. Mr. Carter wrote their names to the Governor, imploring protec- tion. The Governor wrote to Jennings to enforce the law, and of course that ended it.
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Several anonymous letters were written to editors, threatening them, during these two years ; but if there were ever any regular Ku-klux in this county, outside of the band who hung Vancil, it was in 1875, in the west and southwest sides of the county, and a small band which probably included some members of the Vendetta.
After the death of Hinchcliff, conster- nation seized every mind; mutual distrust and a want of confidence was felt. The solemn pallor of cholera times hung over our people. Silence prevaded the air. The responsible men were seen standing around in groups, whispering questions that no man dare answer; while the irresponsible part, and dead-beats were lopping their horses about town, and making wild goose- sallies out to the edge of the bloody ground, quartering on some good farmer for a day and night, and then come back and report some long, airy story of the whereabouts of some noted assassin. Most men had a plan to advise, 'but the execution of it was gener- ally left to reckless young men, or floating characters, who had nothing to lose and all to gain. Suppressed curses were sometimes whispered against the noted characters, and then the parties would be cautioned, lest he brought the killings to Marion. A low mur-
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mur or subdued excitement, would break out in the bloody ground late some evening, and produce the greatest commotion among the neighbors. Pistol shots had been heard at the back of somebody's field, and the sound of hurrying feet of horses running, and out would come five or six men, scared like rabbits, from a thicket. They did not like John Bulliner's movements, or Tom Russell had been seen, or James Norris, a desperate outlaw and daring desperado, armed to the teeth, was lurking in the 'bush- es. Reporters for city papers would come down here, and go as near the bloody grounds as they felt disposed, find out what they could, (and in those days it was dan- gerous to seek to know more of the Ven- detta than they chose to tell,) and then go back and call us a set of "blood-thirsty bar- barians," "Italian brigands," and "Night Riding Ku-klux," and on top of these out- rages a series of letters, signed "Big Pete of the Woods," were published by R. F. Brown, in the Farmer's Advocate, in Marion. threatening everybody and especially the State's Attorney. Brown's boy, afterwards, trying to convince me that C. H. Dennison wrote those letters, produced the manu- scripts, and I recognized in each of them the hand-writing of J. D. F. Jennings, the
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State's Attorney. He got terribly scared at his own shadow, and had the sympathy of many people in his great danger. And all the time he was fixing up a plan to steal something and run away, and make the peo- ple believe that he had to leave to save his life. He was so warm that he would burn a man with his kindness, and at the same time lived a life of cold-blooded rascality. He even reported that he saw men around his house, trying to kill him; but the people soon learned to take the square root of what he said for truth.
He was very popular, and the secret of it was his manners, saying and opinions. He was a professional doctor, lawyer, preacher, fiddler, horn-blower and a libertine. When he made music on the square, a crowd would swell around him. When he preached, they all went to hear him, from the talented aristocracy down to the boot-black. He was a rowdy among the rowdies, pious among the pious, Godless among the Godless, and a spooney among the women. He would get up in a sermon and rattle away until the shrouds and lanyards of conscience must have fairly quacked under the strains, and then go, get on a drunk. He was a clerical blackguard, whose groveling passions as- sumed full sway at all times. Lost to every
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Christian restraint, degraded in his tastes, villianous in his nature, corrupt in his prin- ciples, how wretched was such an apology for a State's Attorney ! He suddenly became wise and learned in the law about his com- peers, and found out that all our witnesses were accomplicies without veracity, and those who were 'branded as criminals, look- ed upon the law with comtempt of judgment, and we stultified ourselves trying to enforce the law. "The wickedest of the people is indeed great, when the wickedest men among them are men of renown." And yet we had to look to a man as our leader in this great emergency, who bears the character of be- ing a most consummate scoundrel. On his face was written legibly, " a liar, a hypo- crite." A while before he left, he wrote a letter to Samuel Dunaway and a few other rich men of Marion, threatening to kill them, and signed it "Big Pete." Then he went to these parties and said he knew who it was wanting to kill them, and that if they would give him $5,000 he would hire men to kill them, and even told who he could get to do it. He was awful uneasy for them! But his insinuating toadyism and spaniel-like rev- erence for his "friends" were but idle and frivolous assertions in this case. They knew his warped and biased soul was steeped in infamy and falsehood. About the time
WILLIAMSON COUNTY, ILLINOIS. 167 our people began to see the utter futility of expecting anything like justice in a court where this man was State's Attorney, he had the good sense to defraud the county of $900 and run away and owing everybody. As a prosecutor, he was a regular sarcasm on justice, a great hideous 'burlesque; free from religious scruples, and ready to sail from any point of the compass. He has gone. out to humbug some other people, and will live in our history in an immortality of shame and disgrace. He and Brown, of the Farmer's Advocate, did more to injure our county than all the shot guns in it.
In April 1875, the office was declared vacant, and in June J. W. Hartwell was elec- ted to fill the vacancy. On the 22nd day of January, 1875, B. O. Jones, of Massac, in- troduced a bill in the Legislature to appro- priate $10,000 for the relief of Williamson County. But the speaker appointed a com- mittee against us, with L. F. Plater, of Har- din, as chairman. He wrote to our State's Attorney, Circuit Clerk, and others for in- formation, but none of them ever answered him, and the bill was cut down to $3,000, and passed the House too late to be passed by the Senate. Hon. A. C. Nelson, our Repres- entative, won for himself the illustrious ap- pellation of "Egyptian orator," fighting for this bill.
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During the spring of 1875, several blinds were found near Bulliner's, and one day John went to Carbondale, and a fresh blind was put up north of his house, about a quarter of a mile, so that they could kill him, as he returned. Monroe found this blind, and told John to look out, and thus saved his life. At one time some men were seen around the house; but they did not get to kill anybody. At this time the people were an entire army of observers. Every man had his eyes riveted on the horizon of crime, and his ears pricked to hear. On the night of the 4th of July, somebody went to Marshall Crain's house, in Crainville, while he was gone from home, and fired a charge of buck-shot promiscuously around his bed. This gave Marshall such a scare that he de- termined to go back into the Vendetta, which he had left in January, and he said he hired to John Bulliner to kill Sisney for $300, and got all the money but $5. He wanted to kill John Sisney first, but Bulliner would have him kill the old man. Being afraid to stay at home, he and his wife went to Samuel Music's to board. On the 7th he asked Sam, if he got into trouble would he help him out. Sam said he would. Again, on the 8th, he asked him, and Sam said he would swear for him, and clear him. Marshall said John Sis-
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ney had shot into his house, and he wanted revenge, and he wanted Sam to swear him out of trouble. Sam agreed to do so.
About ten o'clock Wednesday, July the 28th, Marshall started out from Music's, and went to a neighbor's, and borrowed a gun, saying that he wanted to go a hunting; but in fact he hardly knew what he did want with it. He went down within two miles of Carbondale, and concealed his gun in an old house on the road, near Mrs. Snider's, and went into the field where the Snider boys were thashing wheat. Here he met the famous Allen Baker, and had a few words with him privately. This was late in the evening. He then went back to the old house and left his coat and boots, and just after dark, went to Carbondale, where George Sis- ney had moved a few months before for safety. It was raining, and in going up East Main street, he carried a board over his gun, to keep it dry. When he met anybody he would lay his gun under the side-walk, pass on and then go back and get it; and this he did as many as six times. Capt. Sisney lived on the northeast corner of the square, his house extending eastward and facing south, with a porch on the south side. Mar- shall went up slowly, but Sisney had already retired. He waited around the premises for
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a while, and when anybody would pass with lanterns, he would go back to an old wood shed in a dark alley, on the east side. The evening train was late that night, and when Marsh, had got tired and almost gave up all hope, it came, and on 'board was Overton Stanley, a friend of Sisney's, who went di- rectly to Sisney's house to get Sisney to sign a note with him as his security. He called, and about half past nine o'clock, Sisney came down in his parlor, and after lighting a lamp, signed the note and sat down near a window, on the south side; his hands lay folded across his lap. It was a night of rain and clouds. The wind swept sighingly through the foliage of the trees, with a rust- ling sound, as of swollen waters. The long, plaintive howl of the watch dog came hur- riedly by, and mournfully fell an the ears of Marshall Crain, when the sobs of the gale would subside. He went into the old shed and put fresh caps on his gun, and then went slipping, half stooped along on the porch but was so thirsty that he laid his gun down and went out into the street and drank out of a mud-hole with his hands; then taking his gun, he stepped to the window. The cur- tains were blown about softly in the breeze. All inside wore the sombre gray tint of light. He gently blowed against the curtains, and
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saw two men, 'but could not tell which was Sisney. Again he blowed and saw a pair of legs, and was about to shoot, when he saw that the man had on fine boots. That was not Sisney. His breath, assisted by the wind, parted the curtains again, and he saw the black, stiff beard of Sisney. He stepped back, cocked both barrels of his gun, raised it to his shoulder. Just then he heard Sis- ney say, "I guess it is time to retire." Stan- ley asked,
"What kind of a man is George Moore?"
Sisney replied : "He is a bad one; he is all right, and is a worse man than he looks to 'be."
Marshall Crain pulled the trigger, and George W. Sisney laid still in death's eternal sleep. Marshall heard Sisney say-
"Oh, Lord, I am shot! Lord, have mercy o11 me !"
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