Newspapers / The State’s Voice (Dunn, … / April 1, 1935, edition 1 / Page 6
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JAMES DONAHOE McQUEEN, LONE WOLE WHo. B, A. of ZSSS?” ~ ~~ MUCK By M. L. JOHN, Laurinburg, N. C. The whole Lumber River and Little Pee Dee section1 of the Garolin&s had’ for years been ter rorized by the “Lowry Gang,” from its haunts m Scnffletown, Robeson county, as a center oi operations. “The'“gang”-had been'hunted un successfully bv the military forces of the Goniea eratfe States, of North Carolina, and of the United States. The dread name “Lowry Gang” was used along with that of “Bloody Bones” to frighten children in a great, area of southeastern North' Carolina. The period of terrorism extended over ten years-1—from 1864 to 1874. But the wiles and' audacity of one man turned the tide^-one man who had adopted the'tactics-of the Indian himself' and broken the hold of the outlaw band upon' the community, and saw the dread band gradually fall into subsidence, their leaders killed or become fugitive's. This was James Dortahoe McQueen/ ... Janies Donahoe McQueen lived in Laurinburg for a number of years;.hefore he died, and while he did’not have much legal work to be done, the writbr did-all that he wanted done, and McQueen was in his office several' times: And as I write there is before me a copy of statement McQueen made as to the "killing of Boss Strong, made and signed'by him'shortly after the killing, and be fore lie Was able to collect the $5,000.00 reward' authorized by the legislature. As it was impos sible for McQueen to deliver the body to the au thorities. it was necessary to have a special act passed to authorize the payment, and waive the bodily delivery of the dead outlaw. James McQueen* -was born in Richmond county, and being deprived of the care on the part of his father early in life ,he was reared largely by one of the name of Donahugh, or Donahue, or Donahoe, by which name he was often called: It is said that the name of the family was orig inally the first-of the three varients, Donahugh, and later became Donahue, finally brought to Donahoe. McQueen-remained with Donahoe un til almost grown, when he entered the Confederate arrtiy. Coming from the army, he engaged in farming, then as overseer for a man in South Carolina. When he Was about twenty-five years of age He decided to hunt the Lowries. He was methodical and also rather eccentric. However, he 'must Have known -the difficulties ahead of him, from the careful Way he went1 about getting his knowledge in hand to make a successful hunt. Hd went’ into the “ Scuffletown” country,- in fested By the bandits, and pOsed as one seeking to Buy or rent1 land; -He would'make careful in vestigation of land-and the roads and paths and" even the by-paths,-also swamp area, creeks, marshes* etc., and learn who were the neighbors, and learn whenever possible, who was friendly and whO was to be trusted by him and who was also friendly to and to be trusted by the Lowry band; He would-make his examination, collect his; information, arid ihkb the land unsuitable, the price too highj-or some other seemingly worth while objection to it, that made him refuse such1 offers of land- or rentals as would be actually made him." This prepared him to go into the neighborhood as a hunter of the outlaws, with detailed information, and it was' said that he could travel as quietly" and"With as little exposure of person to sight of others as almost any of the IndiansT in'the section. It is true that he often made his advancements for miles without going out into the open On the main roads, because he knew all the by-roads and short cuts. Then Mcyueen, alter getting ms intormation, engaged with others in the hunt, but soon found1 that'their movements as a party could not be kept secret' or hidden from the people in the com munity in1 sympathy with the Indians, and very often pensioners of the outlaws; so he cut loose from the organized-hunting parties andwent hunt ing as a “lone wdlft" He kept his own counsel. His procedure was to go to the home of some man ,who he knew was to he trusted, and sleep as long, as he needed' to sleep, and then late in the afte'rnoOti When lie wM to sthrt' on another vigil’ he would ask for.food to be cooked; selecting the kixfd^to Be' cdd$E^for’him, and'espedklly' asking that' the" meat' have very Httfe salt1 in it, and that1 no' food tie highly seasoned with salt! This,, he sail}7 was'nectary for it was. practically impos* sibl4 f of "Him to* carry an abundant' supply, of* (water, and thirsty W6tfld: drive" filar out of? fits hichitg mtfcH. qUicker^than Hunger. And7 fie was loath tb drink any surface watferykno wing that dises^nil^t-filfft dierditf*and do*fiorfiiiir whatf hunger and hlfti^^feiig-cntdd nolr.' BgrasRerfdfer from three to even five days store of food at I times* and late in- the afternoon or alter aar*, would set out, saying that his friends- would see hirti’only when-he had used up the food, or been successful in his hunt. He did' not go the second time in: succession as a rule, to the same house for food, for fear that some Ohe had1reported his whereabouts, or that he had been seen coming from the last house where lodged* and- fed,- and he might find on his return'that his coming back was anticipated and some one or more of the gang might' be waiting- to get him; He said m part- in his “statement':” “Hast Thursday night, March 7th,. (it Was 1872), I reached the house of Andrew Strong,, o# the edge of Scuffletown, about ten- miles from Shoe Heel, (now Maxton), at 12 o’clock. I fixed a good “blind” about 150 yards from the house, and lying down I watched the- rest of the night and' all of the next day, eating some provisions I had brought along. About half past seven p. m., Friday, Andrew Strong, came out of the woods, and, after stopping and looking around in all di rections, he went into the house. Directly-he came out and gave a low call;, when Boss Strong came out of1 the woods- to the house. They were each armed with two rifles and two or three re volvers. A little after .8 o’clock, when I thought they would be at supper, I slipped up to the house and looked in through the cat-hole in the door, as I supposed they were eating supper by the light- on the hearth. A Miss Cummings was there, besides Flora,A1 ndrew’s wife. I kept watching until Boss laid down on the floor with his feet to the fire, and his head towards me. He commenced playing on a moutn-4iarp. mcu I saw my chance, and I pushed my rifle (it was a Henry -rifle) through the cat-hole until it was not over three feet from his head; I took a steady aim by the light, and shot. When I fired the woman screamed and said “he’s shot.” “No he isn’t”—“yes, he is”—and I- looked in as quick as I could get my gun away. • Boss’ arms and legs had fallen straight from his body, and there was a little movement of the shoulders, as if try ing to get up. Andrew' Strong was then stand1 ing in the shadow of the chimney corner and stayed there until I left. (Note: This was inside the house—the firelight' no.t disclosing him well around the corner, so that he was partially ob scured—up in the' corner of the room by the fire place.) This put him- out of range and out of bright light. He said'to his wife: “Honey,,you ge out' and see what it was,” and - opened the door opposite the one I was at, and pushed* her out; but' she did not come around to the side where I was, but went in directly, and said there was no body about: He sent her out again, telling her to look in! the Comers and jams (Note: of the chimney). But1 before she got well out, he said, “Come back,-Honey, he was blowing on that thing and it busted and blowed his head off.” And' directly after that he saidj “My God, he’s shot in the head, and it1 must'have come from the- cat hole/’ and- he sent his wife out again: Then' I* slipped? off'.” -s i “When' I returned the cat-hole was shut up and the house was all dark. I then came back to Shoe Heel, and made up a party and Went back to the house of Andrew Strong, arriving there abdtlt' 10 o’clock, a. m.‘, on Saturday. We found Rhoda Lowry, wife of Hehry B.- LoWry and sis ter of Boss and Andrew Strong,-wiping up the blood on the floor that Had issued frOm1 the wound inflicted on Boss Strong. There were sev eral-women present, but the body of Boss-Strong was nowhere to be found. Upon inquiry; we ascertained from' the women present that Steve Lowry and Andrew Strong had just removed the remains1 of BoS§s Strong to sortie secluded spot, and had threatened the women present, that if they watched’them.'to see which way they went, that' they would'come back and kill them; So, I, and party that accompanied1 me, returned to Shoe Heel; the same evening, without' finding the ibody of BosS Strong." UpOn this statement' and other evidence; McQueen1 collected the reward] but' not' Until the legislature of11873 Had passed1 an .enabling act; so that-the State Treasurer could" pay the1 reward- upon' the proof and without ob taining the dead body. The amount' of reward' wa? $5;00&A** McQueen wa$ a‘ rather typical1 Scotchman in build; tad; angular, about six feet six inefrertatti delSfemtir m movement; rather gawky in fact; . tadtbfn, uncommunicative- urtless' ifi-jhst die ri Jrt mobd; and did not like tb talk abortt himsellK HS ‘bought a1 fatmvbetween FW €61%e‘andi tio&r, Where^ffe- fiyerf^veral years; Wfedivlh# there the local overseer of public ro*t& him and called attention to the fact that a criD jusx across xne roaa irom ms front door was so placed that when one sighted down th* farther edge of the road it appeared to be about three or four feet' within the right of wav though the road at: that point was on level ground and1 merged' With'1 the grove between the road and the house, making' a passage way some fifty or severity-five feet available for any passing ve hicles! The road was-riot so very much traveled land there was no- Valid .reason why this crib should nOt: remain; as it was ; but- the overseer was1 technically' Wdthin his: rights. McQueen de murred tbJ riidVing it;. Said it had never run over anybody -yet. The overseer told him that if he did’riot1 move it before the following Thurs day when- they- would' be working that road the road hands at: his command’ would move it/ As the road force came into sight slowly work ing^ the road % throwing enough dirt into each hole tb cause a bump arid make two holes shortly McQueen took his newspaper and his Henry rifle in his hand; weftt out inter his front porch about 50 yards away from the crib and putting his gun in the corner of the porch, sat down in a chair and began reading liis newspaper. Along came the road force slightly ahead of the overseer. When the overseer came up some of the force made a signikant'nod towards McQueen where he sat reading Beside His Henry rifle, with which he had killed Boss' Strong. The^ overseer could not thereafter sec that there was a crib any where about, and a there was, it certainly did not interfere with' the majesty- of the law or the dignity of that overseer. The forte worked rapidly and quietly and there were no orders to clear that crib from the road. McQueen had said it had never run over anybody yet. When the road force and the overseer were out of hearing distance, there was a1 good long intaking of breath that had hardly been breathed for the past few minutes. McQueen made much merriment over the law lessness of Shoe Heel, now Maxton, and told them in .effect that they coiild bring about a state of law and' order if they had the grit to do it. Somebody retortedIf He thinks he can do it so easy why does he not seek the position of chief of police, the office being vacant at: the time. Mc Queen accepted the banter and promised if elect ed he would do the job,- And he was elected. Not very long thereafter’1’one fine Sunday morning the citizens found* Ori'a Hack lot of one of the stores, a dead' Indian. McQueen had been on night duty and was then asleep. It was communion Sunday, and McQueen attended and participated in the communion at the Presby terian church, the killing, a mystery, unsolved and apparently unsolvable. The- coroner sum moned-a jury to meet at- 3 o’clock p. m. to view the body and take such- further action as seemed proper. * vvnen tne time-came, tne coroner was mere and waiting, for the chief of police, James Dona hoe- McQueen, to- arrive. Coming up, some one asked him wKat he* thought- of the matter and who he. .supposed1 couldi have; done; it, the man being shot to death,. He-said-yes; he knew who did it. Asked whom,. said “I did it,” ' Asked why, he said* no Croatan could1 hit him and live. He said the man was in a nasty temper and fol lowed him after midnight^ finally accosting him and struck him, when McQueen shot him. And that was all there was to it. He-said when any Croatan, as he called them, hit him he knew it meant one or the other would die and it was not going, to be/ him if- he knew himself. He was ordered held, for trial at next term of Superior Court,, and every man with a hun dred dollars worth of property in the town came forward and offered and even begged to be al lowed to sign tfie Bondi When the trial came off, he was arraigned, tried'for murder in the" second degree, with the evidence as set out' above, almost wholly from McQueen’s own lips; and the Jury retired to comg back almost without sitting down, in fact it is said they did'hot’ sit doWn, and rendered a Verdict of “riot guilty.” The judge holding the court knew, nothing, or next to nothing more than that he heard' in court, and expected a ver dict of guilty of course. He Was astonished, ana as soon as', he' cbuldt regain speech he lost his dignity arid began tearing into .the county that coUlcJ do' a thing" Iikife' that: Cblbnel N. A- Mc Lean, tall, suave, debonair, arose, arid' asked 1 he rnigHt say just' orie Wof<f at that' Juncture, that he believed1 he cotlld enlighteri" the court a mtie on that subject'. Hehig granted'' the permission, he struck But and iri a- ffeW well" chosen words drew; a picture" ot fhtr dmes'Betweeri 1864 ana .1874; andlfh# Hurdle'pW ^thi^ Dbriahoe Mc Queen’ pfayecf irir iri, asct What effect this- actl°® had*their, and1 HriW tfte e&trierit1 Had suo sidetf* fit 'and siifch this occur; r aid tei A a sfSfertfcBt life? tws. (Continued .On Paare Seven)
The State’s Voice (Dunn, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
April 1, 1935, edition 1
6
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