.
t
TAFT DAY.
Wilmington 'Expects Everybody
and You for Taft Day on No
vember 9th v
ft
'I
V
VOL. LXXXV-NO. 30.
STATE SCORES
IN HIS CASE
Trial of Black Mountain Con
stable Charged With
Double Shooting.
NE6RQ EMPLOYES TESTIFY
Neither 'of Young Men Disorderly or
Made Hostile Demonstration To
ward Officer Defendant
In His Own Behalf.
(Special Star Telegram.)
Asheville, N. C, Oct. 26. In tho
trial today of F. C. Watklns for the
murder of John Hill Bunting at Black
Mountain, August 7th, Burley Gowan
and Clem Jones, negro employes of
the Gladstone Hotel, -where the shoot
ing occurred .testified that neither
Bunting nor Paul C. Collins had made
any hostile demonstration . toward
Watkins when the constable shot
them and said they did vnot hear the
two men use any vulgar 'language or
make any disorder,-as Watklns testi
fied they did. Both Jones and Gowan
testified that Watklns shot Collins
first whereas Collins has testified that
Bunting was the first one shot. '
When ' court reached an adjourn-
ment this afternoon both the negro
witnesses, . who accompanied Watkins
to the room ; when the shooting oc
curred, had been examined and cross-
examined ' and Watkins had made a
statement in his own behalf and much
of his cross-examination had been fin
ished. Gowan and Jones appear not
to have been shaken in their testimo
ny, despite a Btln, cross-examination
by Mr. Craig. . . '
The defendant, Watkins, promptly
took the witness stand when the
State rested land made, .his statement
of the occurrence. He -wasvsubjected
to p. ; severe , cross-examination by
T. A. Jones, .but- his 'assured manner
did not desert him.- Prodded by the
questions of Judge Jones he reviewed
the troubles he had experienced, the
shooting and wounding either by him
self or another convict guard of a flee
ing negro convict some years ago, his
shooting and wounding of Ingle at
Black Mountain, his shooting and kill-
- ing of a negro who he said was trying
to break into nis nouee at Hiacx
Mountain, and his cutting of a man
named Ledbetter, who was head of
a crowd seeking to initiate him by the
pleasing process of "pressing" him.
.Burley Gowan, . the negro porter,
testified hat when he came from
church about 1 o'clock he went to his
rom some 20 steps from the hotel and
bad been there , about 20 minutes.
hearing no noise when . Proprietor
Manly called for ylem :. Jones and
when he did not respond told witness
to get- Constable Watkins. Witness
, said that he met Jones and the two
waked Watkins, who asked what the
trouble was.' Witness told him he was
wanted to quiet a disturbance at the
hotel. When they reached the hotel
they met Manly, who told Watkins to
restore peace, witness said be neara
no no'se bs they approached the hotel,
but Mrs. Woodruff nut her head out
ef ft window and called to "hurry uo"
as "they are in the hall now." In the
hall upstairs they saw no one except
Mrs. LInville and went first to Room
17 and then to 19, where the officer
knocked. , Someone inside asked
"Who's that?" and Watkins replied a
policeman. The officer entered light
ing a match and when it went out told
Clem to make a light and Jones light
ed the lamp.
The officer asked the two men who
were sitting on the side of the bed
what all the fuss was about, to which
one of them replied that there was no
fuss, that they were just talking. The
officer told them to get back in bed,
in a loud tone.' Collins, .who was try
Ing to get Bunting to lie down rose
with his hand extended as he-talked
to the officer, the nlBtol fired and th
light went out. The men were hot
making any move to attack the offi
cer. Collins, who was shot first, fell
back so that bis foot closed the door
and witness was shut out in the hall
He heard a second shot and Bunting
- exclaimed,"'My God, he's shot me in
the stomach" :
Watkins on the st?.nd told of the
struggle which had come just before
the shooting In which the two men
had him down. When In this position
he claims he fired the gun and then
was aeain thrown . on his knees and
fired again. He gave a complete story
in detaiKalthough he appeared a little
nervous. When cross-examined by
Judge Jones for the prosecution his
whole nast life was. aired and he be
came "flustrated" at several Doints
but on the whole maintained his ori
ginal story.
TY COBB IN WINSTON
Famous Baseball Player in Automo
bile Party Coming South.
Winston-Salem, N. C. Oct. 26. Tv
Cobb, the famous baseball player of
the Detroit American League Club,
who is now in the New York Herald
and the Atlanta Journal National Au
tomobile Highway party, has accepted
fii invitation to give a talk on base
ball at a reception .smoker to be given
the tourists here Friday night. r'
MANY LOST IN SEA DISASTER
Steamer H est I a Stranded On Grand
Manan Coast And Onry Six of 50
Aboard Saved Mistake of.
.. ' . Pilot.
Eastport, Me., Oct. 26. The North
Atlantic's annual toll of lives and vest
sels received the first tithe of the
Winter season from its tributary
the Bay of Fundy today in the loss
of at least a score of souls; and th
destruction on a shoal, inside of old
Proprietor's Ledge, oft Seal Cove,
Grand Manan, of the Donaldson Line
steamer Hestia, bound from Glasgow
to St. John and Baltimore.
Four of the victims, youne Scotch
laddies were passengers on the Ill-fat
ed steamer and the others were mem
bers of the crew. Captain Newman
and 2i) or more, members of the crew
were last-seen this morning In a
ship's boat which was being tossed on
the stormy sea.
Of the 50. persons who were aboard
the steamer when she piled up on the
shoal at 1 o'clock this morning only
six are positively known to have been
saved. They were forced to cling to
the wreck, shifting their precarious
position as the steamer was tossed by
the great seas. It was not until 3 o'
clock this afternoon that life savers
were able to man their boats and
reach the stranded vessel. When res
cued the survivors were in a weaken
ed state after their fourteen hours or
deal. .
Those known to be saved- are:
Third Mate Stuart, Second Engineer
Morgan and Seamen Keen, McKenzie,
Smith and. McVlckar. ;
A heavy northeasterly gale is be
lieved tb have been responsible for
the Hestia's fate although it is suppos
ed a mistake of the man at the wheel
in believing' he had picked up Gannett
Rock light while really discerning the
gleams of the lighthouse on Machias
Seal Island, several miles southwest,
carried the ship many, miles off her
hourse.
The sailors of the middle watch
had been out of their bunks an hour,
and "all others except the navigating
officer, were, stowed In bunks or ham-i
mocks when the crash came an- hour
after midnight. In the belief that he
was leaving Grand Manan on ,the port
tack and following the usual course to
St. Jobn the navigating officer sought
the distinguishing marks of that route.
But they were not to be seen. In
stead the steamer was head
ing for Seal cove, between Gannett
Rock and Machias Seal island, iver
seas which barely covered a treacher
ous bottom of shoals. It was on one
of these Just inside Old Proprietor's
Ledge that the vessels nose became
impailed.
FEARFUL FLOOD IN MEXICO
Eleven Towns Inundated Thousands
Homeless Enormous Loss.
Mexico City, Oct 26. An estimated
crop loss of five million pesos and
two persons 'killed with many others
missing from the hundreds of homes
washed away and thousands of head of
cattle drowned are the known results
of a disastrous cloudburst and storm
that broke over Tabasco yesterday
following 21 days of incessant rain.
Rivers are out of their banks, towns
are inundated, thousands are home
less and no relief is yet in sight.
From -North to South across the
State the ' country is In waste. Only
the mountain villages and plateau
farms escaped' the waters.
Five hundred families are homeless
in the city of - Atasta only. Other
cities and towns inundated are Hulna
euillo. Tenosiaue. Jalana Tlacotal-
jam, Tlapa, Santa Rosa and a number
of smaller villages "along tne Mesca
laoa river, while on the south border
of the State Jonquta, Balacan, Car
men, Palizada and Santa Rita in the
valley of the Usumacinta river are
badly damaged as the result of the
flood - -
A total of 32 and a nan mcnes oi
water has fallen in the State in three
weeks. This is the record for rain
fall in' 32 years. The lower part of
San JDan Mautista is under water
Temporary lodging houses have been
fitted un and more than a thousand
persons are red ano loagea at me vnj &
So complete is the inundation of
Santa Rosa that it resembles an arm
of the sea. Streets, narks and gardens
are inundated by three feet of water
- - . r mi I
and the residents are living on ruuio,
shivering and starving.'
The 'State government Is assisting
the stricken cities and It is likeiy mat
the government will send out 'an ap
peal to the Federal Government for
aid. - '. , ;
NORTH CAROLINA SYNOD
Convened In Red Springs, Last Night
Dr. J. M. Wells, Moderator.
(Special Star Telegram.) . V
Red Suring. N. C. Oct. 26. After
the sermon of Rev. Dr. A. R. Shaw, o
Charlotte, retiring moderator of the
Synod of North Carolina, Dr. Shaw
called the Synod to order here tonight
and constituted the same With prayer,
Rev. Dr. J. M. Wells, pastor of the
First Presbyterian church, Wilming
ton, was elected moderator. Revs. J,
W. Goodman and W. C. Brown were
elected, temporary clerks.
. Special praver was offered for the
recovery of Rev. Dr. J. M. Rose, of
Laurlnburg, who is critically ill. Sy
nod adjourned--" to ...meet, tomorrow
morning. ; This is Synod's 9Cth annua
meeting. and the. roJl call showed a
large number of members present.
AVILMESTGTON, K. C.,
FIVE PERISH III
E FIRE
SO:
Children Were Victims at
' Presbyterian Home Near
; Lynchburg.
HEROIC DEED OF
u
Fifteen Brought Safely From Falling
Building by Mrs. Priest Jury v
Exonerates the Home Author
"Itles Horrors of' Fire.
Lynchburg, Va., Oct. 26. Later this
afternoon the remains of the . five
children who were burned in the fire
which destroyed the Shelton cottage
at the Presbyterian Orphan's Homo
near the city at 4 o'clock this morn
ing were recovered though they were
burned passed recognization.
A cornor's inquest which concluded
its work at 8:15 o'clock tonight threw
no light on the cause of the fire, but
the .verdict Included a statement ful
ly exonerating the home authorities
from blame.
Later reports show.that the fire was
discovered by the housekeeper in her
room on the second floor by smoke
issuing through the speaking tube con
necting, her room with the kitchen.
She was up to begin her duties for the
day. The five children were all in
mates of the nursery.
; The children were all in the secon.I
floor of the -wing of. the building and
they were -caught by the fire in a
manner that made their rescue impos
sible. Ruby Moorefleld, however, was
taken out- of the building, but when
she ascertained that the young sis-
ter was still Inside she ran back into
the burning building and lost ner
ife. ' . ; '-.
i The ' fire1 was discovered - by: Mrs.
Priest;'1 the 'cook, who was aroused by
the roar of the flames. .When she
saw that it was then impossible to get
the children out by the stairway the
entire basement and first floor at
that time being enveloped, and that
It would, be " but a few minutes b-
fore the whole .building would fall she
rushed to the third story and brought
15 children down to the second floor
leading them to the verahda top where
they were taken down a. ladder, sever
al of them dropping into the out
stretched' arms of the older boys in
the Institution.
When these children were all safe
Mrs. Priest had to jump for her life
and in doing so sustained a dislocatel
shoulder, a scalp wound and an inlury
to her back. She will recover. While
all of the escapes were miraculous,
only one of the rescued girls was in
jured, and she escaped with a sprain
ed ankle, sustained in jumping.
Dr. R. H. Fleming, the superintend
ent, was away at the time of the fire
and there were no men about except
some distance away in the farm
house. When they reached the burn
ing structure it was too late to save
the liCtle tots. The women could not
save theni for they barely succeeded
m saving twenty four of the other
girls. ; ;
TRIBUTES TO PECKHAM.
Supreme Court Adjourned as Mark of
Respect to His Memory.
wasnmgtgn, uct. 25. Alter a ses
sion of less than two minutes the Su
preme Court of the United States to
day adjourned until next Monday as a
mark of respect to the memory of the
late Justice Ruf us W. Peckham, who
died last night at his home, in Albany,
N. Y'
St. Louis, Oct. 25. The President
today sent to Mrs. Peckham, widow of
Judge Peckham, of the United States
Court, the following message:
"Mrs. Ruf us Peckham, Albany, N. Y.
"Mrs. Taft and I extend to you our
heartfelt . sympathy in your deep sor
rqw. M&y the great and prolonged
service and nign cnaracter or your
distinguished husband as a judge and
citizen and the profound respect of his
fellow citizens offer some consolida
tion to. you In this sad hour. .
- " - "WILLIAM H. TAFT."
STEEL CORPORATION EARNINGS.
For the Year $38,246,907 Directors
'Declare Quarterly Dividend.
: New York, Oct. 26. The directors
of the United States Steel Corpora
tion today declared a quarterly divi
dend of 1 per cent, on the common
stock, This is an increase of 1-4 pe
cent over the previous quarter, the
rusual dividend of t 3-4 per cent, was
declared on the preferred stock for
the quarter ending September- 30th
r Total earnings of the corporation
hwere ' $38:246,907; the net earnings
$38,855,019. In tne directors report
unfilled orders on hand September 30,
at 4,796,933 tons.' v
A STORM APPROACHING.
Will
Sweep From Atlantic to Pacific
. Latter Part ot weeK.
''.Washington, Oct. 26. A storm that
will rover a wide area and sweep frorri
the Pacific coast to the Atlantic dur
ing the -latter part, of the week, leav
ing a cool wave in its wake, is prom
ised in . a. SDecial forecast J ssued by
the yVeather Bureau tomgnu
NAG
WEDNESDAY KORKIXG
EOF
IN SUPREME COURT
Argued JYesterday. in Raleigh
by Distinguished Attor
neys on Both Sides.
AFFAIRS AT STATE CAPITAL
Circus Versus State Fair State Bank
Examiner Doughton in Extremis. .
Hanover Drug Co., of Wit-
mington Notes.
(Special Star Correspondence.)
Raleigh, N. C, Oct. 26. Attorney
General T. W. Bickett was called out
of the city this morning to Louisburg
on account of the illness pf his little
son who has diptheria. In his absence,
the argument for the State in the not
ed case of State vs. Butler, was made
by his assistant, . G. L. Jones. The
Butler case is that in which ex-United
States Sen ator Marion Butler and hl3
brother, Lester Butler, of the Cauca-.
sian, appeal -from fines.;' of respectively
$500 p.nd $250, imposed in Guilford
court after conviction -Cjf criminal libel
of Spencer. B. Adams, Republican
State chairman, in publishing charges
against his official and personal con
duct while' Chief Justice of the Choc
taw and Chickasaw jndian Citizen
ship court, Indian Territory. ' . Other
arguments for the State ". were by Hon.
Chas. M. Stedman, G. S.v Bradshaw, R.
C. Strudwick and Jacob Long. For
the Butlers there were arguments by
Aycock & Winston; Justice & Broad
hurst and ex-Judge W,' S. O'B. Rob
inson. ; . ;
Bribery Charges.
The charges out of which the alleg
ed libel grew consisted in statements
tending to 'indicate that the Court of I
maims, or wnicn Aaama was a judge
had been ' influenced r. improperly :? by
the law firm of Mansfield, McMurray
& Cornish to fix their fees In the liti
gation in behalf of the Indians at the
sum of $750,000; The charges had
been widely published before the But
lers gave publicity to them in their
paper, in papers on the Pacific coast,
n the District of Columbia, in Con
gressional debates and in the State
pacers. Publication in the Caucasian
followed ft political difference between
Marion Butler and Adams, when the
atter was a candidate for the State
chairmanship of the Republican party
n oposition to Butler's desires. Only
two years before Butler had been on
the Scene at Greensboro in Adams' be
half, having had as much as any other
one man to dd with the slaughter at
that convention of Spencer Blackburn.
When Adams failed to recognize But-
er, however, the latter turned loose
bis guns, and the libel suit was the
result.
Grounds of Defendtns' Appeal.
On appeal the contention of the de
fense was that the evidence showing
the publication by. the defendants,
the annual statements of the Cauca
sian Publishing Company filed with
the Secretary of State and purporting
to be signted by Lester Butler, was
hot sufficient legal evidence .of their
responsibility for such publication;
that the admission of the publication,
made by the defendant when the case
was tried before a justice of the
peace,, was a special admission limit
ed to that trial and not competent to
be introduced in evidence on the trial
in the Superior court; that the court
erred in admitting in testimony a cer
tified copy of an opinion by Federal
Judge Anderson in another case, in
which the judge passed on the charg
es contained in the alleged libel and
expressed his opinion of their un
truthfulness; , that there -were other
errors in the admission of evidence
and instructions given the jury, and
especially the admission of testimony
by Adams' to the effect that Butler
(Continued on Page Eight.)
OUTLINES.'
Prince Ito. Japan's foremost states
man, rind former President-General of
Korea, was . assassinated at Harbin
yesterday where he went to hold a
conference with the. Russian finance
minister. He was shot down by a Ko
rean who boasted of thi conspiracy to
take the Prince's life. Three others
in the party were injured.1 presi
dent Taft and party are proceeding
down .the Mississippi river, to New Or'
leans. Both the President and speak
er Cannon in speeches yesterday ad
vocated better waterways. The
Donaldson Line steamer Hestia
stranded on the coast off Grand Ma
nan yesterday, and on'y six of a crew
and passengers numbering 50 have
been saved Laymen's Missionary
convention, which .has been in session
this week in Richmond enoed yester
day. Five children were burned to
death in the destruction or the Pres
byterian Orphan's Home near Lynch
huro- Va New York markets :
Mnner on. call firm -4 1-2 per cent,
ruling rate- 4 1-4, closing bid and offer
ed at 4; time loans firm. Flour stea
dy with demand slow. Wheat spot
steady; No.2 red 1.25 nominal domes
tic elevator and-1.21 1-2 asked for ar
rive f.o.b. afloat. Com spot steady,
Nn. 2. 69 1-2 elevator, 70 delivered and
69 1-2 f.o.b. afloat. Rosin steady. Tur
pentine steady. . '
- . - - - . '
- OCTOBER 27, 1909.
THE GDAST LINE
BE
Refunping Mortgage Expect
ed at Meeting Stockhold
ers in November,
FOR TRACKAGE AND LIENS
Stockholders Will be Notified of Con.
. tern plated Action Amount of
Issue Probably $175,000,000.
The Provision.
Baltimore, Oct. 26. Stockholders
of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Company, it was understood here to
day, probably will be asked at the an
nual meeting to be held in Richmond,
Va., on November 16th, to authorize
a refunding mortgage to provide funds
for improvements and to retire under
lying liens. Notices apprising stock
holders of this action are expected to
be sent out shortly.
It is understood that the company,
which Is controlled by Baltimore cap
ital, does not contemplate issuing any
of tne bonds in the immediate future,
but tne directors wish to be in a posi
tion to raise money for double track
ing and otherwise improving the sys
tem when they decide the time is pro
pitious. . ,
wnetner tne bonds win be a 4 or
4 1-2 per cent., interest is a detail still
to be decided, it was stated, as is also
the amount of the issue,, though, the
financial district hears the total will
be anywhere from $125,000,000 to
$175,000,000. It is understood to be
the desire of the management to pro-
fvide for financing the need of the com
pany over a long period, of years, the
consolidated mortgage for $80,000,000
having, been exhausted.
4 Of the proposed refunding -mortgago
iti saidihut at; least :425.00Q,000 will
be ' set- aside for; double tracking the
System and increasing terminal facili
ties. fThe sum of $21,566,600 will be
givenm exchange for an equal
amount of 4 per cent.' certificates of
indebtedness and the balance will be
held in the treasury to retire underly
ing liens as they mature and 'to pro-
Vide for future needs.
The funded debt of the Atlantic
Coast Line Railroad now amounts to
-$117,708,850. The total $21,566,600
certificates of indebtedness cannot be
retired except with the Consent of
two-thirds of "the holders, whose con
sent must also be obtained before the
company can issue another mortgage
ahead of them, and if such mortgage
B,m,iH fco -mttwizMi.AArtJflRfLtA hold -
ers have , the right to take the hohd.
at par in exchange for certificates.
Re-organized Seaboard Air Line.
New York, Oct. 26. Judge Lacombe
today granted an order in regard to
the re-organization -of the Seaboard
Air Line Railway directing all recei
vers' indebtedness be called for pay
ment of November 6th and that the
property and business of the company
n the hands of tne receivers, s. u.
Warfield, R. L. Williams and E. . C.
Duncan, be turned over to the custody
of the company at midnight Novem
her 4th. r
2ELAYA DENIES PASSPORTS.
Ships Leaving Nicaragua Cannot Come
to America Dy tne Nortn.
Washington. Oct. 25. President Ze-
laya, of Nicaragua, has denied pass
ports to Americans to leave Managua
by the north. This news reacnea tne
State Department today from the
American consulate at Managua, the
capital. The Department has taken
no action in the matter. ,
It appears from the brief dispatch
from the consulate that 'passports to
Americans were not refused when de
parture was to be made from the Pa
cific coast Travel north from Mana
gua" would lead into the territory ot
the insurectionists, and it is presumed
that1 President Zelaya was not only un
wiiiine to euarantee protection to
Americans traveling in this territory,
but that he desired to prevent infor
mation about the situation about Man
agua being carried to his enemies.
TELLS OF DOUBLE MURDER.
Man Admits He Kept Guard While
His Brotfier Fired Shots.
Philadelphia, Oct 25. A new and
surorisin'e solution to the mysterious
killing of two men and the wounding
of a third In a saloon in om iorK
Road, on -September 27th, was made
nublic today when Michael Comporto,
who has .been under arrest here dur
ing the past week, made a' confession
in which he admits that he kept guard
nn the outside of the building while
SebastianoDimassee .went' into, shot
the three men and robbed the cash
register. . -
UNION MILLS NOT TO CLOSE.
Lockhardt Mills Will Continue-
tion of Massachusetts Mills.
-Ac
V Union, S. C, Oct. 26. With their
products sold anead . ior several
months" it was denied today that the
fnine cotton mills of this county, would
close down on account of the present
high price of cotton. All - the plants
with the exception of Lockhardt mills
which are closed, for this week only.
will continue to run. on full time.
MAY
IMPROVED
TAFT ON THE MISSISSIPPI
President . in Three Speeches Advo
cates Waterway Improvement.
Speaker Cannon Also For
Waterways.
Huckman, Ky., Oct. 26. After 24
hours on the Mississippi river witn
a mile or two so thrown in, President
Taft arrived at Hickman this after
noon and made a speech at a stand
erected on the levee. This being Mr.
Taft's only stop in Kentucky on his
present trip people- came from all
parts of the State to greet him.
Tonight the excursion fleet of a
dozen or more packets which the
President is leading from the Lakes-to-the-Gulf
Deep Waterway Commit
tee to New Orleans H proceeding
down the big river under a brilliant
moon just rounding to fullness. The
weather is delightfully cool.
On the light house tender Oleander
the President is the guest of Com
mander E. H. Tillman, U. S. A., In
charge of the light house district from
Cairo to New Orleans. The President
is hopeful that some plan can be de-
f vised by which at least ten feet of
water can be secured at . all seasons.
He saw today, however, many caving
banks, evidences of how the channel
constantly is undergoing radical
changes, and how-the piecemeal work
of improvement in the past has gone
for naught.
The three brief speeches he deliver,
ed with husky voice today at Cape
Girardeau, Mo., at Cairo, 111., and at
Hickman, Mr. Taft reiterated his po
sition in favor of deep waterways
wherever it can be demonstrated that
the plans for improvement are feasi
ble, are necessary and can be carried
to completion without a too great" ex
penditure of money.
At Cairo the President was follovTed
by Speaker , Cannon, who declared
that he approved President Taft's dec
aration in nearly every particular and
wished he could approve them in all.
He still balks., however, at the Presi
dent's proposal to issue bonds declar
ing the work-should be carried on on
Iyas rapidly as.it could be paid for
out of current funds in the treasury. '
, The s&trieTroeeeding was-' gone8
through today shortly after the fleet
left Cairo and. the President received
Un opossum cooked and surrounded
by sweet potatoes ready to be served
at his luncheon table. While the .'pos
sum was being transferred to the Ole-
fander the band on the St Paul play
ed the old negro melody "Carve Dat
Possum, Carve Him to the Heart.' '
Although the impression had gained
ground that the President is fond of
opossum meat today was the third
time he has eaten It Although enjoy-
ng the novelty, of the dish, Mr. Taft
has admitted to friends that he does
not altogether "hanker after it."
k " Rt V"! ".
wch. it was stated in St Lou s had
Passing the Congressional boat
been provided with nine poker tables,
President Taft today called out to
Speaker Cannon on the hurricane
deck; "If you catch anybody bluffing,
rUncle Joe, take the money."
WILLIAM . P. WEMYSS DEAD
One of Oldest and Best Known Citi
zens of Fayetteville.-
(Special-Star Telegram.)
Fayetteville, N. C, Oct. 26. Wil
liam P. Wemyss. one of the best
known citizens of Fayetteville, died
this afternoon at 3:30 o'clock after a
lingering illness, aged 75. William
Proudfoot Wemyss was born in Glas
gow, Scotland, April 26th, 1834, being
a member of .the. noble - and" ancient
family of Wemyss, which traces ( its
descent . through . MacDuff, Earl of
Fife, and Slayer of Macbeth to Duffus
King of Scotland A. D. 962. He mov
ed to this country with his parents
and married Mary. Frizell June. He
is survived by. four children, D. F.
Wemyss, Port Norfolk, Va.; John
Wemyss, Rocky Mount; R. L. Wem
yss, and Mrs. C. P. Overby, of Fayette
ville. Mr. Wemyss was a Confederate
veteran and a highly honored Mason,
having held practically every office in
the local lodge. . He was long a mem
ber of the . Methodist church.
THREATS IN NEWBERRY CASE.
Witnesses Told at Beaufort of Incl-
- dents Pointing to Premeditation.
Beaufort, N. C, Oct. 26. Testimony
Intended to prbve that.S.'J. Sanders,
'charged with the murder . of H. J.
Newberry, mayor of Newport, this
State, threatened to shoot Newberry,
was given by witnesses for the State
in his trial here today.
On the evening of the shooting wit
nesses testified that Sanders said
that "no d . man would appear In
court to send him to prison." ,.
Meeting a man on a country road
Sanders, witness te'stified, told the
man about "things" getting hot
around Newport and that some shoot
ing had to be done, and the Newberry
was not going to appear against him
Threats against Newberry's life were
made by Sanders, it was testified, be
cause the. former tried to put the
"blind tigers" out of business.
COMMITTEE TO MEET TAFT.
Coming to Washington Representing
Guatemalan Government
Washington, Oct 25. A committee,
representing the Guatemalan govern
ment, is on its way' to the United
States to meet President Taft at New
Orleans during his forthcoming visit
to that cit, according to the State
Department today. Neither the per
sonnel nor the mission of the commit.
tee was given, j-'
WHOLE NUMBER 13,136.
ESE PRINCE
SLAIN BY KOREAN
Prince Ito, Foremost States,
man, Shot to Death at
Harbin.
ALL JAPAN IS IN
Assassin Boasted of Conspiracy to Kill
Prince -Three Other Members ;
. Party Injured Story of
Crime.
, Harbin, . Oct. 26. Prince Hlrobuml
Ito, former Japanese President Gen-1
eral of Korea, and probably Japan's
foremost statesman, was assassinated
at the Tsaitsagan railway station here
today, at ' the moment the Japanese
diplomat was acknowledging the. noisy.,'
welcome that had greeted 'him as he
stepped down from the coach that he
had occupied in the ' railroad train,
smiling and bowing, as he turned to .;
make his way toward the Russian fl;. (
nance minister, M. Mokovsoff. who'
was awaiting him on the station plat- 1
form a few . paces distant - V ',
Suddenly half a dozen revolver
shots fired in quick succession were
heard, followed by . the cries of those ,
standing near the Prince, who had
either been, wounded or Imagined,
themselves to-be. At the second re-,
port Prince Ito staggered and . fell ,
fainting. It was subsequently found ,
that he had received three bullets, two
of which entered the abdomen. Prince 5
Ito did not recover consciousness and .;
and died 20 minutes later.-. , . , "V
The fusillade of shots threw 'the
crowd into a panic,, and it was, some , .
time before it could be determined ,
who.', oeside the Prince had Buffered.:,
When the tteItementJ-fiadv,iidmewhat5t.
subsided Jt was; found-that three" dtSar " ,
members of the' party on the-platform '.
had been injured. Prince Ito, Private
Secneta, receiving a bullet as did '. '
Japanese Counsel General Kawakan .
and General Manager Tahaka, of the
South Manchurian railway, who . had '
moved closer to the-Prince as the fir-' -ing
began. It is thought that thesfl -three
are not mortally wounded. -
The perpetrator of the outrage was
not hard" to locate, as he stood defiant
ly in the crowd revolver In hand. He
proved to be a Korean, and, with two y
companions of the same nationality, ;
boasted of a conspiracy to take the .
life of the former President General J
of Korea in satisfaction for the al- -leged
tyranny of the Prince over Ko-
reans.
As the police pounced upon the ;
three Koreans the one who did tho
shooting exclaimed dramatically.
"I came to Harbin for the sole pur
pose of assassinating Prince Ito, to -avenge
my country.",'-
None of the three Koreans attempt-
ed to escape. The assassin, admitted "
later that he had a personal grudga ;
against the Japanese statesman, who '
while resident general In Korea had .
caused the execution of several of his .
friends. ' '
It had been supposed that the police
protection ' for the Prince was ade-
quate but the police stated later they
were unable to dlstingulih the Xor- '
eans among the many Japanese who .
had been admitted to the railway sta- ;
tion to welcome the prince.
The Russian police stated. that Pap-
anese Consul Kawankan had requested ,
them to permit entrance to the station
of all Japanese who sought admission. -
Very soon after-death the body of
Prince Ito was made 'ready for re
moval home and placed upon a rail
road train. The casket was covered ..
with flowers and in other ways the
sorrow of the official and public life
was .manifested. : ,
Prince Ito had come to Harbin to
meet the Russian Minister of Finance , "
for what was believed to be . an im-
portant conference- The conference , '
was suggested hv Prince Ito in his - i-
capacity as president of the privy -
council oi japan, me suojects to w
discussed were-not definitely known .
to the public, but they wre supposed
to concern affairs of administration in
Manchuria. Kokovsoff, the Finance ,
Minister, had before declined a Invi
tation to visit Japan for such a con
ference and Harbin was agreed upon
as a meeting place. In accepting tho
invitation, the Russian minister sald
that the political questions must-be-'-barred
as he was competent only to '
discuss financial subjects, these con
cerning the status of the Manchurian -Railroad.
The conference had been '
announced widely in: advance and It
was generally known when the dlplo- :
mats would reach Harbin.
STATESVILLE BOY.MlSSING.
Father Fears He Met With Foul Play.
Gone Four Months.
Statesville, N. C, Oct 26. Foy Cur
lee, the 15-year-old son of T. J. Cur
lee, of this place, who. mysteriously
disappeared from his home about four
months ago, is still missing, nothing
having been seen or heard of him
Since his disappearance. The father
of the boy says he had 'about $60 in
his possession when last seen and was
dressed In his working clothes. He
fears the boy has met with foul play.
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