Garrard County, Kentucky - Chapter 7, 1854

Chapter 7

The Doctor's flight - He goes to Indiana - Doesnot receive intelligence of his family - Sets out for home - Meets his son - The soil's narrative - - Ililis besiege the house - Officers search for the Doctor - Gen. Dodd and the Militia - The Hills attack the boys and negroes - They shoot Thomas Evans - The Hills and sheriffs guards repulsed by the boys - Hills swear out a peace warrant against the boys, and a writ for one of the negroes - Ililis attempt to set the Doctors house on fire - News of the Lancaster fight - The Doctor returns and demands a trial - Citizens attempt to restore peace.

Gentle reader, do not get uneasy for the Dootor's fate, for I do not intend to make a second Ulysses of him, nor a Penelope of his fair dame, although she did suffer in a different way as . much persecution as the royal web-raveler.

According to the well digested advice, the Doctor crossed the Kentucky river at the mouth of Sugar creek, that night, passed through Lexington, and took breakfast beyond Georgetown the next morning. As he had many relatives in Indiana, he resolved to go there and spend the time of his exile. He visited among his friends till the first of May, and had not during ail that time, received any intelligence of his family, although he had written five or six letters, and they as many more - none had been received on either side. Tnis made him uneasy, for he knew not but what the Ililis had burned his house and massacred his helpless family - hence, he determined to return and learn the state of affairs. He was within about eighteen miles of the Ohio river, on his way home, when he met his son in the road.

The Iiill And Evans Feud

around the house all the time, and the officers have been there two or three times searching for you. The day afcer you left, the sheriff came down with General Dodd and a company of militia to take you. When they got to the foot of the hill, the General told the sheriff and militia to stay there, that he and William Turner would go up and get you, if they could not, no power on earth could. The General and Turner came up and asked us where you were. We told them that we did not know, that you had left for parts unknown, the night before.

" As dinner was about ready, we invited them to dine with us ; they did so. Before they finished dinner, the sheriff and whole company came in, thus violating the positive orders of the General. We treated them kindly, and proposed to prepare dinner for them all, but they refused to wait, saying that their number was too great. Not long after that, one morning before daylight, the sheriff, his deputy, and some fifty men of the same malicious company, came back. We asked them what they wanted ? They replied that they wanted to search for you, - - that they had learned that you were at home. We told them that you were not there, but that they might search if they felt so disposed, and gave them a candle. They searched every room with their guns cocked, poking them about under the beds as they looked. They even looked in the hen house and smoke house, and went into the barn with lighted cigars in their mouths, as if they would slily set it on fire. Some of them went back to the house, cocked their guns at the children, and, with manywicked oaths, threatened to shoot them. The sheriff and deputy then divided the company equally among themselves. The deputy, with about thirty men, went down to Rus Hill's and took breakfast,

4* After this crowd had left, and everything was quiet, Tom took the negroes and little Doc out to repair a piece of fence in the direction of Rus Hill's. The remainder of us went to work at the barn. Before they began to work, Tom went to the brow of the hill to see if they could work in safety, and to see whether the crowd were yet at Hill's. They were, and as soon as they saw him, began a brisk fire, at the distance of about three hundred yards. He told the negroes to go back home, and walked leisurely that way himself, not expecting t-o followed. But. the Hills and a portion of the deputy's guard came on in hot pursuit. He heard a noise and turned to see what caused it. As he turned around, they fired on him at the distance of about one hundred and five steps. An ounce ball struck him in the breast, penetrating about half an inch into the flesh and knocked him down. He arose, picked up his gun and fired back on them, then r&n toward the house. Little Doc thought there would be more Safety at a little distance from Tom, but that made no difference, for the balls whistled . by his ears as briskly as ever.. When we, at the barn, heard the shooting, and saw Tom fall, we ran instantly to the house . to get our rifles, for we thought he was killed. When we got into the house, mother fastened the door and would not let us out. Just at that time Mr. Collier and his wife rode up to the , gate. We told mother to go and let them in. While she was going out we got out also, and ran to meet the advancing foe. Mrs. Collier would not come in, but ran back with feminine timidity. Mr. Collier, seeing that we were about to meet the Hills, and hearing the balls whiz by and rattle on the house top, staid to witness the battle. The Hills came very near to the house and got behind a large haystack; and sent their shower of balls with renewed vigor. Sam took one of the large guns and knocked off the capping of the stack. This so much fright - .ened them that they ran out from behind it, and as they ran, .he snatched a rifle from me and fired at them, which so much augmented their terror that they did not lessen the rapidity of their flight till they got back to Hill's. For a day or two the sheriff and his valorous guard laid around in the neghborhood - . the majority of them wrere beastly drunk nearly all the time. The sheriff then left them, which gave them a little more licentious liberty. They laid around the house, shot into the windows, and at any of the family whenever seen, till an angrv storm drove them away. We could scarcely do any work out of doors, for they would attack and drive us from the fields whenever we attempted it. They would neither work themselves nor let us work. One day we were cutting corn stalks off the young wheat, they discovered ns, and Rus Hill sent a detachment to make an attack, while he went to town and swore out a peace warrant against us, and a writ for one of the negro boys. The officer came that night after us, and advised us to take the negro off and sell him, for, if we did not, the Hills would swear enough to hang him, no matter how innocent he might be. He then proposed to serve the warrant on us, bht we refused to surrender ourselves without he would furnish us with a guard to accompany us to town. He agreed to do this, land came with a guard on the next Monday. But we were informed that five of the Hill party had concealed themselves in an old house on the road, to shoot atiis as we passed. When 'this information was received, the neighbors, who were summoned as our guard, consulted among themselves what had best

* be done, and concluded to let the officers come to us and receive'the bonds and security, for they knew if we went some 'person would be killed. Accordingly, the officers came and we were placed under a heavy penalty, with good security, to 'keep the peace with all mankind, and more especially with the

" Ah, I fear there 13 some trick in this," observed th'eyDoctor. " Storms are usually the burden of calms. I very much feared that they had burned the house down before this time. -T am sorry that you left. We will stop at your grand-pap's to-night ; then go on in the morning." u They did try to burn the house several times. Oh one occasion, a Very dark night, I well remember, Sam took several -guns and went up into the garret to watch. He was laying -down, watching through the little window, when he saw a coal "of fire shine in the distance. It would disappear, as if concealed in a vessel, ;or beneath the clothes of the bearer, and ever anil anou it would shine forth, to show that it had not becorrfe -extinct. Sam understood the movement , and watched it 'narrowly. The bearer of the dark design came along slowly and cautiously till he mounted the stile to cross the fence. Here he opened the prison-gate of his fire to be sure of its vitality. As he did. this, Sam fired upon him with the largo shot gun. The wretch let the fire fall, and fell himself headlong to the ground. Sam thought he was dead, and did not fire a^ain : but after a time he crawled oil' like a four legged beast, doubtless, not well pleased with the result of his crusade."

The Doctor and his son traveled together to Shelby county, within seventy miles of home, where one of their relatives resided. The Doctor told his son to hasten on home and prepare for his trial, while he remained for further information. The son traveled briskly, and got to Harrodsburg about dark, and there heard of the Lancaster fight. He went on immediately that night and found his brother Thomas dreadfully mutilated arid not expected to live. He sent a runner to his father with the awful tidings. The Doctor received the intelligence during the following night, and set out without delay. According to an agreement of his friends, he arrived at the house of George Hackley, the constable, about ten o'clock the next night, placed himself under his care, as guard, went to Lancaster and demanded a trial. A strong guard was. placed over the Doctor, not to prevent him from running away, but to afford protection against the Hills. His lawyers asked : " Who will you be tried before ? "

" He has no cause for prejudice, and if he has any, I want, to know it. I wane to know who will act upon the principles of justice. I will take him at any rate, for this may not be the final trial."

The Doctor displayed considerable judgment in these maneuvers. Had he stood a trial immediately after killing Hill, he certainly would have been hanged, for the whole country was enraged against him, and the people would have had little repugnance in sacrificing him to restore peace. Peace, or war, depended upon his life. Had he been killed, his sons would scarcely have carried on the war, and the number of friends permitted to enlist in the cause was too small to prosecute it without the granite energy of their old general to stimulate them to action. But now the scales of fate turned in his favor. Every one cried out bitter anathemas against the Hills, and bade the Doctor, God speed in a cause, which excited such sympathy and intense interest in their bosoms, on account of the atrocious Lancaster fight - which will be treated of in the next chapter. Now, he could go with perfect safety into a trial, which would have formerly proven his death. This fluctuation in public sentiment affords a profound study of human nature, a study bv which we may all profit. By contemplating what has past, and the causes that produced the events, we have a standard or guide by which we may act to create certain desirable effects, and avoid others that would be deleterious. The mind that can trace out its course in the dim future by these beacon lights, displays the true genius.

After this trial, the Hills attempted at every court to get the grand jury to indict Dr. Evans ; but they passed it over in silence. The citizens then tried to restore peace, and made a proposition for the two parties to go into negotiation. The Hills pledged their word and honor that they would quit fighting if the opposite party would. The Doctor told them all they bad to do was to quit - - if they would let him alone he would extend .the same favor to them - but that he could have faith in neither their word nor their honor, since they had so. unscrupulously violated every principle of honor and veracity.

But for the sake of restoring peace, he agreed to visit only one half of Lancaster if they would confine themselves to the other side of town - to give half the road when they chanced to meet, and to use every means to prevent a collision between the two parties. These stipulations were equally binding upon both parties, and strictly adhered to by Dr. Evans. The future will tell how faithfully the Hills observed them.