Last Saturday, one week ago today, a serious difficulty occurred at Purdy, McNairy county. From reliable sources we gather the following in regard to the affray. Thirty negro militia, under command of one HAMILTON, is stationed there. On the day of the difficulty, eight or ten of the militia were in town; they offered violence to a freedman from the country; Senator John ALDRIDGE, radical, seeing that the militia were imposing upon the freedman, endeavored to persuade them that what they were doing was wrong; failing to accomplish his purpose, he called upon Samuel LEWIS, sheriff of the county, and who was, during the war, a captain in Col. HURST’s 6th Tennessee regiment. LEWIS came promptly to the call, and while endeavoring, in a peaceable, yet determined manner, to discharge his duty, he was fired on and mortally wounded. This somewhat enraged one of his former comrades-in-arms, who drew his pistol and shot the militiaman in the face; the shot was returned by the squad, and two white men were severely, in not dangerously wounded. Great excitement prevailed, during which the militia returned to their quarters, but on Sunday they again came into town and renewed the disturbance, by shooting into houses and firing at almost every living thing they saw. Many persons left the place and are still absent from their homes, as will be seen from the following extract, which we take from the Memphis Avalanche on the 1st;
“The negro militia swept into the town, and were perfectly furious. They shot into houses filled with women and children, poured a merciless volley at unarmed citizens, and inaugurated a reign of terror never known before in that little village. Prominent Radicals tried to stop them, but they were utterly unable to control them. Radicalism was dethroned by its own minions. Judge HURST, to his honor be it said, was active in behalf of law and order, but the negroes would not heed him. Since the murderous affray, the “melish” have patrolled the town at night, and amused themselves by shooting into private dwellings. The citizens, old and young, have abandoned their houses, and the solitude of once happy
homes is only broken by the brutal tread of Brownlow’s negro ruffians.”
The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.), 03 Aug. 1867, Page 2. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
