Schley County GaArchives Court.....Collins, Peacock, Davis, Williams, Et Al. April 14, 1898 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Harris Hill http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00011.html#0002514 June 5, 2008, 11:21 pm Source: Orig. Document Found In Schley Co. Courthouse Written: April 14, 1898 IN SCHLEY SUPERIOR COURT APRIL TERM, 1898 THE STATE Vs. BURGLARY JOHN HENRY DAVIS Before his Honor, Z.A. Littlejohn, at Ellaville, Georgia, April 14th, 1898. APPEARANCES: For the State, F.A. Hooper For the Defense, J.R. Williams T.A. Collins, prosecutor, sworn in behalf of the State. Q: (Mr. Hooper) Mr. Collins, where do you live? A: I live in Ellaville. Q: Ellaville, Schley County? A: Yes sir. Q: Along about the middle of November did you loose a pistol? A: Yes sir. Q: What kind was it? A: What make? Q: What description of pistol was it? A: Well, it was a five shooter. Q: A revolver? A: Yes sir. Q: What was it worth? A: Well, I don’t know, I think I paid something about seven or weight dollars for it at wholesale. Q: Was it worth as much as five dollars at the time you lost it? A: Yes sir. Q: Where was the last time you saw that pistol before you missed it; where did you leave it? A: Well, it was on the mantel. Q: What date was it? A: I am not positive about that. Q: You remember the time when the burglary occurred? A: Yes sir. Q: How long before that? A: Well, it was lying right on the mantel there, saw it every day. Q: Was it there that day? A: Well, I think it was there, I am not positive about that but I think it was there. Q: Well, what time did you leave the house that morning? A: Well, I left right after breakfast, I ate breakfast and didn’t go back. Q: When did you go back again? A: I didn’t go back until I closed up at night. Q: You left the house open I suppose when you left there? A: Yes sir, my wife was at home. Q: Did you ever get that pistol back? A: Yes sir. Q: Who from? A: Well, I went with John Henry Davis after I found it to Mr. Peacock’s store and Darsey Peacock gave it to me. He told me to go down there with him and get the pistol and he would give it back to me and we went down there and Darsey had the pistol and gave it to us. Mr. Williams—I object to that. I ask you honor to let the jury retire if this is in the nature of a confession and we will see about it, that he and John Henry Davis went down to Mr. Peacock’s and he got the pistol and gave it to him. Mr. Hooper—I just want to show that he got the pistol back, I don’t care about the circumstances under which he got it back. It is admissible, but I don’t care, I will let it go out. That he got it from Darsey Peacock is all I want. Cross examination. Q: (Mr. Williams) How came you to go down there to Peacock? A: Darsey came to me and told me he had got the pistol and I asked him where he got it and he told me who brought it to him and when I saw John Henry he came in the store and I asked him about it and he told me he pawned the pistol to Peacock. Q: And he told you he would go around there with you and get it? A: Not at that time. Q: Do you know how much he pawned it to Peacock for? A: He told me for a half dollar. Q: Do you know whether he gave Peacock the money to redeem it? A: No sir, I don’t know. Q: You don’t know whether he did or not? A: No sir. Q: He acknowledged he gave the pistol to Peacock? A: Yes sir. Q: That he had pawned the pistol? A: Yes sir. Q: He told you at that time that he got that pistol from somebody else, he didn’t know it was yours, didn’t he? A: He told me he got it from a negro down around Cordele. Q: That he didn’t know it was your pistol? A: He said he didn’t know it when he got it from the negro, said if he had known it had been my pistol he wouldn’t have traded for it. Q: He known that Mr. Darsey Peacock is your brother-in-law don’t he? A: Yes sir. Q: And Mr. Peacock recognized that pistol? A: Yes sir. Q: And he came around and told you he had gotten your pistol from John Henry Davis? A: Yes sir, he told me about it. Q: And you went to John Henry Davis and John Henry told you he had pawned the pistol to Darsey Peacock? A: Yes sir. Q: And you went around there to see about it? A: Yes sir. He told me he didn’t know it was mine, said if he had known it was mine he wouldn’t have traded for it, but he would have let me have it, said it was around at Mr. Peacock’s and we would go around there and get it. We went around there and he told Darsey to give me the pistol. Q: You don’t whether he paid Darsey the money it was pawned for or not? A: No sir. Q: Did you and Darsey Peacock live together? A: No sir. S. C. Collins, sworn in behalf of the State. Q: (Mr. Hooper) Mr. Collins, you live at the same home with your brother? A: Yes sir, I board with him. Q: Do you remember the time the pistol is said to have been lost? A: Yes sir. Q: Who closed up the house that morning? A: I did myself. Q: Where did your sister-in-law go that day? A: She went to my father’s in the country. Q: When did she come back? Mr. Williams—To save the record I will admit that the house was closed up that day. Mr. Hooper—And broken open? Mr. Williams—I suppose it was. Mr. Hooper—I will prove that in a minute. Q: What time in the day did you close it up? A: I closed it up just before the train came here at ten fifty. I went away on the train and stayed until Monday. When sister left to go to father’s, she left before I did, she came to my room and asked me to close up particularly, knowing that my brother and little brother would not be back till late that evening. I closed the door shut the blinds and put down the windows. Q: (Mr. Williams) What day of the week was that? A: That was Saturday morning. E.E. Collins, sworn in behalf of the State. Q: (Mr. Hooper) Do you remember this occasion? A: Yes sir. Q: Are you the younger brother of Mr. Collins? A: Yes sir. Q: Who was there that day? A: No one that I know of; I went back there that evening. Q: How did you find the house when you got back? A: I found one window up. Q: What sign of violence about the way the window was opened? A: I don’t know. The catch of the blinds was broken and anybody could have pulled open the blind and gone in. Q: Well, they had to do so to pull open the blinds and raise the window? A: Yes sir. The blind was open and the window up. Q: Did you miss anything? A: No sir. I didn’t suspicion anything at all. I just supposed that brother went off and forgot to close the window. Q: When was the pistol missed? A: Next morning. Q: Where was that pistol kept? A: Lying on the mantel in brother’s room. Cross examination. Q: (Mr. Williams) You say the pistol was kept in your room? A: No sir, in Tom’s room. Q: You don’t know whether it was there in the morning or not? A: Mo sir, I do not. Q: You don’t know whether it had been there in two weeks or not? A: Well, I wouldn’t say positively. Mr. Hooper—It is admitted by the defense that the pistol was left in the house that morning. I have sent for Mrs. Collins to prove that fact, but Mr. Williams does not require her to come here and testify to that. Darsey Peacock, sworn in behalf of the State. Q: (Mr. Hooper) Mr. Peacock, do you know the defendant, John Henry Davis? A: Yes sir. Q: How long have you known him? A: Six or seven years I guess. Q: Where has he been living all that time? A: In Ellaville. Q: Do you remember on any occasion his bringing a pistol to you? A: Yes sir. Q: When was that? A: In November last. Q: Do you remember the time Mr. Collins claims to have lost a pistol? A: Yes sir. Q: How long afterwards was that? A: About a week afterwards. Q: About a week afterwards? A: Yes sir. Q: Whose pistol was that he brought to you? A: Mr. Collins’. Q: Did you recognize it when you saw it? A: Yes sir, it had his initials on it. Q: Had his initials on it? A: Yes sir. Q: Did you know the pistol independent of that? A: Yes sir, I had seen it a good many times. Q: What did he tell you when he brought you the pistol? A: He met me and said he wanted to pawn a gun to me. I told him I didn’t want any gun, told him I had one. He said he wanted fifty cents. I told him all right just to bring it down to the store there and I would let him have it. Q: You say he brought the pistol to you? A: Yes sir. Q: And you gave him fifty cents? A: Yes sir. Q: What did you do about it? A: I kept it and told Mr. Collins about it, told him I had the pistol. Q: What did he say when he brought it to you about where he got it? A: He never said anything about it. He told me not to give him away, to say anything about it, not to show it to anybody. Cross examination. Q: (Mr. Williams) He paid you back your money didn’t he? A: Yes sir. Q: He knew that you were Mr. T. A. Collins’ brother-in-law didn’t he? A: I guess he did. Q: John Henry has been living around town here quite a long time hasn’t he? A: Yes sir. Q: You say he didn’t tell you anything about where he got it? A: No sir, I didn’t ask him where he got it. Q: Just told you not to say anything about it? A: Yes sir. Q: And as soon as you conveyed the news to Tom that he had pawned his pistol to you he came around and told Tom that he had pawned it to you and he came and told you he would pay the money back? A: He didn’t pay the money. In a day or two Mr. Collins met him and asked him about it and told him to pay the money back and bring the pistol to him, I reckon, and Mr. Collins came back with him and Collins told him to pay me the money and give him the pistol. I wouldn’t do it, wouldn’t give it to him. I gave it to Mr. Collins. Q: Where was Mr. Collins? A: Mr. Collins was there. Q: Where was your store situated? A: Down South of the town. Q: How far is your store from Mr. Collins’ store? A: I don’t know, four or five hundred yards I guess. Q: How do you know that was Mr. Collins’ pistol? A: It had his initials on it. Q: Is that all the way you know it? A: No sir, I knew it was his pistol, I had seen it a good many times. Q: You say it had his initials on it? A: Yes sir. Q: How much is that pistol worth? A: I don’t know sir, five or six or seven dollars I guess, somewhere along there. Q: What sort of pistol is it? A: It was a revolver. Q: What kind of revolver? A: It was a double action, I don’t know what kind. Q: A double action revolver? A: Yes sir. Q: You don’t know whether it was a Smith & Wesson or not? A: No sir. Q: You know a Smith & Wesson don’t you? A: I reckon I do—yes sir. Q: Do you know whether this was a Smith & Wesson or not? A: I don’t remember, I don’t know what make it was, I don’t think it was though. Q: You say you don’t think it was a Smith & Wesson? A: No sir. Q: How many times did it shoot? A: Five, I believe. Q: What was the caliber of the pistol? A: It was a thirty eight. Q: A thirty eight five shooter pistol? A: Yes sir. Q: Double action? A: Yes sir. Q: Hammerless? A: No sir. The state announces closed. Mr. Williams—If you Honor please, owing to the condition which my client is in, under the embarrassment of the defendant, being without a witness which we have been unable to secure, I have decided under the circumstances, if your Honor will permit it and the prosecutor is willing, to allow the Solicitor General to take a verdict of guilty with a recommendation that the defendant be punished as for a misdemeanor. Additional Comments: This is the transcript of a burglary trial. John Henry Davis was a black man who would have been about 21 at the time of the trial. T.A. Collins would have been about 35. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/schley/court/collinsp69nwl.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/gafiles/ File size: 12.2 Kb