Lybrook/Lybrook Letter, 1842 - Giles Co. VA
Lybrook Family Letters
in Special Collections at Alderman Library,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
Letter from Philip Lybrook of Pembroke, Giles County, Virginia,
to his brother Henley C. Lybrook in Cassapolis, Cass County, Michigan Territory.
22 April 1842.
Pembroke Giles Co. Va April 22d 1842
Brother Henley
Sir some time has elapse since I have wrote to you or you to me, the last I heard from you I seen in a newspaper you
sent to the office at my house in one of whose columns I seen your marriage announced beleving that your age would
justify your choice. I am in hopse your situation is a good one and am pleased with your change of life--I will first
say to you that we are all in as good health as common I am not shet of my pains yet and do not expect ever to be
entirely releaved--there has several occurances take n place in my neighbourhood since your departure and some of
them of most horrible character you recollect the murder that took place in my yard last fall. I belive I wrote to you
something abou the trial and acquittal of Dave Lucas the murderer--and who I thought was very active in swaring
and fixing matters so & so that he would be acquitted that was done and he was set at liberty and went back to his old
home--at old Jacob Snidows--well so fare, so good; I felt myself and property in grate danger for he was passing me
3 or 4 times a weed from doe creek to Snidows, and from Snidows to doe creek, and the was his friends had
managed the business when he kild Peter last fall he was more saucy and bold then ever--It so happenid that on the
19th day of March last there was a poor unfortunate man passed by the mill with some goods he had to take for his
work in the Kenhawa for he said he could not get money and was trying to sell them on his way home (he lived in
Floyd county) at Snidows he shewed his goods and wanted to sell, Dave Lucas was there and when the pedlar
started Dave started after him they came to my house together and got some whiskey and set out from my house in
company and when they came to the forks of the road at Williams on the hill, above my house they were seen to
take the doe creek road by Williams wife, and the man had said before he left my house that he would go to William
Links that night if he lived, the man did not go to Links, and Dave was seen at old Billy Hutchinsons at the house
raising 2 or 3 days afterwards with goods that the pedlar had and I was anxious to have a serch made but was affraid
to say any thing about it believing that his old score of friends would again rally forth & of course place me in more
danger--therefore I was silent, about 14 days had elapse, court had intervened, and the people unanimously agreed to
make a serch for the murdered man and found him in 2 or 3 ours from the time they attempted the search. the dead
body was found near Daves house --Dave then left the country and was followed by James Dowdy & David Price
and taken on the Catawba and brought back and now awaits his trial before the judge on the 13th of May next--it is
believed that there is nothing that can prevent his being hanged--his former friends have arrayed themselves against
him with one voice. Snidows and all, There is another circumstance that I will relate respecting old Billy. I think in
my last letter to you that I hinted near enough to give you to understand that I though he was great villion--my
opinion in regard to him seams to be sustained by the fact that when the country gathered to make a search for the
murdered man it seamed that old Billy tried to delay and mislead the people and to keep them from making a serch
when they actually found the dead body saying that he had been in that hollow looking for him 2 or 3 different times
and had tramped on every bunch of leaves that was in that hollow and that he was not to be found there, but that he
new of some caves in some other direction where he thought the body was consealed, and after the man was found
and he come up he said in the hearing of a number of persons that he had been at a poplar tree that stood within 4
feet of the dead body where it was covered over with leaves and some small brush and also that he had stood on the
spot where the murder was committed and the blood strewed all about plain and open to the eye of every body--and
said he had made no discovery--the people thought that he aughet to be taken up and tried as the accessary--that was
done--and he was acquitted at his call court, about 9 day ago the people looks upon the old man with contempt. I
believe I have not given you his name in fool since this sketch of his conduct I will now give it. (Bill B. Hutchinson)
Dave has acknowleged since he thinks his case a bad one that the old man met him out and give him some cakes and
25cts in money and told him to clear himself or he would not have left the country which I believe to be true from the
circumstances but is cannot be proven or it would have inshured the old man a birth in Richmond for some years at
least--John Albert has sold the land he got of J. J. Lumpkins to old Lewis White & he with all his household and [?]
and family is living there at this time--Dave sent for me to come to jail to see him I went and amongst other things he
told me that old billy had been pursuade the Whites to do me some private injury as to the truth of that assertion I am
not able to say he is not too good to do so--Eliza received a letter from Beltzer last mail in which he says that Wm.
Burk received a letter from our great Wm. H. Snidow which says that David Lucas last fall was Honorably acquitted
for killing Pete by the jury--I have said and again will say that if the whole truth could ome out that from the
corruption that I saw in the trial of that case that there was no honor due to Dave or any of his friends--& moreover I
have said publickly that those who corruptly had a hand in the acquittal of Dave last fall aught to consider their
unworthy hands stained with the blood of this poor murdered man perhaps his nobleness supposed that the honour
proceeded from what the judge said to the jury before he discharged them. Which was this--he old them that they
were acting under the obligation of an oath the same as he was and as painfull as it might be to him, he was
bound to say to them that in the acquittal of Lucas, that they had went contrary both to law & testamony--should you
see Burk and he should say anything about it you can tell him what the judge said--I should take honour to be a
different thing. I should take truth and honesty to be at least two of the component parts of honour-- Snidow moved
from Christiansburgh old John Chapman sometime in February last and Chapman about 4 or 5 weeks afterwards was
found dead in one of Snidows fields--supposed to have walked out and died. it is said that Snidow by Chapmans
death has got to the amount of about thirty thousand dollars worth of property Chapman had made a will and willed
it nearly all to him--that he is now the most wealthy man in this part of the country-- My mind has been so confused
for the last 3 or 4 weeks that I have not time to thing about my own business which you will discover by the purusial
of this letter--I will write again when I become more composed I wish you on the reseption of this to write me and let
me know how all is doing in your country and tell Beltzer to be industrious and carefull of his reputation for that is
what will carry a man through the world clear of spot or blemish--give your wife my best wishes and tel her that I
would like to see her, give my best respects to all my friends in that country my wrist is verry painfull which is
always the case when I write that I must bring my letter to a close--after subscribing myself your most affectionate
brother through life
Philip Lybrook
Submitted by Melissa Smith Kennedy
http://www.people.virginia.edu/~msk5d/genealogy/Lybrook.html
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