CHAPTER XXXIII.

TRIAL OF W. R. CATLETT AT MORRISTOWN .

Inasmuch as Bob Catlett has been referred to in former chapters of this book as being the leading spirit which prompted the Whaley murder, it is thought not improper, before closing this book, to give its readers a short history of his recent trial at Morristown, Tenn., he having been charged and indicted as an accessory before the fact for hiring and procuring Pleas Wynn and Catlett Tipton to murder William and Laura Whaley.

No crime ever committed in the county has caused such popular indignation as this one. It has now been over two years since its commission, and public sentiment, which was at once directed toward Pleas Wynn, Catlett Tipton and Bob Catlett, has never changed or abated in the least; but, on the contrary, it has increased and become more intensified as time passed on and new discoveries and additional developments have been made.

Indeed, so intense has become the sentiment in Sevier county against Bob Catlett, that at the November term, 1898, of the circuit court at Sevierville, Catlett, through his counsel, applied for and obtained a change of venue from Sevier to Hamblen county, one the ground, as set forth in his sworn petition, that he could not get a fair trial in Sevier county, so bitter was the feeling against him in that county.

This was no doubt true, and Judge Nelson granted the change and directed the papers and proper transcripts to be transmitted to Morristown, where the case stood for trial at the December term, 1898, of the circuit court of Hamblen county. At that term the State announced ready for trial, but the defense was not ready, and presented the usual affidavit and made a strong effort to have the case continued till the next regular term, the fourth Monday in April, 1899, stating specially in his affidavit that he could not get ready to try in thirty days.

Judge Hicks did not force the defendant into trial then, but refused to continue until the regular April term, as requested by the defense. By order of the presiding judge, a special term was ordered to be held on the first Monday of February, 1899, for the trial of this case.

For a special reason the state was wanting an early trial of the case against Catlett, and for the same reason the attorneys for the defense were vigorously opposing an early trial. It was this: The cases against Pleas Wynn and Catlett Tipton had been affirmed by the supreme court in November and they were sentenced to hang on the fourth day of January, 1899, at Sevierville. It was understood at this time that Wynn and Tipton had decided to make a full confession of the murder and that it implicated Bob Catlett as an accessory of the crime.

In this view of it the state wanted the testimony of Wynn and Tipton against Catlett on his trial, while the latter was more anxious not to have them and hoped to secure a continuance to a date after the execution of Wynn and Tipton, at which time their testimony could not be used against him.

It is true that the sixth day of February, the date fixed for the special term to try Catlett, was a little over a month after the clay fixed for the execution of Wynn and Tipton, but the State's officers felt confident that they could secure a respite from the Governor for a sufficient length of time to use Wynn and Tipton as witnesses at the special term, while they were not certain that a respite could be obtained extending beyond a regular term. The State in this carried both points. That is, it secured a special term and obtained a respite of time for the witnesses extending from January the 4th to April the 5th next, at which latter (late they will be hanged unless there is further interference on the part of the Governor.

The postponement which was asked for and granted lay Governor Taylor was solely for tile purpose of using Wynn and Tipton for witnesses against Catlett, that justice might be meted out to others, and not as a favor to Wynn and Tipton nor because it was asked by them or their friends. It was; an act on the part of the Governor which was almost universally commended by the people, believing as they did that the information which would be forthcoming froth Pleas Wynn and Catlett Tipton would throw new light on one of the bloodiest tragedies ever perpetrated in the state of Tennessee.

On the 6th of February the case of Catlett was called for trial by his Honor Judge Hicks at Morristown, and the State announced ready for trial. The defendant, by affidavit, asked for a further continuance, on the ground that certain witnesses were not present and that he could not safely go to trial Without them. This motion was overruled by the court and a jury ordered impaneled to try the case. Only a few hours were occupied in securing a jury, suet on the morning of the second clay the State began to introduce testi­mony.

Lizzie Chandler, an eye witness to the killing and a sister of Mrs. Whaley, one of the murdered people, was the first witness introduced on the part of the State. She told the same story as heretofore detailed in a previous chapter about two men breaking the door down and rushing into the Whaley house on the night of December 28th, 1896, about 7:30 o'clock, and shooting William Whaley first and then almost instantly turning and shooting his wife, Laura Whaley, both of whom died instantly without ever speaking. The cruel intruders then retracing their steps left the house, with only the witness and the infant babe of the murdered woman left, to tell the awful story. The witness identified Pleas Wynn as one of the men, but could not identify Tipton further than to say he in a general way filled the description of the other matt.

After another witness or two were called and exam by the state, the two condemned then, Pleas Wynn and Catlett Tipton, were then introduced for the state and told in detail the blood curdling story of the murder of the Whaleys and the plot that was set on foot Find carried out for that purpose.

Inasmuch as a full confession of these two accomplices in this crime has not yet been published, we deem it not inappropriate to insert at this place what we can vouch for to out readers as being a substantial but not a verbatim statement of these two parties as told by them is this trial upon the witness stand.

CONFESSION OP PLEAS WYNN.

" I know when the Whaleys were killed in Sevier county in December, 1896. I was living then in Sevierville, some two miles from the Whaley house, About dark on the night of the killing, Catlett Tipton and I met by agreement at Melt Bailey's house in Sevierville. From there we went to Bailey's shop, where Tipton worked. There Tipton got his shot gun out of a tool chest and he and I went down the bank of the west fork of Pigeon river to the junction of the two rivers. There we crossed the bridge over the east fork of the river and went down the north side of the river, along the bank, till we got even with the Whaley house. We went up the hollow to within about twenty yards of the house, and then hearing some parties talking in the house we stopped, and after waiting a short time one of us coughed or made a noise. Immediately John Whaley, brother of William Whaley, came out with a pine torch and went to the crib near by and did some nailing about the door, went back to the house, and in a few minutes left and went down the hollow toward where he lived, a few hundred yards away. Then Tipton and I masked ourselves and went to the door of William Whaley's house, broke it open and entered.

" William Whaley and wife were in the first bed on the right as we entered, and some one else I did not know was in another bed. William Whaley jumped out of bed on the floor and said:

" Have you come to kill us? Do anything else you want to with us, but don't kill us.''

"Laura Whaley got out of bed with her baby in her arms and went over toward the other bed, saying she wanted to give her baby to her sister. Site gave it to some one who covered up her head.

" About this time, Catlett Tipton shot William Whaley, who fell on the floor, and in another moment he shot Laura Whaley, who had turned to where her husband was standing when shot. She fell near him on the floor. Neither of the parties spoke after they were shot.' Tiptoe had a double barrel shot gun, No. 12, and I had 'a No. 44 Smith & Wesson pistol. I did not fire a shot. We turned and walked out of the house without having spoken a word after .we entered it.

" We next went directly back to Sevierville, crossing the ridges by a path‑leading east of Capt. Wynn's and into the road near J. W. Andes. At the lower end of Sevierville, at the bridge, Tipton and I separated, he going to Bailey's shop, as he said, and I going to f). L. Montgomery's in. the upper end of town. I asked Montgomery if he was going fishing with us and he said no, that he was sick and could not go. I also asked the time of ‑night and ascertained that it was nearly nine o'clock . ,

" I went back down in town and stet Tipton on the old court house square near the Mitchell corner. From there ‑we went to Mark McCowan's, a half a mile below town, called hint out and asked him to go fishing with us. He and his family were sick and he could not go. We got his canoe and went down the river a short distance below his house and cast two dynamites into the. river and caught six fish‑five stickers and one salmon. I took the suckers and Tipton the salmon and we returned to Sevierville. The town clock struck nine while we were talking to McCowan and ten just before we got back to town after, the fishing. I stayed at home the rest of the night.

" I was well acquainted with the situation about the Whaley house. It was on my father's farm, And I lived in the house about two years myself. I knew William Whaley tolerably well, and I knew his wife when I saw her. I never had any trouble with either of them nor ill will against them. Neither of them ever did me any harm, so far as I know.

" I know the defendant, Bob Catlett. Have known him nearly all my life. I saw him on the morning before the Whaleys were killed. HP came into Sevierville with some horses and went to Loveday's stable and put them up I met him in the street and went to the stable with him. From there we went to M. R, Rawling's saddle shop, where I helped Catlett fix his saddle girth. We were there some little time. So one was with us. We then went to fired Emert's store, then to Trotter's hardware store, next to John Yett's store, and finally to West Emert 's store, trying to buy a certain &d of whip that Catlett wanted. I went to W. R. Montgomery's office and tried to get one from him, as lie had what Catlett wanted.

" We then returned to Loveday's stable, where Catlett's horses were. While there, Catlett. took, me back into the stable in a side room, and there he mentioned to me the first time about pitting the Whaleys out of the way. He asked me if I had had a talk with Catlett Tipton lately, and if I had agreed to go to a certain place with him: I told him I had talked will! hint and !tad agreed to go. He told me he tact agreed to pay Tiptoe fifty dollars to kill the Whaleys, pay his lawyer's fees and keep! him out of jail if anything should he found out on him. , lie said that Whaley and iris wife were witnesses against him and he wanted them killed so they could not testify against him, and he wanted it done that night, while he was away, so he would not be suspected and could prove where he was. Ile left Sevierville with four horses, about twelve o'clock , I think, saying he was going to Rolen's that night.

" I saw, J. M. Catlett, brother of Bob Catlett, that carne evening. He, Tipton and myself had a talk of a blacksmith shop near the old jail place in Sevierville that evening. No one else was present. Catlett said that Bob had left fifty dollars with him to be paid when the Whaley's were put out of the way. Jim Catlett was drinking that evening. The second clay after the killing, as I now remember, Tipton paid me twenty‑five dollars. This is all I ever got for the part I took in that murder.

" I was arrested, tried and convicted with Tipton for the killing of the Whaleys. We appealed our case to the supreme court and there it was affirmed."

On cross examination, Wynn stated that he was now confined in the Knox county jail and had been for some tithe, awaiting, the date of his execution. He was a. witness for himself in his own trials and had sworn he did not, have any hand in killing the Whaleys and did not know who did; that testimony was all false: he made those statements to get out of trouble and to save his life. He had made a partial confession in the Knoxville jail some time ago, but never authorized it published. It was partly, but not, altogether, true. lie decided to make a fall and true confession of .the whole matter about the last of December, 1899, at tile request and in the presence of his wife and a minister of the gospel, and that is the statement he now !tad made to the court and jury. It was true that no promise had been made to tile by any one as an inducement to make it. It was purely a voluntary statement.

He could not say that he now had any hope of escaping the sentence of death pronounced against him.

CONFESSION Of J. CATLETT TIPTON.

" I was born and raised in Sevier county; am about 38 years old. In December, 1896, I was living about two miles from Sevierville, but was at that time staying with Ben Bailey, my brother-in-law, and working in the blacksmith shop with him. I know the defendant, Bob Catlett and have known him pretty much all my life.

" On the Saturday evening that the November term of the circuit court adjourned, Bob Catlett came to me and said he wanted to have a talk with me. We went into Fred Emert's store and upstairs into a back room. He there told me that William Whaley and wife had gone before the grand jury at that term of court and had indicted him and Bob Wade, his brother-in-law, for shooting into Walter Maples house. He said he wanted them put out of the way and would give one hundred dollars to kill them, that he wanted

to make an example of them to teach people that they could not swear against him. I told him I did not want to do it and would not do it. This was about all that occurred there, and we went out of the store. Bob Wade was present during this conversation.

" There was a in meeting of an Odd Fellows lodge that Saturday night at Pigeon Forge, about eight miles above Sevierville. Wm. Wynn, Jesse Atchley and I went to it, leaving Sevierville that evening. I went in a buggy with Wm. Wynn, I think. Some time after the lodge had been in session. Bob Catlett and Bob Wade came in. That is the first time I ever knew Catlett or Wade in that lodge and have never seen them there since. It was about fourteen miles from there to where Catlett lived. As we were returning from the lodge that night, I stopped on the road near Henderson's Island at a turnip patch and got some turnips and distributed them among the crowd.

"'There were several along, including Bob Catlett, Bob Wade, Arthur Seaton, Schuyler Atchley, Jesse Atchley and Wm. Wynn. Wade and Catlett were riding horse-back, and when ready to leave the turnip patch, Bob Catlett suggested to Wade that he take my seat in the buggy and for me to get on Wades horse, as he wanted to talk with me. This change was accordingly made and I rode from there to Rambo's lane, about three miles, with Bob Catlett.

" On this trip he again brought up the subject of the Whaleys and renewed his proposition to me to put them out of the way for him. I told him I did not want to do it, but before leaving me near the Rambo lane, he handed me an envelope and said for me to take it and that it was mine when the Whaleys were put out of the way.

" I took the package and went on home alone front that point. I examined the contents of the envelope and found it consisted of four twenty dollar bills and one twenty dollar gold piece. I kept the money until the next Wednesday evening, and then I took it to Yett's store in Sevierville and gave it to J. R. Yett and told hint to put it in his safe for me a short time. I let it stay there until Friday following, when I got it and gave it back to Bob Catlett, saying to him at the time that I had decided not to do the job and returned his money Catlett replied that he was glad of it for he could get it done for one-half of that amount.

" It was not long, however, until Catlett returned to me again and began to beg me to comply with his wishes by putting the Whaley’s out of the way. I guess, in all, lie must have come to me some twelve or fifteen different times, and I at last consented to kill the Whaley’s for him, for which he agreed to pay me fifty dollars, and, if I got into any trouble over it, he was to pay my attorney's fees and keep me out of jail by making bond for me. On one occasion I told Catlett I had spoken to Pleas Wynn to go with me and that he had agreed to go. He asked me if I thought Pleas would be all right and I told him I did. It was agreed that Catlett should go south with some stock and that the Whaleys should be killed while he was gone, in order that he might not be suspicioned.

" Catlett went through Sevierville on Monday morning, the 28th of December, 1896 with some horses, and as he was going out of Sevierville, near the upper end of town and about opposite the Southern Methodist church, I met him and helped him straighten out one of his horses. While there he said to me:

“ Be certain and attend to that job tonight!

"Jim Catlett, a brother of Bob, told me that evening that Bob had left the money with him to hay for killing of the Whaley, whenever the work was done, and that he (Jim) would pay the money. This talk was had in the presence of fleas Wynn near the old jail place in Sevierville.

“That night, the 28th of December, 1896, Pleas Wynn and I by agreement met at Ben Bailey's in Sevierville, and about dark we left there, going first to Bailey's shop near the bank of the west fork of the Pigeon River. There I got my shotgun out of my tool chest, together with some cartridges. Leaving the shop, we went down the bank of said river to the point or junction of the two rivers, and crossing the bridge over the east fork of the river we proceeded down the bank of said river on the north side to the Captain Wynn farm. When we got even with tile Whaley house, we left the river and went up the hollow to where the Whaleys lived. We stopped a short distance from the house. We saw a light in the house and heard some one talking within. Wynn, as I now remember, made a noise by coughing and a man who I suppose was' John Whaley came out with a light and did some fixing about the crib door. He returned to the house, and in a short time left.

" Wynn and I then masked ourselves heavily and proceeded to the house, where the door was busted open and we entered the house. I had my shot gun and Wynn had a pistol. I there killed both Whaley and his wife by shooting them in the head. I never spoke to anyone after I entered the house nor did either William or Laura Whaley speak after they were shot, to my knowledge. I reloaded, my gun and then Wynn and I returned to Sevierville.

" We did not return as we went, but took a nearer route across the ridges, coming into the road near where the Andes boys live, just below Sevierville. I took my gun back to the shop and put it is the tool chest and got some dynamite I had there and met Pleas Wynn near the Mitchell Corner in town. He said he had been to Otis Montgomery's.

" From there we went to Mark McCowan's, a half mile below town, called him out, talked to him awhile and asked him to go fishing with us, but he declined, saying his folks were sick. We got his canoe and went down the river a short distance and dropped two sticks of dynamite in the river. The result was we got six fish one salmon and five suckers. We took the canoe back to the bank and left it where McCowan told us to. Before leaving the canoe we there burned our masks. We then went on to Sevierville, where we divided the fish, he taking the five suckers and the salmon. I went to Ben Bailey's, where I boarded, and went to bed, and I suppose Wynn went home.

"I was barely acquainted, with Wm. Whaley; knew him when I saw him. I never saw Laura Whaley until the night she was killed. I never had had any trouble with ether one of them, and had no ill will or malice toward them.

'Jim Catlett came to Sevierville the next day after the Whaleys were killed and paid me the fifty dollars, according to agreement, and on the following day (I think it was) I gave Pleas Wynn half of it.

" When I gave the package of money to J. R Yett to deposit in his safe for me, Wm. Marshall and Miller Yett were present, and when I took it away George Nichols and one or two others were present. I never deposited money or anything else with J. R. Yett & Co. at any other time, to my recollection."

On cross examination, Tipton in answer to questions from Mr. McSween said:

"I am now and have been for a good while confined in the Knoxville jail. I swore some three or four times when on trial myself that I did not kill the Whaleys and that I did not know who did; that if Bob Catlett had anything to do with it I did not know it. But that was false; I swore it to save my life and to get out of my trouble, if I could. I have not been promised anything nor given to understand that my sentence would be commuted if I would make a statement implicating Bob Catlett in the murder of the Whaleys. I was advised by my friends that if I knew anything about the Whaley murder I ought to tell it, and I decided a short time ago that I would tell the whole story as I knew it, and this I have done on the witness stand today. It is the truth.

"The state introduced a large number of witnesses corroborating the testimony of both Wynn and Tipton, and witnesses showing threats of Bob Catlett against the Whaleys, prior to the time they were killed. The state then rested.

The defense opened their case by putting the defendant on the stand, who promptly denied all statements.

and incriminating testimony of both Wynn and Tipton. He also denied making threats against the Whaleys, but he admitted that lie and Bob Wade were in Sevierville on the Saturday evening that court adjourned, when Tipton says he talked with them in Emert's store, arid also that they went to Pigeon Forge lodge that night. He does not deny being with Pleas Wynn at Loveday's stable and other places on the morning before the killing, but denied talking to hint about tire killing of the Whaleys The above substantially was Iris statement.

J. M. Catlett and Bob Wade, both of whom are implicated in the murder, denied till statements affecting them in any way as was expected.

This was about all tire testimony introduced on the part of the defense and amounted to a simple denial of the charges.

J. M. Catlett admitted that lie was in Sevierville the next dap after the killing, but denied that he paid Catlett Tipton fifty dollars, or any other amount that day, as Tipton swore he paid. Catlett denied that lie had that much money that day, and denied that he got any at the back that clay.

The defense then closed it case, and the state intro­duced A.T. Marshall, assistant Cashier of the Bank of Sevierville, on rebuttal to the evidence of J.M. Catlett, who testified that he paid said J. M. Catlett on that day, the 29th. of December, fifty dollars, and the bank books so showed it. With this the state closed its' case, Thursday at 12 o'clock .

It is proper to announce here, that in this famous trial, the state was represented by Att'y. Gen. G. M. Henderson J. R. Penland, Esq., of Sevierville; Holloway and Hodges, of Morristown ; and Gen. J. C. J. Williams, of Knoxville . While the defendant was represented by W, J, McSween, , of Newport ; Hon. Geo. L. Zirkle and Mullendore & Son, of the Sevierville bar; Shields & Mountcastle, and W. S. Dixon, Esq., of the Morristown bar. The argument was limited to three speeches, and four hours of time to each side

The states case was opened in a two hours argument by J. R. Penland, Esq., with a strong presentation of the facts showing a thoroughness in detail seldom observed. in a great law suit like this. detail speech was an agreeable surprise to many, and freely commented upon as being not only fair, but able and aggressive in its presentation.

This argument was followed by Judge John K. Shields, who opened the case for, the defense. Judge Shields is one of the ablest and best known lawyers in East Tennessee. He presented the law and the rules governing the trial of cases of this sort, soul made an able argument on the facts, closing with a strung appeal to the jury for the life of the defendant. His able speech was, no surprise to those who knew hint and did not lessen their opinion of him as a great lawyer.

Hon. John B. Holloway presented in an able manner the law of the case for the state, and made an earnest and dignified argument in support of the prosecution. It was free from objections, and strictly within the record, showing not only the ability, but the fairness of the man who made it.

The second speaker for the defense, was W. S. Dixon, Esq., a jury lawyer of recognized ability in Tennessee, who made an able and persuasive argument in favor of his client. His argument was clear cut, and showed the lawyer at every stage of its presentation.

But the principle argument for the defense was perhaps made by Mr. McSween, of Newport. McSween had been connected with the case as Catlett's counsel from the time he vests first arrested, and hence was familiar with the case from its inception, and was also counsel for Wynn and Tipton. He spoke for nearly two hours, and his style and manner was bold and aggressive in the extreme. His attack on state witnesses was terrific, and especially was this so in reference to Wynn and Tipton, the confessed principals in the murder, His speech may have caught the ear of the jury, but it was certainly too extreme to melt a favorable response from the large audience present, and particularly those who had heard the evidence in the case. His effort was a supreme one, and from the premises assumed by him, his argument was a strong one. He made a strong appeal in closing, for the life of the defendant, and in fact, much of his speech was made in the nature of an appeal rather than an argument.

General Henderson made the closing argument for the state. It was looked to with more than ordinary interest; first, because of his well known ability as a lawyer, and second, because of the character of the speeches just preceding and the bitter onslaught made on the prosecution. Interest and expectation ran high. No man ever had a more favorable opportunity to make a profound impression by a speech than did General Henderson at this time; and in this he did not disappoint his friends nor the public. He was equal, to the occasion and more than met tire expectations of the most sanguine. He used the sword of criticism with fine effect in parrying the blows of the enemy. He met and answered in the most dignified manner what lie termed unfair and unjust attacks made upon the officers of the law and state witnesses in the case. He showed up the weakness of the defense with the skill and tact of a true lawyer and closed the case with an appeal so powerful and effective that it wrung tears front the eyes of scores of persons present, and as he took his neat the large audience broke into cheering which load to he suppressed by the court and his officers.

While General Henderson was cut short in the time allotted him by some misunderstanding of counsel for the defense, yet he never made a better speech in his life, and perhaps never will he able to surpass it in the future. 1t was a great speech in a great law suit.

His Honor, Judge Hicks, gave his charge to the jury on Friday evening, and on Saturday morning about nine o'clock they reported a disagreement. By consent of counsel on both sides, the court discharged the jury and entered a mistrial.

While it is much to be regretted that the trial just passed through did not settle the case one way or the other, and while the result was, in our judgment, a great disappointment to the general public who heard the trial and knew the facts, yet no reflection is here meant to be cast upon the jury who tried the case. The presumption is that they acted from an honest and conscientious standpoint, and this being true no one has a right to complain.

It was a great law quit and n greet battle which will have to he fought over again. The case will stand for trial. at the regular April term, 1899.

By that time, Wynn and Tipton will have been hung, unless there should, be an additional postponement of the day of execution. But they, having once been examined in the case as witnesses, their evidence may be reproduced in future trials; should they, in the meantime, suffer the penalty of the law.

The public are much interested in the final result of this case and are looking forward to it as the last chapter growing out of the bloody White Cap murders in Sevier County.

THE END.