Affidavit of Davis Sneed: Albany, Georgia, 1868 Sept. 25

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State of Georgia, -- -- -- Dougherty County ;
Before me, O. H. HOWARD, Brevet Major United States Army,
2nd Lieut. [Lieutenant] 5th Artillery, S. A. [Sub Assistant] Commissioner Bureau R. F. & A.
L. [Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands], personally came Davis Sneed, (Colored) who, being duly sworn, deposes and says, that he is 35 years of age, that he is by occupation a laborer, that on Tuesday Sep't [September], 15th 1868 he received notice of a political meeting to be held at Camilla Mitchell County Georgia, on Saturday Sep [September], 19 1868, which meeting was to be addressed by Capt. Wm. P. Pierce, and others and that he was told by gentlemen who notified him of the meeting, to "go in peace and come in peace," that he went to Camilla to "hear the speeches". that when within a few miles of Camilla, they were met by a man named James Johns, but deponent did not hear what this man said, that after meeting this man they were met by some men in buggies, and afterward by a man said to be the Sheriff of the County,

That Mr Murphy, addressed the freedmen from his buggy, and said "I

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am for peace in everything, and we must go and come quietly and peacefully," that then they (the freedmen,), proposed to hold their meeting at the place of Dr Dasher, but that when Mr Pierce and Mr Murphy, asked said Dr Dasher, if he had any objection to the meeting being held on his place Dr Dasher replied that he was afraid the people would be "down on him", and refused the request, that the company then numbered about 300 men, women and children, that about 40 men of this company had guns, that to the personal knowledge of deponent, many of these guns were not loaded, and most of those which had loads were charged with bird shot,
Deponent further swears that as the procession entered town James Johns white ordered the music stopped and said "if you dont stop that music, damn my soul to hell if I dont shoot you," and as the music continued playing, Johns raised his gun, and taking

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aim at the musicians, fired; that deponent was about 20 feet from this man when he fired, that this shot was instantly followed by a volley from the whites, who at this fire killed and wounded a number of the freedpeople, that the whites had freshly loaded guns standing inside the stores in the town, as he distinctly saw these men, after firing, step to the door of a store and seizing guns ready loaded fire again; that deponent escaped to the woods, and that he saw the whites pursuing and killing the flying negroes, as fast as overtaken,
Deponent further swears that he has heard Mr Murphy speak in public at least Eight or ten times, and that he, Murphy, has always counseled peace, and quiet behavior on the part of the freedmen. Deponent further swears that it has been currently reported among the freedmen, for a number of weeks that, any attempt to hold a meeting

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at Camilla by the republicans, would be met by an armed resistance from the citizens, and that some of the whitemen had sworn to kill Messrs Pierce and Murphy if they attempted to speak there,

Davis [added text: his] X [added text: mark] Sneed
Sworn to and subscribed before me, at Albany,
Ga., this 25th day of September, A. D. 1868.

[Signed] O. H. Howard

Brevet Major U. S. Army,
2nd Lieut. [Lieutenant] 5th Artillery, S. A. [Sub Assistant] Commisioner [Commissioner],
Bureau Refugees, Freedmen & Ab'd Lands [Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands].

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