William Russell Smith (1815-1896) 

page 31 to page 45 of REMINISCENCES OF A LONG LIFE by William R. Smith:  https://www.google.com/books/edition/Reminiscences_of_a_Long_Life/6aUEAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Reminiscences+of+a+long+life%22+%22William+R.+Smith%22&pg=PA88&printsec=frontcover

 William Russell Smith (1815-1896)page 31 of REMINISCENCES OF A LONG LIFE by William R. Smith:

JAMES CHILDRESS AND THE COUNTERFEITERS 

Major James Childress was conspicuous amongst our earlier pioneers He built his first cabin on the hill upon which now stands the old State Capitol This cabin was his residence for several years and I have heard it said of him that he used to stand on his porch and shoot down wild deer as they ran through his grounds. Major Childress afterwards removed to another locality east of the town about a quarter of a mile west of the University and there built a commodious cottage in which he resided up to the time of his death 1836.

 CHILDRESS HILL 

When the question of selecting the site for the location of the new State Capitol was mooted there were several places mentioned as eligible but the one selected was that known as Childress Hill and here the building was erected on the spot where the old cabin used to stand. Thus I am enabled to do for Tuskaloosa what no historian ever did for Rome i. e. to state distinctly the name of the individual who first broke ground on the identical spot of earth where stands the capitol of the State. Major Childress was known as a good rifle shot and as a daring man And he it was who led the raiders that captured the notorious Davis and Randall gang of counterfeiters and brought them to punishment.

 THE PURSUIT AND CAPTURE OF THE COUNTERFEITERS 

Great was the excitement in the village of Tuskaloosa with its 2,000 inhabitants when the news went abroad that the town had been done for by a gang of counterfeiters and that several fifty dollar counterfeit bills had been left in the hands of a prominent merchant for goods sold to that amount. Every cabin in the village was emptied of its inhabitants men women and children agape for news and craving revenge. 

At that time the penalty for the crime of counterfeiting was death. And in this particular case the honor of the town called for pursuit capture and execution. Within two hours after the spreading of the news of this outrage a band of bold citizens was organized for the pursuit and Major James Childress as leader came rapidly riding into the village on a large iron gray horse accoutred with rifle and pistols and in hunter's garb followed by a lively pack of hounds yelping in response to the mellow winding of the huntsman's horn. 

This band was made up of the best and most daring of the citizens of Tuskaloosa and North Port well armed and accoutred for the emergency and with a wagon drawn by two mules supplied as if for a party on a camp hunt. The raiders took the road leading to Walker County as it was known that the counterfeiters had come from that direction.

After crossing North River eight miles from town the party encountered John W Prewitt, a sterling young pioneer just then beginning to expand into a man of means and power. He was returning home from a trip into the upper end of Walker County. Prewitt the day before as he stated had met a party of men going from Tuskaloosa to Walker and who told him they lived on Clear Creek. Prewitt's description of the men seemed to cover the objects of the pursuit and he was at once put in possession of the facts of the passing of the counterfeit money and was requested to join the party in pursuit. When the word counterfeit money fell upon Prewitt's ear his eye flashed and his face glowed as if something had stung him. He put his hand in his pocket drew out his wallet of money and examined its contents. A black frown passed over his face as he returned his wallet to his pocket when he exclaimed with much eagerness in the response to the request that he should join the party. "Yes, yes boys I'm in," while he at once wheeled his horse into the road and placing by Major Childress inquired into the particulars.

The fact is that Prewitt in examining his money found that the rascals had put upon him two fifty dollar bills paid him as boot in a horse swap. 

He had parted with a magnificent young filly of his own raising for that amount of money and the horse he was now riding which was a fine roadster deep black and of good size. While Childress and Prewitt were talking apart Brown one of the North Port squad rode up to Prewitt and said familiarly, " John, where did you come across that horse? I saw him in North Port day before yesterday." 

The explanation that followed convinced Childress and Brown that the man who had swapped horses with Prewitt was one of the men pursued and that his party was composed of the identical counterfeiters. 

Major Childress now called the party to a halt and said, "Men, we know the neighboring locality of the homes of the persons we are pursuing.  It will be unnecessary to spend more time in making inquiries. I advise you to say nothing to any persons we may meet about our real object but to let it be understood that we are out on a camp hunt. Our destination is Clear Creek in Walker County where we will pitch our tent to morrow about sunrise."

Our hunters traveled all night and next morning about daylight pitched their tent on the edge of a bluff on Clear Creek in the neighborhood of a mill. In the meantime several wild turkeys had been shot and the breakfast was such as only Daniel Boone had ever enjoyed.

 As a caution Childress had suggested to Prewitt that he had better leave his horse behind for if discovered it would give a hint of the pursuit to which Prewitt readily assented and the black steed was left with a thrifty young farmer on Crabb's road about six or eight miles south of Wolf Creek and thirty five miles north of Tuskaloosa. About half a mile from the camp there was a rude log cabin on the edge of a small clearing of four or six acres of land on which corn and cotton (the latter in a small patch had been produced). In this cabin were found a woman and two small children. The cabin was of the rudest sort but fresh built only one room about twenty feet square a bed in each of the four corners. About fifty yards off was a row of small stables of logs very strongly put together four in number by the side of a small but very substantial crib well filled with corn and oats. Our hunters agreed to spread themselves around the neighborhood as observers for the day. Childress and Prewitt visited the cabin and inquired for the master of the place. The woman said that her husband had gone to Huntsville she did not know when he would be back for it is "a good way out there." Loitering around Prewitt looked in at the stables and noted that in each stall there was a horse freshly fed and groomed. And lo in one of the stalls he saw his veritable filly. Upon this discovery he called Childress and exclaimed, "We have treed the coon. There stands my filly. It is all a lie about going to Huntsville. It takes men to look after stock in this way."

 Childress was of the same opinion and concluded from the facts that the counterfeiters were in the adjacent woods. The party was speedily made acquainted with the facts and every rifle and pistol was well prepared for whatever emergency might arise. Childress took pains to conceal from the women in the cabin that he had made any discovery and the idea of camp hunters was sedulously cultivated. But Prewitt insisted that the stables should be picketed and four men were detailed with special orders to keep an eye on the stables while the party carelessly scattered themselves up and down on the edges of the bluffs and cliffs of the creek each with an eye for discovery. 

If CLEAR CREEK was in Switzerland it would be renowned for its scenery. It is a small stream but its fierce waters dash along within their craggy confines uttering a sound as if made up of the mingling of a thousand rivulets yet soft and distinct the harmony never ceases. Here are crags to be castled in the future with adjacent lands in valleys surpassingly rich. Here for the distance of twenty sinuous miles is room for as many mills with natural power to drive enough spindles to clothe the population of a small empire. The whole is broken into numerous cascades over one of which the water rolls without a break for the width of nearly one hundred feet and with a ten foot plunge that seems the mimic of an echo of some far off Niagara.

 Near this just above on one side is a frightful crag overlooking the bed of the stream with a continuous threat to topple over and bathe its rugged limbs in the lucid waters below while on the farther side the bluff is of moderate height declining gradually into a rich valley. 

Just below this fall comes in from the adjacent hills a frothing rivulet a never dying feeder to the larger stream and empties itself as if dropping its fleecy treasure from great baskets of snow.

But our camp hunters are suddenly excited and at the same time perplexed by having discovered a very light curl of smoke issuing from a crevice in the edge of the crag near the summit. Clambering up to the locality of the bluish emission they discovered the mouth of a miniature crater about the size of the head of a large barrel. The conclusion was that the smoke came from a cavern below and the gang began reconnoitering the place to find an entrance having jumped at the conclusion that the counterfeiters were concealed under ground. While our hunters were eagerly looking around for a trail, a little girl one of the children from the cabin aforenamed came dashing down the hill with a little water bucket in her hand. 

Major Childress hailed her and looking into her little bright eyes which glowed like those of a scared minx in her full round face he inquired where she was going. "To the spring," she said her face nothing exhibiting excepting the flushing eagerness natural to a child running. She was about six years old very alert and active in her bare feet her long black hair was twisted into two rolls after the country fashion of putting up pigtail tobacco. 

Now just below this cascade the bed of the creek widened considerably and the body of the water spreading out over a larger extent of space disclosed the rocky bottom so that the stream was very shallow. 

Twenty or thirty yards below a row of rocks had been thrown making a foot path over which one could pass almost dry shod. Over this path the child glided and went up toward the cascade on the other side where there was a spring by which she sat down resting her bucket on a stone. In the meantime the hunters had crossed the rocky foot path and bent their course into the woods beyond. Childress walking up to the spring where the little girl sat said,"Will we find plenty of deer out in this direction?"

 "Oh yes, pap killed a buck over there yesterday." 

The little girl kept her eyes on Childress as he passed along until she thought he was out of sight when she darted like an arrow and disappeared under the waterfall. 

Childress had seen her and at once beckoned to his friends who were on the lookout and four of the gang besides Childress followed the child under the waterfall hastily. 

There was a space of about three feet between the cascade and the bluff serving as an opening so that one could pass in and under keeping at the same time perfectly dry. They found over head a flat rock extending the entire width of the creek over which the waters rushed in a body with a regularity and precision as if the hands of man had made the dam out of solid timbers for the express purpose of letting the stream pour over it .

There was also under foot a solid rock without a perceivable crack in it and this was dry within a few feet of the plunge. Under the edge of the rock over which the waters poured and for eight or ten feet inwardly there was light enough to see clearly across the cavern but beyond all was darkness impenetrable. The five men passed rapidly across and at the side beyond groped onward in the darkness feeling every step of the way by pointing their rifles ahead above and under foot. The rock was firm beneath while above and all around them was nothing visible The hunters touched each other to assure themselves said nothing and moved on cautiously listening.

Suddenly a gleam of light flashed upon them as if from an opening shutter. 

"What is it, Lizzie?", said a gruff voice at the opening.

"There's a gang of men here hunters they say just now crossing the creek."

 The opening was closed and the hunters advanced rapidly to the spot. Feeling their hands came in contact with a rough plank or slab upright and firmly set as if in a wall. It was about two feet wide six or seven feet high on one edge of it was a strip of undressed raw hide running all the way from top to bottom and was nailed to the slab on one side and to a post on the other and was undoubtedly used as a hinge for the slab to swing on.  Childress made a light from his tinder box and took the surroundings. There was a cavernous yawning on each side of them in front a wall with a slab door. The men arranged themselves on the opening side of the slab the light was extinguished and they waited for events supposing that the door would open directly to let out the little girl.

 There were voices within but unintelligible. In a very little while the door swung open the girl passed out and a naked brawny and stalwart arm was extended grasping the edge of the shutter with intent to close it. Childress clutched the wrist of that arm in his left hand with a deathly grip and with his right hand seized the man by the throat and dragged him at once out of the door and to the ground placed his knees upon his breast and cried out, "Enter boys I've got this fellow," whereupon in an instant four rifles were leveled at the occupants within two men sitting on a bench in front of a log fire. The men sprang up. 

"Hands up!" cried Prewitt, "and surrender or die right here."

 The men were paralyzed they offered not the slightest resistance. One of them a tall straight man over six feet high simply said, "Don't shoot men," then turning to his comrade exclaimed "The jig's up."

 In twenty minutes the three were handcuffed and led out of the den. In the den were found quantities of paper counterfeits on the North and South Carolina and Georgia banks, tools and implements for engraving bills and dies for casting counterfeit coin of all denominations and a quantity of poorly executed counterfeit metal dollars half dollars quarters and dimes. 

The den was nearly triangular in shape with rugged walls but dry to the touch and with a solid stone floor. On one side of the den was an opening to another and a darker cavern which the hunters did not care to explore. A fire place quite snug had been made in the corner and over it was built up a sort of chimney by stones adhering to the walls on the inside so as to convey the smoke to the apex. The submissive men were mounted on their own horses and well secured. Prewitt had captured his lost filly on which he rode proudly pre eminent. Childress wound his melodious hunting horn, the hounds yelped a long and sonorous response when the hunters took up their homeward march. The raiders halted at Jasper for the night and the prisoners well ironed were lodged in the cellar of old Jemmy Daniel's house. About three o' clock on the second day after this the victorious raiders with their prisoners were entering the ferry boat on the Black Warrior River at Tuskaloosa.

 The news that the counterfeiters had been captured and were approaching was a signal for another emptying of the houses. There were no church bells in that day in that place but there was many a horn and they tooted many a toot. The storehouses were closed all business suspended the doors of school houses were thrown wide open the pupils boys and girls rushed out and men women and children exulting and hallooing darted down the long hill toward the river landing where on the brow of the bluff stood almost the entire population of Tuskaloosa to witness the crossing.

As the leader of the returning crowd, Major Childress was conspicuous on his old iron gray horse. But the eye was familiar with his figure and eagerly sought for the culprits amongst whom was seen towering above all the rest of the crowd a long lean man straight in his stirrups with a rugged face and clothed in butternut jeans. The long locks of his half gray hair fell down over his shoulder covering the collar of his coat. This was John Davis the leader of the gang. Straight to the jail the culprits were conveyed and the more alert and active of the crowd managed to get ahead of the troop and fix themselves about and around the jail so that upon the arrival of the prisoners there the locality was well packed with a solicitous multitude.

 MAJOR JAMES CHILDRESS, the hero of this adventure, was not only distinguished for intrepidity he was an educated gentleman of cultivated literary taste and polished manners he was noted for his amiable hospitalities and for the great care he bestowed on the education of his children. His home was one of refinement and in the early days of the University his house was a happy resort and hospitable retreat for the students but the truth of history forces me to record that his bee gums were not always safe and that his fat turkeys were sometimes mistaken for wild game. Childress's gobbler got to be a college by word carrying along with it an aromatic flavor and a gormetic significance.

 Of Major Childress's two sons, James L. is especially remembered by me as an amiable playmate in our boyhood and later as a thrifty energetic citizen. He died early of yellow fever at Citronelle. 

Of the two accomplished daughters Annie P became the wife of Erasmus Walker, a young lawyer and at that time one of the editors of the Flag of the Union. Mr Walker had also been one of the editors of the Alabama State Intelligencer and was highly esteemed for his attainments as well as for the brilliancy of his writings.

 The second daughter, Susan W., is the wife of Dr John B. Read who graduated at the University of Alabama in the class of 1834. He was one of that bright galaxy of Huntsville boys who came to the college the first year embracing Clem C. Clay, Jere Clements, James Mastin, Porter Bibb, Joe Acklin and others. Dr Read was afterward charmed to take up his residence in Tuskaloosa where he has become distinguished as a physician and has made himself widely known in the scientific world as a man of superior genius having invented an implement of warfare a celebrated shell which was adopted and used extensively during the late war. 

THE FATE OF THE COUNTERFEITERS

 John Davis and Randall, one of his associates, were tried convicted and sentenced to be hanged. Randall furnished the State some facts without which Davis could not have been convicted and for this he was reprieved but this fact was not communicated to him until the halter had been put around his neck under the gallows. I was an eye witness to this scene Randall's conduct under the gallows was notable amusing and disgusting. He sang shouted and danced called for water and whooped an Indian yell. Everybody was anxious for him to be hung and great was the disappointment and disgust when his reprieve was made known to the crowd. 

The public feeling toward Davis was very different. His demeanor after his arrest had created a universal sympathy for him and the intrepid manner in which he met his fate was long the theme of admiration coupled with expressions of regret. He was a splendid specimen of a man physically over six feet high and elegantly formed. His hair was long and turning white his eyes gray and sparkling his face was expressive of benevolence and animated with intelligence.

 His behavior under the gallows was significant of great courage his composure was perfect there was deep  disdain depicted on his lips but whether this expression was caused by his disgust at the conduct of Randall or by a deeper feeling of resentment at mankind it would be difficult to determine.

Davis was said to be a Kentuckian and of good family. Nothing was known or suggested against his character excepting the present case of counterfeiting but it was admitted that he was the chief actor the scribe of the gang in other words the brains and the pen of the conspirators

"The jig's up," said Davis when he was arrested; a most ludicrous remark but significant of his sagacity as well as of his resignation. He was a fatalist.

 Randall's reprieve was for thirty days. He was brought under the gallows a second time a month after Davis had been executed. The rope was again adjusted to his neck and he went through the same antics that had distinguished him before. It seems that he had been kept in ignorance of a pardon up to the last. He confessed to many and great crimes. He exhorted, he wept, he sang, he danced and shouted while the excited crowd surged restlessly around as if they were angry at the possibility of being cheated out of a "genuine hanging"for it had been hinted during the day that a complete pardon had come. Hence, there was little surprise when the sheriff pulled from his pocket a long paper with a great red seal attached to it. This proved a pardon at the exhibition and reading of which the crowd dispersed and Randall was escorted back to the jail. 

But Randall was not allowed to escape scott free. A mob gathered about the jail and when the convict had been discharged by the sheriff as he came forth out of the jail with his little wallet on his shoulder and was about to go on his way rejoicing the mob seized upon him and taking him off into the woods tied him to a stump and inflicted upon him a terrific whipping with cow hides whereupon he was ordered to leave and never again show himself in that community. Judge Lynch was more lenient then than he is in these latter days. Randall disappeared with universal execrations howling after him. In the machinery of the gallows upon which Davis was hung there were no springs, traps, falls or levers- no break neck stratagems, it was an old fashioned hanging two upright posts with a beam over head the hemp rope the primitive cart and the inevitable mule. "Get up!" was the only signal.

 I could locate the spot of this scene within twenty yards. I have passed near it a thousand times since. It was in an open space within half a mile of the center of the village in an old field with no dwelling near only a gin house contiguous but now the most beautiful dwellings and mansions in the city with their yards and gardens embellish the locality. To name the spot would be to hang a gibbet in some friend's yard to glare at him. 

[I had here described the locality minutely but the thought in the lines above occurring to me I made haste to blot out the description forever and I do not believe there is now another person living who can designate the locality. ]

The crowd on this occasion was a vast one for that day. Amongst the spectators was a gang of Indians, men and squaws with babies tied upon their shoulders, agape with curiosity at this development of the new civilization .These Indians have gone to their hunting grounds; and that vast assemblage, where are they?. 

It is believed that this was the only instance of an execution for counterfeiting in our State. If all the forgers and counterfeiters of this day had to be hung Broadway would not be able to furnish space for the gibbets.