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Huntsville Ala
August 7th, 1866

Maj Genl Thomas

Sir allow me a short preface.  I am a citizen of Jackson County, Ala.  In the summer of 1863 I rented a farm of Dr. E. Dossie and after I had my crop very near ready to lay by he tried to drive me off so as to get my crop and to scare me he made his threats and sent me word that he would take my life on sight and I started from my home leaving my three motherless children alone and I had not got but a short distance before he came to my own house in pursuit of me swearing he would kill me before night on his finding that I had left he came on after me and overtook me at Basses Station on the N & C. R.R. which was about one mile from my house. He took me by surprise and commenced his violence with me and in the scuffel he was cut with a knife which caused his death.

Previous to this time his wife whipped one of my daughters very near to death with in my own house while I was at work in the field and also shot at me six times with a revolver and a shove me from the house that I had rented for the year

At that time there was no civil courts in this country and as soon as the fuss was ended I was arrested and kept in custody by the Federal troops until in