A Family of Fiends.

A Chapter of their Fiendish Doings.

In Monroe County, on Greenbrier River and about fourteen miles below this place, lives a man named Joseph Graham. He has three or four grownup sons living beneath his roof, and (until the 27th ultimo,) one unmarried daughter, -- Miss Jane Graham, -- aged about 45. This daughter had an illegitimate daughter by a man who recently died in Missouri, leaving a sum of $3000 to his child, who is now married to a Mr. Miller, of Nicholas County. Quarrels of the most violent character are represented to have been common in this family. A recent quarrel had taken place, and one of the brothers had sought to injure the character of his sister by leaving anonymous and defamatory letters upon the highway, and also by writing to Mr. Miller, of Nicholas, giving the mother of his wife a character as "black as hell and rotten as carrion," and asserting that her daughter (Miller's wife) was no better.

Without any knowledge of this, Miss Jane Graham a few weeks ago went to Nicholas County to visit her daughter ---- found that she and her husband had separated, were living apart, and learned that the cause was the anonymous letter which Miller had received. Miss Graham, full of the violence and determination which characterized her, immediately returned home. A violent quarrel ensued between her and the brother who wrote the letter, into which the old man and woman were drawn -- (they siding with the son) -- the upshot of which was the forcible ejectment of Miss Graham from the house. She went then to the house of a brother-in-law, -- one Mr. Nolan, who lives hard by, -- who gave her shelter and protection. On the night of the 27th of July, Nolan and wife went to visit a neighbor, leaving Miss Graham to take care of the children. After they were gone -- (about 9 o'clock, and as the children of Nolan say, one or two of whom are competent witnesses) -- Miss Graham dressed herself and went out. She took a bonnet belonging to her niece, and a pair of stockings belonging either to her niece or to her sister. (Remember this.) Nolan and wife soon after returned, and were surprised to find Miss Graham gone. At a little past 10 o'clock they were aroused by the cry of fire, caused by the burning of the barn of Mr. Joseph Graham. From her well known vindictive temper it was at once suspected that she burned the barn, and hence her absence was not noted as anything remarkable --?--gg-- or revenge for the injury done them.

Their conduct in this respect added strength to the rumor that was beginning to find tongues -- a rumor charging the family with putting Miss Graham "out of the way." This rumor grew so strong that on Friday last, (4th instant,) a party of neighbors gathered together for the purposes of searching for the body of the absent woman. They went to the house of Graham to ask his permission to search for the body on the premises; his answer was "Go look in the ashes of the barn -- if her bones ain't there, they are in hell!" -- The party went forward on their search. A few rods below the ruins of the barn they found indications of a scuffle -- then of a running fight -- then, again, of a more severe scuffle in which a person appeared to have been thrown down. The ground was imprinted thickly with footmarks of human beings and of a dog. From this place they detected such signs as indicated the drawing of a human body along the ground towards a creek. This trail they followed to the creek, where it was lost; but on the other side they rediscovered it. Here dark stains, which appeared to be of blood, covered over with fresh ashes, were occasionally detected. This trail was followed with tolerable ease until they reached the bank of another creek or brooklet beyond. Here there were such appearances as induced the searching party to think the body, before dragged, had been rested a moment, and then shouldered. The print of a person's knees and the toes of two booted feet were seen plainly impressed in the soft earth, exactly as they would have been had a person got down upon his knees. From this point blood was occasionally detected on the leaves two or three feet from the ground -- adding fresh conviction to the suspicions of the party that the body had been shouldered. Ashes were still occasionally seen to be scattered along the path. But about a half dozen rods from the place where the body was supposed to have been shouldered, all traces of the trail were lost. One of the party looking in the direction of the sun, saw an unusual number of blue or carrion flies flying about. He took it as an indication, and by using a switch succeeded in establishing a line of buzzing flies towards a blown-down tree below on the bank of the creek. The instinct of the flies was superior to that of man, and enabled them to detect signs that might have otherwise escaped them. Coming to the tree they found foot steps leading into the water, and by going into the water and following down so as to get a view into the thick top of the tree and surrounding hedge, they discovered the dead body of Jane Graham!

The body was extricated from the bushes after much difficulty. It was considerably putrescent. The dress she wore had been taken off, and lay beside her, having the appearance of having been washed and thrown up with the body without being wrung. Some signs of blood were detected upon it, and it was much torn as by a dog. Here shoes were also taken off, and thrown up after the body as was also the bonnet before spoken of. The stockings before mentioned were upon her feet. -- There were signs of violence about the neck, as though the body had been dragged by a rope. A rope about eight eight [sic] feet long was afterwards found near the place of concealment. Some signs of her having been worried by a dog were also upon her person, but the blood is supposed to have come from her nose or mouth.

The family of Grahams showed no signs of favor or affection for the murdered, and looked with an eye that boded no good upon the searchers, whom they deemed meddling with a matter that was "none of their business."

An inquest was held upon the body last Monday --7th inst. The evidence then given in on the part of the searching party in accordance with the above recital. One witness spoke of being on the ground early next morning, and saw a large Negro, who belongs to the family, coming from the direction where the body was found with a bucket on his arm -- made him return to search for tracks of the incendiary -- saw where some one (supposed to be the Negro) had scattered fresh ashes along, but saw nothing of the body. After hearing all the evidence, the jury came to the conclusion that Miss Jane Graham fired the barn -- that in so doing she roused the fierce dog belonging to the family -- that the dog followed her, and that some of the family pursued in the same direction -- that some of them came up with her where the first indication of a scuffle occurred -- that she then escaped but was overtaken where the indications of a second scuffle were found and there murdered. The jury, we understand, were unanimously of a conviction that this was the manner of her death; yet (will it be believed in the land of chivalry and in the 19th century?) they brought in a verdict that she "came to her death by some unknown means!" One of the jurymen, whom a friend of ours conversed with, said they dared do nothing more -- the Grahams were such a desperate set that the whole neighborhood feared them!

--??-- hay stack near the house -- and all the bustle, enquiry and confusion about the premisses [sic] did not a moment delay their work until it was done. The circumstance has given rise to a suspicion that there is something connected therewith, and a determination has been expressed to have the hay removed. If anything more of this affair transpires our readers shall hear the particulars.
 

From The Greenbrier Era, Vol. III, No. 52, Lewisburg, VA, August 12, 1854, p. 2. Greenbrier County Papers (WV), Roll 16 (M-28), State Archives, Charleston, WV.