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Subject: Powers.Lonz.1913.Muhlenberg.HISTORY

Xiii The Story Of "lonz Powers" 1913
Muhlenberg County KyArchives History Books

Book Title: A History Of Muhlenberg County

XIII THE STORY OF "LONZ POWERS"

AN EPITAPH we frequently find carved on old tombstones is "Gone but not forgotten." These 
words could also very appropriately be applied to "Lonz Powers, or The Regulators," a novel 
published by James Weir in 1850 and now obsolete.

   "Lonz Powers" is a historical story based on the actual operations of a number of outlaws, 
and of a class of citizens known as Regulators. These bands of Regulators, in the early history 
of many sections, felt themselves called on to enforce the law which was being violated by the 
outlaws, who had no regard for law, human or divine. Organizations like the Regulators, which 
took the law into their own hands, are not only found in the early history of many communities 
but also exist, to some extent and in one form or another, even to the present day. The Ku-Klux 
Klan had its rise and fall. Up to a few years ago White Cap raids, that took place in some 
sections of this and other States, were frequently reported. Unorganized bodies such as mobs 
and lynchers still occasionally take the law into their own hands.

   What might be called the reign of the Regulators did not begin in Muhlenberg until about a 
quarter of a century after the county was organized. Regulators here were, as a rule, composed 
of members of some of the best families. Most of them were sons of pioneers, and like their 
fathers were men of good standing.
For a period of about ten years, beginning about 1820, there came into southern Muhlenberg and 
northern Todd and Christian counties some settlers who, through their dishonesty, became 
undesirable citizens. The fact that they either escaped the officials of the then slow-acting 
law, or were ignored by them, resulted in the organization of the Regulators, whose reign lasted 
until about 1850.

   The outlaws or "Roughs," whose misdeeds form a part of Muhlenberg's traditions, were the 
Andersons, the Shepherds, and the Penningtons.

   Tom Anderson was a horse and slave thief, and lived on Long Creek near Lead Hill Church. The 
Regulators burned his home about 1837 and drove him and his gang out of Muhlenberg County. Jack 
Shepherd was a horse-thief, and lived in Todd County near New Harmony Church, where he was killed 
by William Welborn, who with others attempted to arrest him together with two of his brothers and 
Isom Sheffield. Alonzo, or "Lonz" as he was called, and Morton Pennington lived in Christian County. 
It is the career of these two Penningtons, and the movements of the Regulators who finally brought 
one of them to justice and ran the other out of the State, that form the plot of "Lonz Powers, or 
The Regulators." The situation is one frequently found in the early history of new and sparsely 
settled countries. Only a few of the scenes are laid in Muhlenberg County. The book is here 
reviewed more as a literary work by a Muhlenberg man than as a story bearing on Muhlenberg's local 
history. Before attempting to sketch a brief history and outline of "Lonz Powers," and before 
commenting on the theme of the book, I will give a few facts from the author's life.

   James Weir was born in Greenville, Kentucky, on June 16, 1821, and died in Owensboro January 31, 
1906. He was the son of James Weir, sr., and Anna Cowman
(Rumsey) Weir, daughter of Doctor Edward Rumsey, who was a brother of James Rumsey the inventor. 
James Weir was graduated from Centre College, Danville, in 1840, and the following year completed 
a course in the Lexington Law School. In
1842 he left Greenville and settled in Owensboro, where he began the practice of law and where for 
more than forty years (up to his retirement from the
profession) he was a leading member of the local bar. He not only had the reputation of being a 
lawyer of the highest rank but was likewise well known as a scholarly author, a banker of ability, 
a man with a kind, generous heart, and always worthy of the distinction that "among his fellow-
citizens he stood preeminently as the first citizen of Owensboro." [1] Many words of praise could 
be quoted regarding the life and career of James Weir, but since it is one of his literary works we 
are about to review I shall confine myself to a few paragraphs from "Kentucky Biographies" on the 
subject. In this we read that in 1850 he wrote "Lonz Powers, or The Regulators," and in 1852-53 
"Simon Kenton, or The Scout's Revenge," and "Winter Lodge, or Vow Fulfilled," which novels were 
published by Lippincott of Philadelphia. From "Kentucky Biographies" I quote:

   These three novels gave promise of a brilliant future, but since that time Mr. Weir has been too 
much engrossed in his profession and other business matters to devote much time to literature, and 
his work in that direction has been limited to an occasional sketch for the newspapers and magazines. 
The stories referred to were written in Owensboro before Mr. Weir was thirty years of age.

   The first of these was "Lonz Powers, or The Regulators," a romance of Kentucky, based on actual 
scenes and incidents of the early days of the "Dark and Bloody Ground." The second, "Simon Kenton," 
was designed to give a sketch of the habits and striking characteristics of the people of western 
North Carolina, immediately following the Revolutionary times, and to introduce Simon Kenton, the 
scout and Indian fighter, and also his opponent and enemy, Simon Girty, the Tory renegade. In this
 volume the character which Kenton represented came off victorious. "Winter Lodge" is a sequel to 
"Simon Kenton," in which the author introduces many of the most striking characters who were prominent 
in the early history of Kentucky, with descriptions of scenery, Mammoth Cave, the battles in which 
Kenton and Girty were engaged, and the habits and marked characteristics of the pioneers. The name 
"Winter Lodge" is derived from a cabin erected by Kenton, for the hero and heroine, which was 
ornamented with carpets and buffalo hides and lined with furs. Mr. Weir intended in his younger days 
to write a third volume of this series, coming down to the war of 1812 and the death of Kenton and 
Girty, but his increasing business prevented him from accomplishing this, and his literary work of 
late years has been undertaken as a pastime and recreation rather than a matter of business.

   Immediately after its publication "Lonz Powers" became the most popular and enthusiastically discussed 
book in Western Kentucky, and in fact it attracted attention in literary circles throughout the whole 
country. The edition was soon exhausted, and as the writer refused to permit the issuing of a second 
edition until he could find time to revise the book, it was soon out of print. Later, when time for 
revision might have offered itself, the inclination on his part seemed lacking.

   It is probable that after the publication of "Lonz Powers" Weir, realizing that since his romance 
would be likely to help perpetuate the name and deeds of his hero, decided to let its circulation spread 
no further. He was undoubtedly aware that frequently a character's fame depends more upon the power of his 
historian than upon the hero's actual acts. Furthermore, through "Lonz Powers"
the writer gives his opinion on a thousand and one subjects, and it is quite possible a few of these 
expressions being in advance of his day and time were then somewhat harshly criticised, while these same 
ideas, with one or two exceptions, are to-day accepted. This slight opposition, and the desire not to 
perpetuate the name of Lonz Pennington, or "Lonz Powers," probably influenced James Weir to refuse the 
issuing of a second edition of this book. [2]

   Whatever the reason, the work was not republished, and the few volumes printed of the first and only 
edition were soon sold or loaned to neighbors and friends and to kith and kin, far and near, until now, 
sixty years after, it is almost an utter impossibility to obtain a copy. But in spite of this fact, "Lonz 
Powers" is still discussed not only by the old citizens of Western Kentucky-many of whom read it when it 
first appeared-but is also talked about by those generations which have come upon the scene since the 
Civil War, among whom, however, there are but few who have even seen a single page of it. Thus, as I have 
said, "Gone but not forgotten" is the book's most appropriate epitaph.

   And now, "lest we forget," I shall attempt to perpetuate this old story in at least its outlines. 
Practically all the men and women who were old enough to appreciate and remember "Lonz Powers" when it 
first appeared have passed into the Great Beyond. Very few of their successors have had an opportunity 
to read it. Some have permitted their imaginations to mislead them concerning the nature of the book. 
Thus it is that we frequently hear it compared to "The Life of Jesse James," "The Texas Rangers," or 
"Tracy, the Bandit." No comparison could be more erroneous or absurd. To suggest that this story more 
closely resembles that of "Robin Hood" better approaches the mark, especially in the cave life of the
 bandits.

   The book is divided into two volumes, making a total of about seven hundred pages. On the title page 
is printed:

LONZ POWERS
or
THE REGULATORS
A Romance of Kentucky
founded on facts
by
James Weir, Esq.
Published by Lippincott, Grambo & Co.
Successors to Grigg, Elliot & Co.
Philadelphia
1850

   Most of the scenes in the story are laid in and around Christian County. It would be impossible to 
quote all pertaining to Muhlenberg and other counties of Western Kentucky without reproducing the greater 
part of the text. I shall, however, in the course of this chapter, copy many paragraphs word for word.

   Turning page after page we soon recognize the literary merits of this work, note the accuracy with 
which Mr. Weir records local history and the vividness with which he portrays the early days. We are 
affected by the pathetic little sketches scattered throughout the book. We thrill at his tragedies and 
laugh at his ever-recurring humor, wit, and fun.

   It is the story, the author tells us, of a people living "away from the busy haunts of commerce and 
from the brick, mortar and marble of the city; away from the hacks and pavements; away from baronial 
castles, brave knights and fair ladies." In the preface he says he confidently believes "few works, 
claiming the title of romance, have ever comprised so many real characters and actual incidents. Through-
out the particular localities of the story hundreds of persons may be found who will detect, in the career 
of the hero, a transcript of the life and adventures of one Edward Alonzo Pennington; and although the 
author, in the exercise of one of the privileges of the craft, has brought many of the minor characters 
and incidents of the book into a new juxtaposition, yet many of these will also be recognized, with equal 
facility, as real and true."

   As to the identity of some of the other characters represented, or to what extent they are true 
portrayals of the originals, no one seems now to be able to state with any certainty. Tradition has 
it that Francis P. Pennington is the name of the father of Alonzo and Morton, and that Alonzo's wife 
was a Miss Oates, a granddaughter of pioneer Jesse Oates. The "O'Rourke" of the book was Simon Davis, 
a stone mason. "Old Sisk" is very likely drawn from a certain Frank Cessna, or Cisney, and also a 
Sheffield. According to tradition-which differs in some instances greatly from the written romance-
Alonzo Pennington was pursued and arrested by Doctor Reece Bourland, living near Hopkinsville, who 
captured the outlaw while he was playing a "breakdown" on his fiddle at a cowboy dance in Northeastern 
Texas. But, according to the author, Lonz was captured in the Lone Star State by "Charles Burton," a 
leading but fictitious character whose romantic career adds much to the interest of the book. The 
court records show that John McLarning was the prosecuting attorney for Christian county when Alonzo 
Pennington was tried and condemned in April, 1846, and Colonel James F.
Buckner, then of Hopkinsville, was employed by the defense, a duty that was considered dangerous, yet 
discharged with courage by young Buckner.

   The plot of "Lonz Powers" is a very thrilling one. It holds the reader's interest from the beginning 
to the end. Now and then the author leads up to a melodramatic climax. But after all it is not, in my 
opinion, the exciting plot that gives the book its value. It is the author's literary style, his portrayal 
of the Regulators and their times and his frequent digressions, in which he expresses himself on various 
subjects, that give the work its value. I shall attempt to give a brief outline of the plot, incidentally 
accompanying that outline with quotations from the book, and add a few remarks based on tradition.

   The story begins at a time when Southern Kentucky was yet almost a wilderness. The Powers farm, "Forest 
Home," "presented as beautiful and inviting a scene as the most impassioned lover of Nature could desire." 
Its two hundred acres "lay imbedded in a deep and almost impenetrable forest." Its well-kept barns sheltered 
blooded stock, and evidences were many that the inmates of the comfortable home lived in a style befitting 
country gentry of the time and place. The sons of the house, Lonz and Morton, were young men of widely 
different dispositions-Lonz even then a stern fatalist, and Morton gay, brilliant, changeable, and led at 
all times by his elder brother.

   To pay a gambling debt, Lonz Powers stole several blooded mares from his father's farm. The fact that 
Lonz was guilty of this theft was known only to four persons-to himself, his brother Morton, to a character 
we shall later know as "the Colonel," and to Charles Burton. Burton and his wife, Laura, had a few years 
previous removed to this neighborhood from Virginia. It was by mere chance that Burton discovered Lonz taking 
the horses.

   In this same neighborhood lived a man called, from his prematurely gray hair, "Old Sisk." Previous to his 
settlement in Kentucky he had committed crimes, knowledge of which had followed him, and though he had lived 
uprightly in the midst of a little colony of which he was head by reason of his superior intelligence and 
education, his past record being against him he was arrested and placed in jail for Lonz Powers' crime-namely, 
that of horse-stealing.

   On the day preceding the trial of Old Sisk, Lonz pleaded with Burton to divulge none of the proceedings 
he had accidentally witnessed. But silence on the part of Burton would have meant the imprisonment of Old 
Sisk for a theft committed by Lonz. So Burton told Lonz he would "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing 
but the truth," no matter whom it helped or hurt.

   That night, just before retiring, Charles Burton, "leaving his chair by the fire, walked to the open door 
and there leaning against the rustic pillar of the porch, while gazing at the moon, just rising over the dark 
veil of the forest, was shot" from ambush by Lonz Powers, who had shrewdly taken every precaution to cover 
his tracks and divert suspicion.

   During the few years preceding this murder various persons had been robbed along the highways and byways and 
many horses had been stolen, but no guilty parties had ever been located by officials or other citizens. The 
murder of Charles Burton now shook the whole community, which, as it gathered around the dead man's home and 
there beheld his young widow and their son, Charles, about eight years old, declared it had now fallen on the 
citizens to avenge this daring and bloody deed.

   Every man present seemed enthusiastically in favor of such action- none more than Lonz Powers himself, whose 
own father was made chairman of the assembly. A few of the wiser and cooler heads were for lawful proceedings, 
but the majority were moved by the insinuations of Lonz (whose purpose is clear to the reader) that Old Sisk, 
though in jail awaiting trial, was the instigator of this foul deed. Morton (who was ignorant of the fact that 
his brother was the murderer) made a speech to the crowd, during the course of which he said:

   But they say we have no proof of the guilt of Old Sisk or the guilt of his gang in this murder. If they are 
innocent then who can be guilty? . . . Old Sisk knew that Burton was a witness for the Commonwealth . . . and 
that such a witness as Burton was more than enough to cause his conviction and death. . . .
The citizens of a neighboring county were long infected by just such another band. Tom Anderson and his fierce 
crew of outlaws, for years and years, committed crime after crime, and the law7 made futile and fruitless 
efforts to convict and punish them. At last the people, having borne and suffered as long as to bear and suffer 
was wise and honorable, arose in their power and majesty, and casting aside for the moment laws- in that case 
vain and useless-swept in the hour of their anger this entire band from the county, and drove them homeless 
and houseless to another land. Shall we now follow their example, and treat in the same manner this cursed gang?
 Or shall we weakly submit and retire to our homes, leaving this atrocious and cowardly assassination of a 
friend and neighbor unpunished and unavenged?

   The crowd, fired by his daring speech, soon left the Sisk home a pile of smoldering ashes, and made his wife 
and children fugitives. Thus took place the organization of this band of Regulators, according to the author of 
"Lonz Powers." Old Sisk, an unfortunate victim of prejudice and popular excitement, was convicted of the crime 
of horse-stealing, of which he was innocent, and sent to prison for fifteen years. There was, of course, no 
evidence to convict him of Burton's murder.

   Fifteen years have joined the endless train of eternity since the scenes described in our foregoing chapters. 
Fifteen years of sunshine and storm, of winter and summer, of springtime and harvest, have come and gone. Treading 
on with quiet, but regular and ever-moving steps, old Time has gingerly tripped along, like some light-hearted 
maiden over the dewy grass, scarcely leaving a trace of his passage. For fifteen full, long years have the 
flowers bloomed only to wither, and man has been born only to die. For fifteen years Time, like interest, has 
never slept, but has stolen by with noiseless tread while we were sleeping; thus hurrying on, careless, reckless, 
and ignorant, still nearer to
the grave.   .   .   .

   But you must not suppose, gentle reader, that because fifteen years have gone, and we have seen proper to pass 
them over in silence, that they have fled like a day, without producing many changes. During that period, wars and 
revolutions have convulsed the world; kingdoms have sunk into ruin and risen again; men, religion, politics, the 
sciences and arts, have all been remodeled, and have thrown off their ancient garbs and appeared in holiday dress, 
to suit the march of intellect or change in taste. Like flowers transplanted, the change has bettered some and 
injured others.

   During these fifteen years many strange inventions have startled the eye of man. The iron horse has trampled 
his way through forest and over mountains, dragging after him long trains of wealth, and driving away, with his 
wild whistle and hoarse snort, the old rumbling conveyances of our fathers, and speeding along with all the force 
and power of steam, reckless alike of toil or distance. The bright forerunner of the thunderbolt has been snatched 
from the whirling clouds, and made the post-boy of this intelligent and progressive age.
Steam has dashed aside the dark bosom of the ocean, and careless alike of wind
or wave, brought the old and new worlds in a few days' travel of each other.   .
  .   .

   During that period many changes have occurred in the scenes and characters of our present story. The country, 
then almost a wilderness, is now teeming with life; the activity and energy of our moving and restless race has 
filled the old forests; and broad farms, golden with grain, and made glad by all the comforts and necessaries, 
and even luxuries of life, have taken the place of wild wood and tangled briar. The little village of Hopkinsville 
now aspires to the dignity of a city; the sluggish waters of Pond River have now, by the wisdom of our Legislature, 
been declared (what God never intended) navigable-whether for steamboats, broadhorns or dugouts, our wise law-
makers did not see proper to
mention.   .   .   .

   Fifteen years have fled! Long, weary and solitary to Old Sisk, for they had been spent in the gloomy, silent 
cells of a prison, and had been made even longer and more dreary than they really were by the fierce raging of 
never-sleeping passion, coupled with an insane and almost hopeless longing for freedom. ... In person he was 
almost gigantic-a perfect specimen of thews and sinews; and as he wielded his hammer in the forge of the pen-
itentiary, with his stern face illuminated by the blazing metal, and dark with passion and malice, he would 
have made a glorious picture for the God of the Internals. He loved that work, for every stroke he gave the 
fusing iron, he fancied it a death-blow to an enemy and oppressor. . . . He loved to hear the ringing sound 
of his blows, and see the firm iron crush beneath his stroke; for he knew then that the power and force of his 
arm was not yet destroyed, and that he was still able to
execute the vengeful schemes of his dark and unforgiving heart.   .   .   .

   Old Sisk is now, after fifteen years' absence, approaching with slow and wearied but steady and firm tread 
the location of his once comfortable, and to him, perhaps, happy home. No wife or child or kindred are there 
to greet and welcome that old man; to soothe him in his hour of darkness, and rejoice over his return. . . . 
He slept that night stretched on the green sod where once stood his pleasant home, and there will he dream 
either of happier days or of bloody vengeance.

   Thus is freed the instrument of fate.

   This intermission of fifteen years brings the story of "Lonz Powers" down to about 1844. Charles Burton, jr., 
who after the death of his father had been sent to his grandfather in Virginia, had grown to young manhood and 
had just returned to Kentucky, the scene of his early life. Old Sisk, having served out his prison term, had 
come back, as already shown, an embittered, revengeful man. Lonz Powers had married Mary Warren, and was 
living on a farm near his old home. He and his brother had a bad reputation in the neighborhood, but no one 
could point to any real lawbreaking on their part. Their old father, still living at "Forest Home," almost a 
ruin, sat dreaming over his wrecked fortune and the almost ruined reputations of his once darling sons.

   During these fifteen years the hypocrites among the Regulators withdrew from the association, declining, as 
they put it, to ally themselves with such an organization, but secretly associated themselves with a band of 
outlaws by whom many former crimes had been committed.

   The writer says: "For a space of two years previous to the present period of this narrative the entire southern 
portion of Kentucky, from the Ohio River, or from the counties around Fort Massac in the State of Illinois, 
across to the Tennessee line, running along up through the counties of Hickman, Caldwell, Hopkins, Christian 
and so on to,Nashville, and through Tennessee to the States of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia, had been infested 
and preyed upon by a daring gang of robbers, horse-thieves and counterfeiters, who had, as yet, escaped all 
discovery or punishment."

   The representatives of that fraternity of outlaws who plied between the Green and Tennessee rivers established 
their headquarters in a cave, described in this story as being located near Pilot Rock in Christian County. Of 
this organization Lonz Powers was the leader. Among themselves this retreat was known as "The Hermitage." Besides 
Lonz, to whom they referred as Captain, there were about five other leaders and a greater number of subordinates 
or "strikers."

   Morton Powers was usually second in command. The Monk, Pilot, or Dick Murdock, as he was variously called, was 
an old flatboat man and river pilot, and frequently entertained his brothers with a raft full of fun. Old Sisk was 
another of the leaders, for he had joined this band after his release from prison as a means of being more easily 
revenged on his enemies, the Regulators.
Then, too, there was a character known as the Parson, who, in the capacity of circuit rider, held camp-meetings 
while his brothers in crime preyed upon the praying mourners by appropriating their horses. Last, but not least 
in wickedness by any means, was the Colonel, the gambler who had first led Lonz Powers into crime and who was the 
sharer of his first guilty secret.

   In the course of the narrative each man tells the story of his life to his assembled companions while idly 
sitting around in the cave. Some of these are daring, some pathetic, some humorous. Each would make an interesting 
story in itself. The Colonel, a card sharp, was not sparing of humor, and among other things, while speaking of 
his past, is made to remark: "In those days I scattered my money about like a prince. No one, you know, had a 
better right than myself to ape the luxury and expense of royalty, for all my funds had been given me by kings 
and queens."

   Returning to the plot, it develops that a young Irishman named O'Rourke is making preparations to visit his 
native isle, and it is therefore supposed he will have money on his person. Lonz hears that O'Rourke intends to 
come to the muster which is to take place at Pleasant Hill, a drilling ground in the northwestern part of 
Christian County. [3] For Lonz to hear was to plan, so he at once made up his mind that not only the Irishman's 
money but his rich farm should soon become his own. Thus, working on the revengeful mind of Old Sisk by telling 
him that O'Rourke had been among the destroyers of his home, he plots to kill O'Rourke on his way from the muster.

   Lonz and the Irishman meet after the muster and proceed toward their homes, and according to Lonz's prearranged 
orders they are soon overtaken by Old Sisk, who is to deal the death blow when Lonz pronounces the words, "And 
this is the end?" O'Rourke tells the story of his life, his early struggles, his final success; of his love and 
his loss, and of his mother and sister who eagerly await him at his old home in Ireland, where they are happy in 
the hope of returning to America with him. By this time "they had traveled four miles from the training ground 
and were in the midst of a broken and rugged chain of hills." Thus they reached Cave Hill, near what is now Haley's
 Mill, in Christian County. When O'Rourke had finished his story, Lonz, unaffected by the pathetic recital, gave 
the signal, "And is this the end?"-in response to which Old Sisk struck the fatal blow, but it was not without 
much struggling that their wicked work was finished and their victim robbed and his body thrown into a nearby 
pit, since known as Davis Cave.

   Lonz's versatile talents were next to be applied to accomplishing a robbery on a larger scale than any he had 
yet attempted. It was rumored that the safe in the Bank of Kentucky in Hopkinsville contained "six hundred 
thousand dollars"
(more or less). Lonz decided to enrich himself with at least a part of that amount. As usual, he played upon Old 
Sisk's desire for retaliation by putting him under the false impression that the cashier had been present at the 
burning of his home, fifteen years before.

   On the night set for the robbery Lonz stationed a number of his men at various places around the bank to act 
as guards, while he and Old Sisk were to do the actual work. They concealed themselves in some shrubbery in the 
yard near the rear door of the building, prepared to make a charge on the cashier, whom they judged was alone at 
the time, for the front door had been locked several hours before. But it suddenly developed that another man 
was with the cashier.
The robbers did not know that young Charles Burton had returned to Kentucky.

   At this moment Burton, walking to the open door of the bank, folded his arms across his bosom, and leaning 
against the post, gazed thoughtfully out over the garden. Lonz sank upon the ground as if a bullet had passed 
through his brain, while his heart beat quick and fast, and he gasped and struggled for breath, like a man when 
laboring under a horrible nightmare. Covering his blanched face with his hands, as if he would shut out some 
terrible sight, he murmured: " 'Tis his ghost! And standing in the same position and attitude as when I last 
saw him fifteen years ago!"

   Young Burton having heard this outburst of surprise and horror, quietly, but much bewildered, stepped back 
into the bank. In the meantime the robbers, suspecting they were detected, returned homeward and gave up the 
attempt. In the course of a few hours, however, the enraged Lonz learned that the "ghost" he had seen standing 
in the open door was not that of Charles Burton, the man he had killed fifteen years before, but the living son 
of the murdered father, to whom the son bore a striking resemblance.

   The next morning young Burton left Hopkinsville on his return to the home of Major Thompson, whom he was 
visiting and whose daughter Julia was receiving much of his attention. Young Burton had not seen Lonz Powers 
since his early childhood. By a strange and unfortunate coincidence he was overtaken by Lonz, who introduced 
himself as Jack Randolph. In the course of their conversation Burton, wishing to show a friendly feeling toward 
his new acquaintance, who claimed to be an old friend of his father, kindly suggested to Randolph, "If you ever 
need the services of a strong arm or the aid of a long purse, never be backward in calling on the son of your 
old friend." These overtures were declined with thanks by his new acquaintance, who pretended to be much 
insulted by such an offer. Burton then begged his pardon, after which Randolph remarked, "No man was ever 
seriously insulted by the offer of money, for that is an insult very seldom given and when once given very 
soon forgotten."

   That "a man may smile and smile and be a villain still" certainly is applicable to Lonz, for a few moments 
after their pleasant conversation he deliberately shot Burton, robbed him, and left him lying apparently dead 
on the highway, where he was soon afterward discovered by some friends and taken to Major Thompson's home, 
where he received the best attention from his prospective mother-in-law, his ladylove, and fox-hunter Thompson, 
and soon recovered.

   At some time in the life of almost every daring man we find he overreaches himself. This was to be Lonz's 
fate, and he was about to engineer a robbery, small in itself, but upon which depended his final undoing. Some 
of his band descended upon the then quiet village of Greenville, and robbing a store there, were followed by 
the fully awakened townsmen; one of the thieves was captured.
This reference to Greenville, the town of Mr. Weir's birth and youth, arouses a reminiscent spirit, resulting 
in a description of which the author of "Sleepy Hollow" himself might well have felt proud. [4]

   Now we shift the scene to Pilot Rock, in Christian County, where a small party of young lovers are picnicking, 
among whom are, of course, our hero Charles Burton and his heroine Julia Thompson. This famous rock and resort 
is, according to "Lonz Powers," located in the immediate vicinity of the cave of the robbers, and being so 
frequently visited by picnic parties the outlaws decided to make the place less popular in the future by 
capturing the girls of this jolly party and holding them prisoners in their hidden and undiscovered retreat.
This they did, and left the struggling young men bound to trees. After the young men had liberated themselves, 
failing to locate the whereabouts of the stolen girls, they rushed home to their families and friends, 
spreading the alarm of this daring abduction.

   By noon of the following day more than five hundred men were gathered upon and about the rock. Every stone 
and crevice in the neighborhood had been examined for some traces of the girls or robbers, but as yet without 
success.

   In the meantime Old Sisk and his companions and their captives were securely concealed in the cave. One 
robber, as said, had been captured near Greenville a few days before, he was brought to the scene by some 
of the Regulators. Having refused to make a confession, he was stripped and bound to a tree and then whipped, 
and after much pounding and persuading and a promise of liberty he revealed the names of the outlaws.

   "He was ignorant of the seizure of the girls and the names of their abductors, but had no doubt they were 
some of the band to which he belonged. He declared that Lonz and Morton Powers were the leaders of the daring 
gang which had so long infested the country, and gave the names of many of the citizens of the country and 
surrounding counties who were secret members of the numerous and widespread association." Every name mentioned 
created a surprise. Even Lonz and Morton Powers were heretofore unsuspected.

   A consultation followed, after which about fifty Regulators marched to the home of Morton, and marching away 
again left it in flames. They next visited the home of Lonz, determined to burn it down also and give him a good 
lashing.
Through his wife's heroic intercession he was spared on condition that he leave Kentucky at once. Then the 
Regulators turned toward "Forest Home," having resolved to send the father of these two outlaws out of the 
State, but the pleadings of the innocent old man were so pathetic that the Regulators changed their resolution 
and permitted him to remain.

   In the meantime the girls were still captives in the undiscovered cave. Five dark and weary days and nights 
they spent anxiously waiting to be rescued.
However, all this while they were gallantly protected from Old Sisk and the other villains by the Pilot and the 
Parson, who although outlaws like their companions in iniquity had still some traits of decent character. Five 
long and diligent days and nights were spent around Pilot Rock by the searching party. At last their efforts 
were rewarded, for Burton discovered the entrance to the secret cave.

   Lonz and Morton being absent during the abduction, the besieged, quarrelling among themselves in the cave, 
could hold out no longer. An exciting conflict followed between the robbers and the rescuers. One of the out-
laws dashed out the brains of the Colonel. Two or three of the other bandits were killed, among whom unfortunately 
was the Parson, who had so courageously aided the Pilot in defending the fair prisoners. The girls were liberated, 
safe and unharmed but nervous and exhausted, and, of course, "Julia, half crazed with delight, sprang forward 
to meet Burton and fell fainting upon the bosom of her lover and deliverer."

   The lash was applied freely to all the captured outlaws except the Pilot, who having helped protect the 
girls was now left unwhipped, and who was later pardoned by the Governor on Burton's petition. The revengeful 
Old Sisk willingly made a confession, for he had long entertained a secret determination to betray Lonz and 
Morton, whose connection with his false conviction and imprisonment for horse-stealing he had learned from 
bits of their overheard conversation and hints from the Colonel, who knew the real criminals. Old Sisk gave 
a brief history of the maneuvers of the outlaws, saying, among other things, that "Lonz was the thief of his 
father's horses, for which crime I suffered fifteen years imprisonment; he was the murderer of Burton's father, 
who was witness of his guilt; he was the instigator of the Regulators who drove away my family and burnt my 
home. Since that time he has been a gambler, a robber, counterfeiter and kidnapper. A few weeks ago he murdered 
the young Irishman, O'Rourke, and threw his body into the pit. It was Lonz Powers who planned to rob the bank 
in Hopkinsville, but failed because when he saw Burton standing in the back door he believed him to be his 
father's ghost, and the next day, under the false name of Jack Randolph, he came very near murdering young 
Burton."

   This certainly was a very interesting confession to the Regulators. However, Old Sisk failed to relate his 
own connection with the murder of O'Rourke. About this time Morton Powers suddenly disappeared, and according 
to the story was seen only once after this exposure.

   Lonz having learned from some of his secret associates that the cave had been discovered and that he had 
been betrayed by Old Sisk, "fled as fast as horse and terror and money could take him, for flight was now his 
only hope of safety,"
until finally he arrived at "one of the most remote settlements in Texas, then the great valley of refuge for 
felons." There he associated with a crowd of strangers, who like himself were fugitives from justice.

   Burton, now knowing his father's murderer, determined to avenge the terrible deed. He pursued Lonz, and with 
the aid of the Pilot arrested him in Texas, where he was taking part in a cowboy dance.

   "While Burton and the Pilot were pursuing Lonz in Texas the Regulators were still at work in Kentucky. Old 
Sisk was confined in the jail at Hopkinsville, where he had remained until the present moment. The community, 
hoping that Lonz Powers might be taken, and trusting with the evidence of Old Sisk to be able to convict him 
of the murder of O'Rourke and bring him to punishment, had quietly permitted the old convict to remain in jail. 
But when week after week rolled by and nothing was heard of the fugitive, secret whisperings and threats against 
the prisoner were bandied about among the Regulators, or rather those who had the strongest reason to fear the 
bloody vengeance of the fierce old man; and as the time for the convening of the circuit court was drawing 
rapidly near and he would soon be taken under the power and control of the law, and as they feared, on account 
of want of testimony, would either escape or be sentenced to only a few years of imprisonment, they determined 
to take vengeance into their own hands and thus rid themselves of all future fear.

   In order to carry out these plans Old Sisk and his fellow-prisoners were secretly supplied with a small file 
and a highly tempered saw, accompanied by a note signed by "friends from without," saying "at 12 o'clock to-night 
we intend to undermine the northwest corner of your jail and set you at liberty." The prisoners filed away all day 
and at midnight crawled, to their great surprise, into the arms of the Regulators. They were taken to the spot 
where O'Rourke had been murdered by Lonz Powers aided by Old Sisk. Old Sisk admitted he had aided in the murder 
of the young Irishman on his return from the muster, but explained that it was all done at the instigation of 
Lonz. Old Sisk pleaded for his life, and begged to be permitted to live until he could kill Lonz, swearing by 
all things living and dead that after he had seen Lonz die and thus satisfied his aching for revenge he would 
return and submit to any punishment they cared to inflict.

   But his prayers were all in vain. "Directly in front of Old Sisk stood twenty men grasping their long rifles, 
and silently awaiting the command of their leader. They had been chosen by lot before the coming of the victim, 
and only ten of the rifles were loaded with ball, and so prepared that the executioners might be ignorant who 
were the real destroyers." A quick, ringing volley followed the signal of their leader; Old Sisk fell, and dis-
appeared into the mouth of the same cavern into which he and Lonz had thrown the body of O'Rourke a few weeks 
before. The other outlaws who had been taken from the jail along with Old Sisk were each given a hundred lashes 
and then driven out of the county.

   In due time Lonz was brought from Texas and safely lodged in the Hopkinsville jail. The authorities, learning 
from experience, did not lock him in the cell recently vacated by Old Sisk, but placed him under heavy guard to 
prevent his escape or rescue. During his imprisonment his true and faithful wife called on him frequently, 
consoled him, and even to the last believed him innocent.

   Lonz was tried for the murder of O'Rourke, found guilty, and hanged. On the day of the execution, which 
took place Friday, May 1, 1846, people came from far and near to witness the hanging. Very likely Charles Burton 
and his bride Julia were in the great crowd, for their gay and festive wedding celebration had taken place 
shortly after Burton returned from the West with his prisoner, Lonz Powers. Morton Powers, too, according to 
the story, was among the spectators of the hanging, but in disguise. Tradition says that some years after Lonz's 
death Morton appeared at the home of his brother's widow, where as an unwelcome guest he lingered for a few weeks. 
Fearing that his shiftless life would have a bad influence on her children, Mary Powers called in her neighbors 
to run him away.
At her request he was given an application of "hickory oil," after which he fled the county without delay.

   Lonz met death bravely and without any unusual demonstrations. Thus ended the life of a brilliant but misguided 
and misguiding man, who if his abilities had been applied in a legitimate course might have had as great an 
influence for good as he had for evil. As it is, he has the distinction of being one of the greatest outlaws 
in Western Kentucky, and also the distinction of being the first man legally hanged in Christian County.

   There is a tradition to the effect that when Lonz stood on the scaffold with the hangman's rope around his 
neck he asked for his old violin, which was handed to him and he played a musical composition of his own, entitled 
"Pennington's Farewell." Nothing is said about such a scene by the author of "Lonz Powers,"
and it is therefore likely that this sometimes confirmed but usually denied incident is groundless.

   Another tradition says that in the first attempt made to hang Lonz the rope broke, and he then cried out, "See, 
gentlemen, this is proof of my innocence!"
The sheriff, however, proceeded with the work, and thus ended Lonz's earthly career. A denial of his guilt, and not 
a tune on his fiddle, was "Pennington's Farewell." [5]

   In justice to the Penningtons, it must be said that Lonz's heartbroken father was an honest and upright man. 
Lonz's wife (who remained a widow and died in
1892) and their five children all lived to old age, and each during his or her entire life proved a credit to 
their county. So, too, his many grandchildren, now living in various parts of Kentucky, are all, without a single 
exception, good and highly respected citizens.

   As to the Regulators and their methods, the author brings up many arguments for discussion. He admits that 
lynch law as a general custom may be injurious and in some cases unjust. In this instance he asks the reader 
to bear in mind the fact that at the time and in the country described the inhabitants were few and lived far 
from any seat of government; that they were constantly suffering from the bold and unpunished work of outlaws, 
and that most of them practically depended upon themselves and their own efforts for obtaining their necessities.
They raised their own bread, shot their own meat, spun their own cloth, and also enforced their own laws.

   Commenting on this subject, Mr. Weir says: "Had not the Regulators pursued the course described in the 
present case, they never would have discovered the nest of villains, and they might have gone on step by step, 
until it would have become dangerous for an honest man to move from his door, unless armed and guarded as if 
in the country of an enemy. It is true, lynching may at times result in the punishment of innocent men. Rascals 
may ever and anon take
advantage of the custom to revenge themselves upon their enemies.   The law
itself may, in a manner, be brought into contempt by a reckless indifference of appealing to it for punishment 
or protection. But, upon the whole, taking everything into consideration, time, place and circumstances, we 
think regulating or lynching, although an evil, was then sometimes a necessary one."

   "A multitude of furious, reckless and unmanageable men," continues Mr. Weir, "assembled together in some 
city, bent upon the destruction of property or punishment of obnoxious persons, is called a mob. A company of 
men assembled with the same purpose or design, but meeting in the woods instead of the city, are dubbed with 
the title of Regulators. A community uniting together with the intent of resisting the laws of the land and 
overthrowing the regularly constituted government, if unsuccessful, receives the odious name of rebels; but if
 their attempt be crowned with victory, then, instead of rebellion, it is dignified with the more exalted and 
glorious title of revolution."

   After referring to Ireland's wrongs, to "Louis Philippe with a recollection of a former revolution in France,"
 to the troubles of Germany and Italy, and to how "Emperor and Pope have alike been compelled to submit to the 
expanding will of the people," the author adds (failing, however, to refer to anarchy and its
troubles) : "Our Regulators, who were nothing more nor less than a country mob, had their evils to remedy, and,
 as they met with entire and complete success in all their undertakings, the only question that now remains is 
whether they, like the victorious French, shall be applauded, or like the unsuccessful Irish, meet with 
condemnation." Since the work of the Regulators and the execution of Lonz Pennington resulted in a general 
suppression of lawlessness and a general reformation of the country, Mr. Weir is, of course, inclined to say 
"they shall be applauded."

   One is indeed tempted to refer to many other arguments and incidents introduced by the author and to quote 
from them. But the selection is so large and varied that one scarce knows which to choose. Besides, lack of 
space limits this chapter to a short biographical sketch of the author, to a rough outline of the plot of 
"Lonz Powers," and to a few remarks on the subject of the Regulators. These three subjects I have briefly 
reviewed. However, this review would be far from complete if I did not refer to the fact that during the 
course of the story the author discusses, at length and in a very entertaining manner, the many subjects 
that are incidentally introduced.

   These communings, meditations, descriptions, and moralizations are interesting and unusually humorous. 
Among "the themes which skirt the roadside of the narrative" are Mr. Weir's description of the old military 
muster. Pilot Rock and The Barrens, a dog supper, a steeplechase, and the improbable style of conversation as 
given in fiction; hereditary vices and virtues; the tree of life; influence of victuals on verse; prospects of
 war in the indissoluble Union; modes of deer-hunting in Kentucky; botanizing as an art in courtship; knitting 
and its effects upon lovers and the price of socks; hypocrisy among the so-called admirers of Milton's Paradise 
Lost; the road-working age of old men and young boys; grammar from a theoretical and practical standpoint; the 
bliss of a brandy cocktail, and a score or two of other themes.

   I have tried to present a general idea of "Lonz Powers, or The Regulators,"
the author's versatility, literary style, his complete conception of the subject, and his thorough knowledge 
of the old-time Regulators. I found it an extremely interesting book from a historical and literary as well 
as from a local standpoint.


ENDNOTES


   [1] James Weir married Susan C. Green. They were the parents of ten children, eight of whom reached maturity: 
Mrs. Ann Belle (Clinton) Griffith, John G., Arthur W., Doctor James, Mrs. Susan Green (James Lee) Maxwell, Mrs. 
Norah (R.
S.) Triplett, William L., and Paul Weir. Paul Weir is an attorney and banker in Owensboro. Doctor James Weir 
wrote two books, "Religion and Lust" and "The Dawn of Reason," of a scientific nature, and numerous magazine 
articles of the same character.


   [2] There is a story, affirmed by some and denied by others, to the effect that James Weir did not issue 
a second edition of "Lonz Powers" because a number of the outlaws, having recognized themselves as the 
originals of characters portrayed therein, sent the author an anonymous note in which they requested him 
to suppress the further circulation of the book and threatened to kill him if he issued another edition.


   [3] James Weir's description of the old militia muster is quoted in full in the chapter on "The Old Militia 
Muster."


   [4] James Weir's  description of Greenville is quoted in the chapter entitled "Greenville as described in 
'Lonz Powers.' "


   [5] One version has it that the day Pennington was hanged he not only played "Pennington's Farewell" on his 
violin, but also recited what has ever since been referred to as "Pennington's Lament":

"Oh, dreadful, dark and dismal day,
How have my joys all passed away! 
My sun's gone down, my days are done,
My race on earth has now been run."


Submitted by: Joy Fisher
sdgenweb@yahoo.com



Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

A HISTORY OF MUHLENBERG COUNTY
BY

OTTO A. ROTHERT
Member of The Filson Club. Kentucky State Historical Society, American Historical Association, 
International Society of Archaeologists, etc.

JOHN P. MORTON & COMPANY
INCORPORATED LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY
1913


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