Out for a Time.  A Young Man Tries To See Knoxville and Succeeds

Three strokes of the city hall bell early yesterday morning sent Policemen Turner, Bridwell and Lillison to the corner of Henley and Clinch streets where a young man was found hanging over a fence, hatless, blood oozing over his face, a black welt under his eye and drunk as a lord.

The patrolmen gathered the young man to his legs and propelled him to the city hall.

Amid maudlin tears and many hiccoughs he explained that his name was Dr. Cecil, he had just graduated from the Medical college and begged not to be locked up, seeming to think his newly won medical parchment ought to save him from the ignominy of being locked up in the calaboose.  He could not tell who had done him up, but said there had been a big row down on Clinch street and some white fellow had struck him.

But the young M. D.’s tears were of no avail and he was compelled to take a post graduate course for the night in the cell, and perhaps by to-day may be able to commence his medical practice upon himself as his own first patient.

On yesterday Cecil stated that as he was coming up the street on the night mentioned, when he got to the corner of Clinch and Henley streets, a large white man came up to him and struck him a violent blow upon the head, knocking him down.  The man then went through his pockets and robbed him of eight dollars in cash, nearly all the money he had with him.  The robber then ran away, leaving his victim bleeding and insensible upon the street, where the officers found him.

Source:  Knoxville Daily Journal and Tribune, March 26, 1891, page 8