Litchfield enquirer., 1831-12-01

| graceful acts of inhutnNn cruelty htch we . have seen ChrOnicled for an iadefBite period.
 It appears that the affair had Us origin in Jam 1 aary l8SO,-and the facts. as we are enabled to c0ndense them from an extended report,
 may hc considered as mainly embraced tn the annexed syn0psis: Ia 1880. tt the January 1 term oI the Supreme Court. f0r the county of
 SiraIEord, (New-E E1ampshirc.) the ReUvrend
 Samuet Arnold, of 0ssipee, in the same state.
 WAS presented by the Grand Jury, as guilty Ofan assault and battery upon the body ofan l orphan child. aged only four years. At that
 term he was tried. It appeared in evidence.
 that Arnold. who had no chIld of his own.
 went te widow Prog. member Of his
 church, and expressed wish to take her son, little boy Of four years of age. and bring him up as his own. The kind mother hesit-
 ated-hut finally onsented-thinking that 1t
 might be for her ChiId's spiritual good. and
 actuated by desire to gratify her minister, l who promised to be an AtfectiOnate father tO
 the boy. He tock the little innocent hs.sne ] with him, and kept him fur s:4ree months,
 until the Saturday he fore the term Of the Su- 1 periOr Court mentioned ahOve. Early on
 that morning, before breakfast, this "afFec-
 tionate" guardian called the boy to him to
 read-in the course of doing which, the child
 came to the word utter. which it could not pronounce. Arnold told the child to read and pronounce the word. or he would whip
 him until he did. This the boy could not do. His kind father" then procured six sticks, which he warmed in the embers, to induce sOishiness. From the butt end efthese sticks,
 which were afterwards found in the cellar. it
 appears that they must have been as large as
 mains little finger. Having thus prepared
 the sticks, he undressed the child until he
 was as naked as when horn, then took him
 down cellar thus naked, in the month Of Jam
 uary. in order that his screams might not a.
 larm the ncighborhood. He then tied silk | handk tight round the wrist of the
 boys right arm-then raised the arm and fastened the other end of the handkerchief to ! an iron drove in a post in the cellar. He then took the child by the wrist of the left ] arm and by pulling him from the post to
 which the other arm was fastened, could raise his feet from the cellar bottom. Thus situated. he commenced whipping the child, and cOctinued until he wore up the sticks, | and exhausted himself. He then got his chaise whip, which was described as stock
 about three feet long, with common sized
 lash fixed upon the end oft, and then young
 servant girl who lived with him. by his order.
 took hold of the little child's wrist, in the place of Arnold, and pulled him out, while Arnold stepped as far back as the length of UUtAeWUJV whip the child with that, until he said the child yielded. The hoy was then brought up out of the cellar, its shirt y'ut on, and phy.I sician immediately sent for--who testified that on his arrival ut eight o'clock, he found the little sufferer insensible. His lil,s were covered with frOth--and from his ancles t., his neck, nO spot. large enough tO lay his fin ger. could be found. which. was not dreadful. iy cut and scared by the whip-and that where the blood was not upon the skin, the whole surface resenabIed sole leather, tanned with hemlock bark, thickly striped with dark purple. The doctor dressed the ] wound, and poulticed the whole body-and affirmed, that without great attention, the rhild must have died from the effect of the :! whipping. It is mentioned. that the next day !! afteI this outrage. the members of Arnold's : church and others, came to the meeting house, situated near his residence, to attend Sabbath meeting as usual, but upon hearing # the ieorks of their pastor. were led to go md look at the child. The sight was enough. Some of them went directly home; and Ar hold had too much prudence to enter the . sanctuary 0f the Lord that day, as the profess I'd ambassad0r of Him. who "t00k little chl-I iren into his arms and blessed them, and, said Ofsuch is thes kingdom of Heaven."- At the first trial, in January 1881. the jury did not all agrec--as the eloquent counsel had aby cOntentled for the defendant-and the ! action was continued t0 the August term of the said court, when the rOsecution-throughl some unknown inhuence--was dismissed.-) Arnold has published book, in which he en. 1 deayors t0 exculpate himself. But its state mants are in the face of facts-and an excite ment has arisen, which is increasing beyond 1 parallel. Since the recent publication, by the Patriot, Ofthe circumstances of the case. public opinion seems t0 be universal against { his inexcusable and wanton cruelty, and his 1 escape from punishment which his crimes de- serve. Who could sit under the preaching Of| such n clergyman? Who could hear the language of mercy fall from the lips of such an oracle? Mercy, which he had foreb0rne tosshOw to suffering innocence, and Justice,
 which he had strangely eluded? We hope and trust that this matter will not be suffered forrest. The public journals are already rap
 idly extending the history of the Reuerend Mr.
 Arnold, ahd we believe the prevailing opinion
 is. that hss like bis namesake. who was sen-
 fenced tc be hung for whipping . little girl to
 death, many years ago. in Otsego county, N.
 Y., should expiate his inhuman and cruel 0l-
 fence, upon a gallows as high as that which
 of old sustained better lnan, in she person
 Of Haman.-- Conn. Mirror.
 This Arnold 1t is said snow preaching in |
 the parish of New Britain, in the towns Ofl
 soaihbury and Newtown.l
 Nespspaper Possags. Newspapers all
 ttss 1 -. tl.s Hlov...,