Delaware inquirer. (Wilmington, Del.) 1859-18??, 1860-02-18

petrated, was found in one corner OF wilson
bedroom; and mortgage deed, for one thou
sand pounds on Craig Farm, the property Of
Wilson, and which Strugnell swore was al
ways kept in the writing-desk in the front
room, was discovered in chest in the prison.
er's sleeping-apartment together with nearly
one hundred and fifty pounds Of gold, silver
and county bank notes, although il was known
that Armstrong had but a fortnight before de-
clined very advantageous offer of some cows
he was desirous of purchasing, under the plea
of being short of cash. Worse perhaps than
all, u key of the back-door was found in his
pocket, which not only confirmed Strugnelrs
evidence, but clearly demonstrated that the
knocking at the door for admittance, which
had reused and alarmed the hamlet, was q
pure snbterfuge. The conclusion, therefore
almost universally arrived at throughout the
neghborhood was, that Armstrong and his
wife were the guilty parties; and that the bun
dies, the broken locks, the sheets hanging out
of the window, the shiny, black hat, were, like
the knocking, mere cunning devices to mis-
lead inquiry.
The case excited great interest in the county
and esteemed myself professionally fortunate
In being selected TO hoid the prlei iof prose-
cution. had satished myseif, Dya perusai
of the dcpositions, that there was no doubt OF
the prisoners guilt, and determined that no
ehort on my part snouiu DC spareu 10 issue 'he
| accomplishment of the ends ofjustice. drew
the indictment myself anc' IN my opening au-
dress TO the Jury, dweH WIN aii 'hc iorce "nu
eloquence of which was master upon the
heinous nature OF the crime, anu 'ne conciu'
siyeness of the evidence ny winch IL had oeen
brought home to the prisoners. may mere
by way OF parenthesis, mention that resortea
to plan in my address to the jury which
have seldom known to faii' IL consisted III
fixing my eyes and addressing my language 10
each juror one after the other In TINS way
each considers the address to be an appeal to
his individual Intelligence, ana responds 10 u
by falling in with the views oil tue Darristef'-
On this occasion the jury easily ieii INTO tue
trap. could see that had got them INTO
the humor OF putting confluence IN the cyl
dence had to produce.
The trial proceeded. The cause OF the death
was scientifically stated by two medical men,
Next followed the evidence as to the hnaihg oi
the knife in the bedroom OF the deceased the
discovery of the mortgage deed, and the large
sum Of money, in the prisoners sleeping apart
ment; the finding the key of the back-door in
the male prisoners pocket; and his demeanor
and expressions on the night of the pcrpetra-
ton Of the crime. In his cross-examlnation OF
the constable, several facts perfectly new TO me
were ELECTED by the very able counsel iof tne
prisoners. Their attorney had jndiciously
maintained the strictest secrecy as to the ma
ture of the defence, SO that 1t now ,ook me
completely py SURPRISE lhe oons'aoie' III ~
ply to questions by the counsel, stated that
the pockets of the deceased were emptyi that
not only his purse, put golu watci'' ch"in'
and seals, which he usually wore, had vanish
ed, and no trace OF them had as YET oeeh us
covered. Many other things were also missing
A young man of the name ofPearce, apparent
ly sailor, had been seen in the village once
or twice in the company OF Mary Strugheli
but hS Niu hSN NSN'SS
generally wore; he had not seen Pearce since
the night the crime was committed had not
sought for him.
Mary Strugneil was the next Wlthess. toHc
repeated her previous evidence win precision
and apparent sincerity, and then abandoned
her with mixed feeling of anxiety and Curl
osity to the counsel for the defence. suotie
and able cross-examination of more than two
hours duration followed; and at its eonclu-
sion, felt that the case for the prosecution
was so damaged, that verdict of condemna-
tion was, or ought to be, out OF the question:
The silent points dwelt upon, and varied IN
every possible way, in this long sitting, were
these 3
aWhat was the reason she did not return in
the evening in question to her aunts to supper
as usual?n
q She did not know, except that she wished
| to get home"
aDid she keep company with man of the
name of Pearce? ?"
aShe had walked out with him once OIL
twice.
nWhen was the last time?"
nShc did not remember
4 aDid Pearcc walk with her home on the
night of the murder?"
%
'tNot part of the way?"
i" Yes part Of the way
| nDid Pearce sometimes wear Dlhcki snihJ