Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1862-07-17
LIZZIE MADwoRTHs TRIAL.
BY A SOUTHERN LAWYER.

TO defend a young man who had been accused ot
robb;ng the mail. / arrived early in the morn
ing, and Immediately had a long conference with
my client. The stolen mail bag had been recov'
cred, as well as the letters from which the money
had been riHed. These letters were given me
for examination, and returned them to the pros
ecuting attorney. Having got through my pri-
waite preliminaries about noon, and as the case
would not come on before the next day, went
into court in the afternoon to ewhat was going
on. The first case that came up was one Of
theft, and the prisoner was young girl not over
seventeen years of age, named Elizabeth Mad.
worth. She was very pretty, and bore that mild
innocent look which you, seldom find in q cul
prit. She had been weeping profusely, but az
she found SO many eyes were npon her, fshe be
came too frightened TO weep more.
The complaint against her set forth that she
had stolen q hundred dollars from Mrs. Naseby
and as the case went On, ] found that this Mrs
Naseby, wealthy widow living in the town, was
the gals mistress. The poor girl declared her
innocence in the widest terms, but circumstan'
ees were hard against her. A hundred dollars
IN bank notes had been stolen from her mistress
room. and she was the only one that had access
there. tt
At this juncture, when the mistress was upon
the witness stand, young man caught me by
big tears stood in his eyes.
They tell me you are good lawyer he wits.
pered. .s YfftFF
am a lawyer answered.
'Then save her. You certainly can do it, fol
she is innocent rs q. ga
Is she your sister,
No, SIR he added; ut-but'-Here he hes
itated. .- -,.... ~ z
Has she no counsel p asked. ~ =" e,
None that's good for anything-nobody that
will do anything for her. ! cant give you much,
but can raise something
reflected q moment. I cast my eyes toward
the prisoner, and she was at that moment look
ing at me. She caught my eye, and the volume
Of humble treaty read in her glance resolved
me in moment. arose and went to the girl,
and asked her if she wished me to defend her
She said yes. then informed the court that l
was ready to enter into the case, and was admit
ted at once. The loud murmur of satisfaction
that quickly ran through the room, told me where
the sympathies of the people were. asked tor
Q moments cessation, that might speak with
my client. went and sat down by her side,
and asked her to state candidly the whole case.
She told me that she had lived with Mrs. Naseby
two years, and had never had any trouble before.
About two weeks ago, she said, her mistress lost
q hundred dollars.
She missed it from her drawer" the girl said
to me, land asked me about it. l said knew
nothing about it. That evening know Nancy
Luther told Mrs. Naseby that she saw me take
the money from the drawer-that she watched
me through the keyhole. They went to my
trunk and found twenty-five dollars Of the miss
ing money there. But, sir, l never took it, and
somebody must have put it there
i don't know she said, who could have done
e. Int Nooov Che hos rovor 1ikad mo heoansa
she thought was better treated than her. She
is the cook. was the chamber maid
She pointed Nancy Luther out to me. She
was q stout, bold faced girl, somewhere about
five and twenty years old. pug nose, and thick
lips. / caught her glance at once, and as it rest
ed upon the fair young prisoner, and the momen
detected the look of hatred which read there
I was convinced she was the rogue.
Nancy Luther, did you say that girls name
was p asked, for new light had broken in
upon me.
Yes, SIR
left the court room and went to the prescott
ing attorney and asked him to let me take the let
tiers had handed him-the ones that had been
stolen from the mail bag. He gave them to me
and having selected one, returned the rest, and
told him l would see he had the one kept be
fore night. I then returned to the court room
and the case went on.
Mrs. Naseby resumed her testimony. She
said she entrusted the room to the prisoners
care, and that no one else had access there save
herself. Then she described about missing the
money, and closed by telling how she had found
twenty-five dollars of it in the prisoners trunk.
She could swear it was the identical money she
had lost, in two tens and five dollar bank note.
MRS. Nascby,' said ], when you first missed
the money, had you any reason to believe that
the prisoner had taken it?' t,,
mo, sir she answered. 3..,..
Had you ever before detected her in any dis
honestly?
mo, SIR g.,
Should you have thought of searching her
trunk had not Nancy Luther advised and in.
formed your nj .... Fl
Mrs. Naseby left the stand, and Nancy Luther
took her place. She came up with bold look
and upon me she cast a defiant glance, as if to
say, "trap me if you can She gave me the ev
idence as follows: ....s.
She said that on the night the money was tax.
en- she saw the prisonergoing up stairs, and from
the sly manner in which she went up she suspec
ted that all was not right. She followed her up
Elizabeth went to Mrs. Naseby's room and shu
the door after her. I stopped down and looked
through the keyhole, and saw her take out thu
money and put it in her pocket. Then she stoop
ed down and picked up the lamp, and as saw
that she was coming out I hurried away.
called Mrs. Naseby to the stand.
You said that no one save yourself and thu
prisoner had access to your room,' l said. Now
could Nancy, Luther have entered the room i
Certainly, sir; I meant that no one else ha'
any right there f-.s
! saw that Mrs. Naseby, though naturally
hard woman, was somewhat moved by poor Elz
abeth's misery. -
sCould your cook have known by any mean
in your knowledge, where the money was
Yes, sir; for she has often come to my room
while was there, and have often given he
money to buy provisions with of market men whs
happened to come along
One more question. Have you known Of thu
prisoner having used any money since this wa
stolen2'
me, SIR
Inow called Nancy Luther back, and she be
gan to tremble little, though her look was a
bold and defiant as ever.
Miss Luther I said, why did you not in
form your mistress of what you had seen, with
out waiting for her to ask about the lost money?
Because could not at once make up m,
mind to expose the poor girl she answered yer,
promptly.
You say you looked through the keyhole ant
saw her take the money!
yes, SIR -a
where did she place tho lamp when she die
BOP ....-. .-t.-. -.
sOn the bureau
In your testimony you said she stopped dow,
when she picked up the lamp. What do 20,
mean by that?' a..2,da
Thu r;rl bas;totad ond 6no11v che eo;d .L