The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1864-07-08

1t had one door which opened into the
garden, and another which led into the
study, or sitting room, next to which
was the room in which the priest slept
the dining-room, the room in which
the old bonnie slept, and the kitchen
being all at the other side of the pas
sage, which, as it were, cut the house
in two.
One very cold winters evening
shortly after dark, and in the midst OF
a snow-storm, young peasant woman
came TO the priests door, and besought
the housekeeper for lodging for the
night She said she was on her way
to Paris to see her father, who was in
service in that city, but she had wan
dered and lost her way in the snow
storm. She was not without means to
pay for her lodging, but hoped Mon
sieur lie Cure might kindly allow her
to sleep in his kitchen for the night.
1t would not only save the the price OF
her bed, but be more respectable rs q
sojourn for young unmarried woman
than the auberge of the village In
country places in France, such applca-
tons to the clergy are by no means
uncommon, and were still less so be-
fore railways had drawn all towns and
localities much nearer each other.
Moreover, at that time there was a con-
siderable Of disbanded soldiers.
and other loose characters, wandering
man who could have avoided doing it,
would have spent night in small
village wine-shop, if she had any other
place she could go to.
As matter of course, the priest
gave his consent that the traveller
should stop the night in his house, and
the spare room was got ready for her
The next morning the snow-storm was
still SO heavy that it was impossible
for the woman to proceed on her jour
ney, so she renamed at the priest
helping the old bonnie in her household
work, and dining with the priest and
housekeeper; in the evening she retired
as before to the room which had been
allotted TO her.
The following morning, very early
there was an alarm through the village
4 strange woman had been found muir
dered III the priests house. 1t APP
peared that laborer who often at
tended to the priests garden, and did
other odd jobs about the place, went
to the cures before any one was awake
with the intention of shovelling tho
snow off the roof of the house. Not tc
disturb any one, he entered the spare
room by the door which led into til,
garden, as he had left spade in thai
room on a previous occasion, and die
not know any one was lying there. TC
his establishment he found woman IL
! the bed with her throat ont FROM $50
to ear, and evident marks of struggle
visible in her torn clothes and the dis
ordered bed-clothes. The first thing
he did was to call the priest, who ap
peared paralysed with fear and dismay
The mayor and other village authori
ties were then summoned, and quickly
assembled in the room, in order to e
/ through the forms which the law o
France requires on such occasions
Near the bed of the murdered woman
was found razor, which was recog
nized as belonging to the priest, anC
with this weapon, which was covered
with blood, the murder had no doub
been committed. The doctor of tn.
village gave it as his opinion, that the
unfortunate woman had been outraged
before being murdered, and that SHE
had been dead for some hours. There
We're footsteps of a mans foot discov
cred in the snow leading from the win
dow of the room in which the prizes
slept, to the outside door of the room
opening into the garden i'll which the
murder had taken place, and thes,
marks correspondent exactly in siz,
with a pair of shoes which were founC
/ hidden under some rubbish IN the gar
den, which were dirty as having beer
lately used, and were also spotted witt
blood. These shoes were recognized
as belonging to the priest. In the
same place white cotton handkerchief
upon which some person had evident
" wiped blood from his hands and fin
gers, was also found, and this also wa'
proved to belong to the priest. The
woman had not been murdered for tn,
sake of whatever money or yaluablei
she had about her, for her purse, con
tanning three or four gold pieces anC
some silver, was found ON a chair neal
the bed, and hanging round her neel
were a small gold cross, and silye
box or case such as are used III Roman
Catholic countries to contain relics
No person had been seen near tn
priests house during the day or eve
ming previous to the murder, and tia
old housekeeper declared that during
the night in which the deed had beel
committed, she had not heard an,
noise or struggle. But it was shown
that, as her room was some distance
from that in which the murdered wo
man had slept, she might not hay'
heard what was taking place there
even if there had been a noise. 1t was
however, proved that the priests room
was so near the room III which thu
murder had taken place, that it was al
most impossible for him not to hay'
heard disturbance there. The prizes
himself declared that he had slep
sound, and had heard nothing. The
shoes which were found in the garden