The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1865-06-30

I lltHchldl i uNne, louitH COUNT charges
that the pistol with which Elinus J
Morrison was shot was fired by some
person unknown. Mr.. Dewey, States
Attorney made an opening statement
on behalf of the prosecution and was
followed by Mr.. Royce on behalf Of
the respondent.
TUESDAY AFTERNOON, June 20.
After the reading of the indictment
to the jury by the Hon. Joseph II.
Brainord County Clerk, the Govern
ment called and examined witnesses
on behalf of the State, of whose testi-
mony the following is nearly verba-
tim report
.Sch Il. Dag-I am a practicing
physician, reside in st. Adams. have
been acquainted with Elinus J. Nor
rison for the last five or six years. On
the 18th October, 1864, between 3 and
4 p NJ, l was in the Masonic Hall and
heard some sort of a row in the street
saw horsemen riding to and fro and
firing pistols They were then opposite
the upper end Of the park on Main Street
near Brainerd's corner. On going ND
there they had gone to the fremont
House | was hailed near Mr.. Hyde's
store and told that Morrison was shot
and was then in Mr. butchers back
store. He was there sitting on the bed
with his hand on the lower part of the
abdomen. Iremoyed his clothing and
found gun shot wound about sixinch-
es to the left from the umbilicus. or
dered him to be removed to his room at
tho American House where / saw him
about Is minutes after. | introduced
n probe into the wound and became
satisfied that the ball had pierced the
walls of the abdomen and entered the
intestines
] found a wound in his left hand
between the second and third meta
carpal bones. His hand must have
been in his pocket, as in fact, he told
me it was. He was suffering intense
agony all through the night and next
day, and on Friday morning, between
$ and O. be died of the wound |
have described. Friday was the DIST
day Of October, 1864 In the after
noon Of tho same day we made a post
norton examination and found the
same external wound | have described,
and on laying open the abdomen
found four or five perforations of the
smaller intestines and leaden revol-
yer bullet, which lay little to the right
Of the spinal column, opposite the
point of the last floating rib
John Branch, r. ID am aged 50
years, am physician and reside in
ST. Adams. was not in town on the
10Th Of October, 1864 On the morning
of the both l saw Mr.. Morrison in his
room on his bed, and he told me he
was wounded. | saw the wound
through his hand. The post norton
examination was made in the after
noon of the Dist October. The bullet
wound, | presume, caused his death
would be certain to occasion his
death. There was no other visible
cause of his death
Ed,ca,d Henry JONES' am AS years
of age. On the 10Th October, 1864,
was in St Adams Village buying silver
to go to Canada. My attention was
called to armed horsemen in the street
on horseback with revolvers. | went
up to one near the Franklin County
Bank who told me that he was sol
der in the Confederate service and
was here on raid went down the
sidewalk and reached the corner where
the confederate told me to stop, and
held a pistol in each hand directed to-
wards me. As his horse became FESTIVE
and turned around, | took to my heels
and ran down the hill to Downing's
meat-shop and asked him for his rifle.
He said he could not spare it. He was
loading it. He sent me up stairs to
get rifle. l went and got one but it
would not go off. 1 handed it, after
trying to fire it, to Capt. G. p. Conger
The men shot after me several balls as
| went down the hill, but did not hit
me. They whistled about my ears.
Afterwards | saw some of these men
in prison in st. Johns. Two of them
recognized: Charles Moore Swa-
ger and Bennett II. Young. Swager
was the one who pointed the pistol
towards my head. The men were all
on horseback and all armed with re-
volvers, some had one and some two
| saw man fire one and take out an
other pistol from a side-bag. They
were going north and the leader called
4