The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1866-03-16
Supposed Discovery Of the Joyce
.MUrderPr.

Supposed D}ScOfeFY " "e cOYee
IMuFderer.
The public will lie rcluiccd TO hear that
the perpetrator OF one OF the most heiid-
i>h outrages and murders ever committed
by man-that of the murder of Isabella
and John Joyce at West Roxhurv. on The
18th of June 1865. which created such
intense excitement nj the time. of IL o.
currence-ha> at last been discovered. and
is now in safe custody, The circum>tan-
ces attending the murder were as follows:
Isabella Joyce, aged II years, and
John joyce. her brother. AGED Il years.
the children of widow lady living at
No e Cottage place. i'll Boston. lett the
residence OF her grandmother. on Com
mon street, about noon on Monday. the
18th day of June. 1860, 10 take Il r;I..-
bile in the woods at Roxbury. Not call
ng at their gran'lmothcr'S on Tuesday. IL
was their custom, before goln@ Ia school.
she made inquiries for them. and moi im'i-
inc them where she expected. She cave III
formation 10 the Boston and RnXhurv po
lice. and thorough search ot the woods
in the immediate vicinity oi RoXhurv w.i~
made. but no trace of them Wis tnuml
Their disappearance continued 10 he a
mystery until the following SUNDAY
June lS-when two Boston merchants.
while walking i'll what Is known IL Bus
sev'> woods. i'll West RoNburv. accIi,n,-
ally discovered the body nt the mi>-ln"
girl The body WAS taken possession OF
bv Coroner Allen 1t MAS found To- have
been horribly OUTRAGED AMI stabbed i'll ~"
less than twcniv->cvcn places. ami wI- 20
bruise. and dcrompo>ed a. i" to- onl " re-
cognizable bv the cIothlng which the grl
had Worn. On search bcin9 mmdc for her
brother John. hi body was found a few
rods distant. living OH his face. apparently
having shared the same fate IL hi sister.
Many wounds seemed Ia have been iniiict-
Ell in his back with Il dirk knit, or some
similar weapon. any one OF which would
have caused hi death Every effort WIS
made hy the police 10 detect and hrin- 10
justice the pcrpctrator OF this horrible
crime. but without success. laIr.c r.
wards Were offered hy the city OF Ron
bury and 10y several private rarls~,
amounting i'll all to S5j0p.
In August last Charles A. Dodge wa~
arrested nj East Wilton. y H.. 10y >ltr-
if Marshall Wcthcrber OF A>hhurnl:,m.
for stealing some articles OF small vaHc
from house al Gardner. When arrest
ell Inc rave the name of "Scrttch Gravel. -
and lr,> since given 10 other, II" Wa
armed with knife and revolver. hut
made not the slightest resistance. Sccmin-
willing TO he arrested. and saving he had
IL lief be locked up three or four months
! aS not Mr.. Wethcrbcc WAS alone. had
no firearms. and if the prisoner had de
sired 80 to do he could have escaped
His expression on being arrested WAS: u
don't care a ID about being arrested
for stealing that silver. hit if Yea knew
something had done ii would he Il icath-
cr in Your cap. This little thing Of three
months don't amount To anything. He
was taken TO the Fiichhurg Jail. WAS
tried for hou>c-hrcakin. and sentenced 10
three years i'll the state prison. While III
Jail he formed a plan for making his e.
cape. but one of the convicts overheard
ii and disclosed it. While in jail he wa>
quite communicative. and the clue which
has been 50 diligently followed UP WIS d.
rived from his conversations with other
prisoners. two o, whom are now in prison
and the Others are available a. witnesses.
He said he would not hesitate IL kill a
man if it was necessary in order 10 mci
out of that place. ''Do You think. Ia,
said, that the man who done that job nj
Roxbury would hesitate 10 kill to .ci Iii
liberty! That WAS some OF my work.
done that job That bowie knife Of mim,,
has sent two Yankees To hell since | came.
to Massachusetts" He frequently talked
of the Brooklinc affair." aS he some
times called it, and sometimes the :. Rox-
bury affair."" and repeated the above
statement several times. When upiraid-
ed for his want of spirit in allowing HIM
self TO be taken while he was armed, he
said he wished to he taken. He was sus-
pcctcd of doing something bad, and hc
wished TO get out of the WAY for while.
and he frequently made inquiries a 10
whether persons would be admitted 10 the
prison who would be likely 10 see and rc-
cognize him. In spcakin" of the Rox-
bury affair he said he stabbed the boy
many times in the back; and he told the
number of times He also owned (boi>t-
ing of il in the most be;i>tly termSl thai
he had committed the outrage On the girl.
and afterward put her out OF the way. He
frequently repeated the statement that he
had murdered two id Yankees since he
came to Massachusetts, and that one OF
them was young female.
All these facts were communicated 10
the warden at Charle>town. and he and
other officers devoted themselves TO getting
a confession of his crime from the crimi.
nails own Inns He waS nlacaI I'm q noSi-