The Ebensburg Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1865-1871, 1866-04-26
POPULAR EXCITEMENT AND INDIGNATION

the excitement and Indignation which
agitated the county from its centre to its
circumference knew no bounds. It was
resolved as with one mind that the muir
derers must be apprehended and punished
that earth should be allowed to contain
| no hiding-place sufficiently concealed to
shield them from the stern retribution
due crime so unprovoked, so fendishly
| cruel, so utterly abhorrent to the moral
sense OF the community. In obedience
to the popular demand, the Commissioners
| of Cambria county promptly offered a
reward of Five Hundred Dollars for the
arrest of the murderers. This reward, we
may men ton in this connection, was some
weeks since paid to Detectives Hague and
M'Kelvey, of Pittsburg, who were mainly
instrumental in effecting the capture of
Buser and Houser.
ARRESTED ON SUSPICION.
On the Friday following the murder,
one John Ream, resident of Conemaugh,
Cambria county, was arrested on suspicion
OF having been concerned in the murder.
He had borne rather bad character for
some time previous, and some remarks
which he had made several years before,
to the effect that he believed Polly Paul
had "heavy pocket-book," and that he
could possess himself of the same by MUIR
derlng her, were remembered to his dis
| credit. 1t was also attempted to be shown
| that penknife found in his possession,
with peculiar nick or defect in the edge
of the blade, was the self-same knife with
which the murderous clubs had been pre-
pared. This was attempted to be demon
strated by cutting piece of wood with
/ the knife, and then comparing ridge or
roughness left by the nicked blade with a
like ridge or roughness to be seen on the
clubs, caused apparently in the same
| manner.
One David Riddle, brother-in-law of
Ream, who formerly resided in Cambria
county, was arrested. on the 22d June, at
his residence in Jefferson county, on
suspicion of being the other guilty party.
He was present when Ream threatened to
kill Polly Paul for her pocket book, and
aVowed his willingness to go "haI" with
him in that undertaking. The two men
were committed to Jail here, and at the
regular September sessions of the Cambria
county Court, were brought to trial.
TRIAL OF REAM AND RIDDLE.
The indictment was laid before the
Grand Jury on the 9th September, and
IN due course of time a presentment of
murder was returned. On the 9th the
case came up, when the prisoners elected
to be tried separately. Ream was tried
first. This case occupied the greater part
OF three days. Seventeen or eighteen
witnesses were examined, and although
some of the testimony bore heavily on the
prisoner, yet he experienced no difficulty
in proving an abb, and the prosecution
was abandoned. His honor Judge Taylor
directed the jury to return verdict of
''not guilty" from the box:
Immediately after the disposal of
Ream's case, that of Riddle was taken up.
1t occupied little over day in the try
ing, and resulted, like Ream's, in the
abandonment of the prosecution by the
Commonwealth. He established a clear
abb, and verdict Of "not guilty" was
returned from the box.
! Both prisoners were remanded back to
jail, to await trial on the charge of killing
Cassie Munday-the Indictment in the
cases tried charged the parties with the
murder only of Polly Paul; but on the
night of the 18th October following, they
broke Jail, since which time they have
not been heard of.
| ANOTHER ARREST.
A few days after the occurrence of the
tragedy, man named Cassiday was ar
rested In Johnstown, on suspicion of be-
ing concerned in the murder, He was
committed to Jail, where he remained till
the 9th July, when he was taken before
the Court on writ of ha6eas corpus and
accorded hearing No evidence appear
ing to connect him with the body of the
crime, he was discharged from custody.
A STRANGE STORY.
| About this time, negro named MONTE
wrote from Pittsburg to the authorities
here, stating that shortly before the mur-
der he overheard two men in Pittsburg
arranging a plan to come to Cambria
county and rob and kill maiden lady,
aud averring that he could identify the
parties. He was Immediately taken into
custody, and brought here and confronted
| by all the prisoners in the Jail, including
Ream and Riddle After a thorough
scrutiny, he unhesitatingly declared that
the two men were not of the number
When Buser and Houser came, he also
failed to identity them or either of them
Although little CT no dependence wa'
placed in his story, Montz was held II
custody till December Court, when he wal
discharged, without having been called
upon to tell what he knew under th'
sanc.ity of an oath.
BUsER AND HoUsER.