The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1868-06-27
Circuh Court.

l
The trial of Aaron Sherman for the murder of
Samuel Dowhower, brought to this county by
change of venue from Pullman county, termin.
ated on Monday evening in verdict Of guilty,
the jury fixing We punishment at IS years in
the penitentiary, The prisoner was visibly af-
fected on the announcement Of the verdict, and
said it was "hard for an innocent man to suffer
such punishment" He was prosecuted by
Hon. A. E. Stevenson, states attorney Of the Put.
man circuit and Chas Blanchard, states attorney |
for this circuit, and very ably defended by Col.
G. W. stipp, Of Bureau, and o. G. Gray, Esq. Of
Ottawa.
The facts elected on the trial do not differ ma
terially from the published statement at the time
Of the occurrence. The prisoner, with Dowhow.
er and another man had been in Peru, and after
drinking some, started home in a wagon in the
evening. As feud lad existed between them
for some time, they naturally quarrelled on the
way, and Sherman left the wagon and walked
towards home. Before reaching home, however,
he went to two places to borrow gun, getting
one at his brothers, fowling piece-which he
loaded with buckshot. Soon after this as Dow.
hover had got home and stood in the middle Of
the room, the door leading into the room from
the road standing ajar he was shot from the road,
a number of buckshot entering his body and kill.
ing him almost instantly. A track which fitted
Sherman's boots exactly, was traced from the
brothers house to where "the shot was fred" and
back again, and it was proved that Sherman,
soon after leaving his brothers house with the
gun loaded, returned to the house, with the gun
discharged. A wad was also picked up at Dow.
hower's house, which had evidently covered the
charge by which he was killed-the wad prov
ing to be piece of the Chicago Times, torn from
a copy of the Times still ON the brothers table,
fitting exactly to the torn part, and which the
brother admitted Aaron had torn off in loading
his gun. Many other circumstances detailed in
| the evidence were equally strong, 90 that al
though Sherman was convicted on purely cir
cumstantial evidence, the evidence in his case
was unusually conclusive. His wife and two
children attended him closely through the whole
| trial. Dowhower left wife and five small chill
dren. molten for new trial in the case is
| pending.
Besides the above, the following cases have
been disposed of by the court:
The People vs.. 7hos Observation-Disclosures for
burglary. The prisoner being ably defended,
was found guilty only of petit larcen y, and goes
to the county jail.
| The Psopevs Wm. Dominy-Larceny. VIM.
is promising La Sale youth Of some 1s sum-
mers who is tried at about every term of our
Circuit court on the same charge, and who like
a man, always pleads guilty. Eight months to
county Jail.
Tile People VS.. Michael Bradshau- ceny.
Michael is the chap that stole pair of boots of
John Feeny, of which mention was made by us
at the time Of the occurrence. He also plead
guilty, and gets off with three months in the
county jail
| Cath. wilson and Husband vs. p. X Behrend-
Catharine owns a small dwelling adjoining Mr..
Behrends brewery, and sought damages on the
ground that the brewery was nuisance Owing
| to some defect in her pleadings, she took a
nousuit.
w. H. W. Gushnaan VS.. Patrick Donahoe-
A suit about rent for coal land. The plaintiff
also took a nonsuit discovering that he had sued
for too much.
The case now pending is that Of Henry d Gar.
rHyvs. Tie aurora Insurance CompanN
The Court agreed to adjourn at noon to-day to
accommodate the Soldiers and Sailors Conven-
this afternoon.