Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1868-11-20
A Thrilling story.

hlterWarus uescrteu nlm Tor smother.
On the 9th of April, 1910, the Court
House mt Clarkspille, Texas, was
crowded to overaowing. An excl.
ting case was about to be tried. Gen.
Hopkins, q wealthy planter, had off
cred a gross insult To Mary Ellison.
the young aud beautiful wife OF his
oyerseer. The husband threatened
to chastise him for the outrage when
Hopkins went to his own house and
shot him I'm his door. The murderer
was arrested and bailed to answer
the charge. This occurrence pro-
duced great excitement, and Hopkins
in order to turn the tide of popular
Indignation, had circulated reports
against her character, and she had
sued him for slander. Both suits
were pending-for murder aud Sian
der.
The interest became deeper when
IL was known that Ashly and Pike
of Arkansas, and :. =. Prsntiss of
New Orleans, by enormous feee, had
been retained to defend Hopkins.
Hopkins was acquitted. The Tex
as lawyers were overwhelmed by
their opponents IL was fight OF
dwarfs against giants.
The slander suit was for the 9th
and the throng grew i'm number M
wt.. MS excitement; public opinion
was setting In for Hopkins; his mon
ey had procured witnesses who
served his powerful advocates.
When tho Sian Ter case was called
Mary Allison was left without an at
torney-all had withdrawn.
Have you no counsel?' Inquired
Judge Millet, looking kindly at the
plaintiff. ..#
No sir, they have deserted me and
| am too poor To employ any more :
replied the beautiful Mary, bursting
into tears.
In such a case, will some chival-
rous member of the bar volunteer
said the Judge, glancing around him.
The thirty lawyers were silent.
Il will, your honor, said voice
from the the thickest part of the
crowd behind the bar.
At the sound of that voice many
started--it was SO unearthly, sweet
and mournful.
The first st nsation was changed in
To laughter, when u tall, saunt, spec
tral figure elbowed Ills way through
the crowd, and placed himself within
the bar.-Ilis clothes looked so shah.
10y that the Court hesitated TO let the
case proceed under his management.
Has your name been entered on
the rolls of the State?' demanded the
Judge.
1T In immaterial,' answered the
stranger, his Thin bloodless lips curl.
ing up with n fieDdisb sneer. Here
is my license from the highest tribu-
nal in Anerics' aud handed the
Judge q broad parchment.
The trial went on.
He suffered the witnesses to tell
their own story, and allowed the de.
fence to lead off. Ashley spoke first,
followed by Pike and Prentiss. The
latter brought the house down with
cheers, I'm which the jury Joined.
TWAS now the strangers turn he
rises before the bar, not behind it,
and SO near the wondering jury that
he might touch the foreman with
his long bony fingers. He proceeded
to tear away the arguments of Ashly,
which melted away at his touch like
frost before sun beam. Every one
looked surprised. Anon he came TO
the dazzling wit of the lawyer Pike
the curl of his lip grew sharper, his
thin face began to kindle up aud his
eyes To open, dim and drenry no
longer, but vivid a. lightning, red as
fire globes, and glarlng as meteors,
the whole soul was ina the eye the
full heart was In the face. Then
without bestowing All Illusion To
Prentiss, he turned short around OH
the perjured witnesses OF Hopkins.
tore their testimony into shreds aud
hurled into their faces such invec.
tives that all of them trembled like
aspens, and two Of them fled from
the court house. The excitement of
the crowd was becoming tremendous.
Their united life and soul seemed To
hang on the burning tongue of the
stranger; he inspired them with the
power of his malignant passions !; he
seemed To- have stolen natures long
hidden secret of attraction.
But his greatest triumph was to
come. .
lie began to glance at the assassin
Hopkins, as his lean Ia ger fingers us
sumed the same direction. He hem
med the wretch with "a wall of strong
evidence and inprcgnable argument,
cutting off all hope of escape. lie
dug beneath the murderer's feet
bitches of dilemma, and held the
slanderer up to the scorn and con-
tempt of the populnce.
Having thus gift him about with
o circle of fire, lie stripped himself
for the massacre.
Oh then IL was vision both clori.
ous and dreadful to behold the orator.
His actions became as impetuous
as the motion of an oak In u hurri-
cane.
His voice became a trumpet filled
with whirlpools, and yet intermin-
gled all the while with a sweet un-
der song of softest cadence. His fore
head glowed like heated furnace.
his countenance WAS haggard,
like maniac, and ever and
anon Inc flung his long pony arms on
high. as If grasping after thunder.
bolts,
He drew picture OF murder In
such appalling colors, that in com
parison, hell itself might be consid-
cred beautiful; he painted the SLAM
derer 40 black that the sun seemed
dark at moo nday, when shining on
such an accursed monster; and then
fixing both portraits on tile shrink
Ing Hopkins, fastened them there
forever. The agitation of tile audi.
cnce nearly amounted to madness
All at once the speaker descended
from the peril"us. His voice walled
out for the murderd dead and living
the beautiful Mary. more beautiful
every moment, as her tears flowed
men wept and sobbed like
He closed by strange cxortation
to the jury and through them to the
bystanders; he advised the pam
Fl after they should bring in
! verdict for the plaintiff. not TO Of
Ter violence TO the defendant, how
ever richly he deserved IT,; i'm other
words, mot to punish the william, but
eave his punishment with God
This was the most artful trick Of
Ill. and best calculated 10 Insure ven
yeDce.
The jury returned a verdict of fif- |
" thousand dollars: aud the night |
Hopkins was taken out of |
bed by lynchers, and beaten almost
20 death.
AS the court adjourned the stran-
ger said John Taylor will preach |
lere to night at early candle light
tie did preach-and the house was
have listened To Clay,
Webster aud Caihoun--to Dwight,