Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1868-09-09

Democratic papers charged upon the 1eder-
al party in and about Burlington, an indiff-
erence to the great crimes which had been
committed, if they did not even sympathize
with the murderers. A flaming hand-bill,
headed by three coffins, was scattered over
the State, and copied into the Democratic
papers, in which q respectable federalists y
were charged with attempting 8 to screen
the assassins, and throw the whole weight
of guilt upon the government" That some
had said, that Penniman had sent mil
itary force to capture an empty boat, and
that they were glad at what had been
done" others, that - the officers of the
government alone were to blame," and
that "old Penniman ought to be hanged"
That some of the principal merchants
of Burlington, furnished the insurgents with
powder and ball, for the express purpose
of performing this bloody work" This
was Indignantly denied by the Federalsts,
nor is it at all probable that it was to any
extent true. The rash expressions of heated
and violent men, are never to be regarded
as the sober conviction Of the great mass,
with which for the time they may be as
sociated The authorities of the State,
acted with promptness and CELEBRITY. On
Tuesday, August 23d, less than three weeks
from the time of the affray. the Supreme
Court was convened in special session at
! Burlington. There We're present Hon.
Royal Tyler, Chief Judge, Hon. Theophi-
lus Harrington and Hon. Jonas Galusha,
Assistant Judges; William Chase Har-
rington, Esq, States Attorney David Fay
and Cornelius z. Van Ness. Esqs., associ-
ate counsel for the prosecution Bates
Turner and Amos Marsh, Esqs., were coun-
sci for the prisoners.
In his charge to the Grand Jury, Chief
Justice Tyler alluded to the general dis
may the agitation of the public mind
which prevailed, - that some were ready
to condemn the accused unheard while
others perhaps were disposed to excuse,
and if not to excuse, to palliate. He
said to the Jury that . if in some moment
of levity any of you have thought that
the primary laws of society, made for the
preservation of human life, ought on this
occasion to be relaxed, and be accommo-
dated to certain supposed exigencies of
the times, purify yourselves from these
prejudices."
On Friday, Aug. Doth. the Grand jury
returned a bill of Indictment against Sam
I l.
cum Clark, and Truman Midget of High
gate, Cyrus B. Dean and Josiah Pease
of Swanton, David Sheffield of Colchester.
and Francis Ledgard of Milton. The
trial of Samuel l. Mott commenced on
Monday, Aug. Doth, and closed on Thurs
day evening with verdict of guilty of
murder On Friday, September ID, Cyrus
b. Dean was put to the bar for trial,
but the challenges peremptory and for
favor, were so numerous, that after an in
effectual attempt TO fill up the panel,
the Court ordered a new venire for petit ju-
rors, and adjourned until Saturday morning
when the trial commenced and was closed
on Monday with a verdict of guilty of
murder Wednesday and Thursday, the
Court were occupied with the trial of Da-
vid Sheffield. Jireh Isham and Elihu AL
len, Jr., being called as talesnan, both de-
clared that they had formed an opinion
that these men ought not to be punished
\ verdict of guilty of murder was returned
on Friday morning. Mr.. States Attorn-
ey Harrington, in his remarks to the Jury,
on the trial of Dean said 1T Is painful to
find, that party spirit in this part of the
United States has already assumed an
+. alarming attitude. Have we not seen in
the commencement of this present trial,
measures taken and pursued by the prison
er's counsel, to sweep every Republican ju-
ror from the panel by peremptory chal-
! lenge? Have we not repeatedly heard
this question asked, is juror republi-
can or a fedrralist ? If the former he must
not set, if the latter .he will answer our
purpose ," On Friday afternoon a motion
in arrest of judgement, and new trial in
the case of Mott, was argued, and on the
following day a similar motion in the case
of Dean and Sheffield New trials were
or; nted to Mott and Sheffield, and Dean
was sentenced to be hung on Friday, Oct
2Sth. 4 respite however of two weeks,
was given to the wretched man, by the
Governor On Friday, Nov 11th, at II
O'Clock, he was conducted to the Court
House where a solemn and appropriate
discourse was delivered by the Rev. Tru-
man Baldwin of Charlotte After the re-
ligious services, he was conveyed to the
place of execution, which was situated
few rods west of the present burying
| ground IN Burlington, and at o'clock PM,
was swung off. He exhibited to the last
degree of hardihood and careless uncon-
cern, perhaps never equalled in this part
of the country, and sadly contrasting with
the mournful snlemnity of the occasion.
1t was estimated that there was ten thou
sand spectators present
No more trials took place at the special
term of the court At the regular term
in January, 1909 Mudgett was tried,
but the jury, in his case, did not agree
He was remanded TO prison and at the
term of the court in January, 1910, a
"oble Proso4ui ontorod in his case by
the State, and he was discharged Mott,
Sheffield and Ledgard, at the January term
in 1909, were convicted of man. slaughter
Mott and Sheffield were sentenced to stand
one hour in the pillory, to receive fifty
lashes each on his bare back, to be confined
ten years in the States prison, and to pay
all costs of prosecution. Ledgard's SEN
tence was the same with the exception of
the fifty stripes. These convicts, were all
received at the Vermont State prison on
the 1st day of june, 1909, it being the
second day after the prison was opened
for the reception of prisoners. Led gard
was pardoned by the Governor Nov. 4,
1915; and Mott, Oct, Is, 1916. Thus
closes the account of the career of these
lawless and desperate men. No one of
them is known to have regained, to any ex-
tent, the reputation lost by this bloody
crime. They removed either to Canada
or distant portions of this country, and
most, if not all, died as they deserved, in
obscurity, neglect and poverty.