The Republican journal., 1869-03-18
HISTORY OF THE AUBURN TRAGEDY.
The Execution of Harris
ne declares the lSallOws that XerriI Is
Guilty.
THE LOCATION OF THE CRIME.

Lewiston, Is one Of those neat, thriving manu-
featuring towns SO often to be met by the tray
eller in New England. 1t is largely engaged IN
boot and shoe mapufacture-not, as IN some
cases by the establishment of large factories,
but by dealers that parcel out the work among
partly rural population. who employ upon II
their spare hours New England communities
Of which the one described may be taken as
type, where industry, love of gain and mechan-
ical skill are associated, often surprise the
world by becoming theatres of the most start
ling and horrible crimes-like the Coolidge
tragedy in Waterville, the Hersey murder In
bingham, and the recent taking off of the Old
man George in Penobscot COMMISSIONING
that the moral atmosphere of these populations
IN proportion to numbers, Is after all, not much
better than that Of &C the hot beds of vice." as
large cities are called. The crime of which we
here give a sketch, the expiration of which
took place on Friday last, In the Prison yard at
Thomast0n, was one brimful Of horrors, COM
Dining murder, rape, robbery and perjury.
THE VICTIMS.
Among The persons gaining their subsistence
hy labor at shoemaking, were two women,
Susannah hinSley, widow, aged Ga, and Polly
Caswcll, spinster, aged g.. Living in a hum
he home, remote from the village, they labor
e.. nj binding shoes for firm at Auburn, and
u pursuit Of that industry Mrs. Kinsley had
not only made living, but had accumulated a
tile property, that invested in bonds, was
EGYPT in the house. Quiet, orderly, Industrious
.l0 pected, they had apparently not an enc
y o. an il.-wisher in the wide world,
HE GREAT STORM.
Thursday, January 18th, 1867, will be long
remembered as the date of one of the most ter
lble storms that ever visited the State of
Maine. All day and all night the snow was
riven in binding sheets across the country.
Travel and business were suspended. The
1.,g- ,o,,l 1t,. 4 a ~
will elements, but kept within doors. The
east was dashed by angry pillows and strewn
with wrecks.
The fierce storm that beat upon the hnmble
hlusley house, and piled the drifts high to-
words IFS caves, was weaving q shroud about
rs dead inmates. The early paSserS along the
Highway, breaking the road, saw no sign of
f. Nor all the winter day was there any
eUrtaiA drawn, OF face at the window, or smoke
above the roof. For still another day the gloom
add Stiffness of the tomb reigned about the
premises, seen and marked Of all travellers
TILE DISCOVERY OF THE MURDER.
At length a neighbor, impelled by curiosity,
vent to the door and Knocked There was no
Id swer A little apprehensive, he went to the
house of Mr.. Keith, brother of Mrs. kinsley
and stated the facts. Together they went to
rhc house. Looking in at the windows Of the
Kitchen, they remarked the cold, cheerless
gnlling aspect Of the room, the floor covered
with patches Of snow that had sifted in at the
door a.l4 window. III the winter twilight they
aropcd from room to room. At length they
J1untercd, lying on the floor, something white,
hat dny seen, bore the outlines OF human
lorn--a thing that, in its ghastliness, they fear
"a to look upon and dare not touch. The hor-
TOR Of murder possessed and parayZed them.
Hastily leaving the house, they alarmed the
!eghbors and procured lights. The form that
had ,rOJa1 tO ba ba Nod NJ pn11v
Nasweli, lying in pool Of blood, and frozen
lin and hard. Her skull was driven in at the
Top rs by blow from g club. She lay across
-Ac door sill, partly In the room and party in
entry.
In her bel. in another room, lay the dead
~ Of Mrs. kinsley, most horribly mutilated.
Her hands and face were covered with blood.
There wese stabs on her face, on her hands, on
her body, and horribly gashes upon her legs.
the bed was saturated with Blood into which
Me body was frozen. And, most revolving of
aIl, the lower portion of the body and thighs
tore The distinct marks of bloody hands. Such
was tie sight that met the Mortified gaze of the
brother Of the outraged and murdered victim
NO MONEY TAKEN.
The money and bonds of Mrs. kinsley were
not disturbed, showing that the object of the
murderer was rot money, or that he had not
Uniformed himself Of the place where it was
Kept
SEARCH FOR TIE MURDEREE9.
Dl c0urSe the commission of a crime so
a'r0cious aroused the utmost horror and indig-
nation in the community. Conjecture exhaust
ga itself in the endeavor to find grounds Of
uSpici0n against some one as the perpetrator
oi The crime. poor wandering vagrant was
crested upon no other grounds than that he
rs q Yagoant-but soon proved an abb and was
discharged. Next an imbece French Cana
Jian, repulsYe and filthy in person, was charg
ID with the crime and imprsoned-but, he too,
proved that he was elsewhere at the time the
crime Was committed.
THE CRIMINALS DETECTED
ut length a clue was found which pointed to
negro named Clifton Harris, as the perpetra-
tor. Harris is about q wears old, one Of these
black waits brought back by the retlux of the
r,uy surge that rolled over the South He
-au found place as servant In household, and
was known as prOwler by night about the
utl@hhorhood, associating with l,uot Of low
whites. lie was also noted, like most of his
race Tor his lbdnous propensities. On sever
al occasions he had been known to climb into
tho rooms occupied by females, and there con-
ceal Aimself-but no darker crime had ever
been suspected.
HARRIS CONTESSEs.
A1tcr being imprisoned, the negro confessed
~ l4lt NGictlIFc anu Luc EQUITY AILOucy HIS
guilt and implicated white man named Yer
r This Nerrl is a shoemaker, bachelor of
SCOUT 40 years, q thln-faced, meek looking
man, in poor health, and the very last person,
from physical Indications, to have committed
the crime The only grounds of suspicion
against Verril aside from the Negroes confess
sion, WIS the fact that he had associated some
what with Harris.
THE TRIAL.
Tie trial took place at Auburn, in July fol-
owing, Judge Walton presiding Harris, hay
ing confessed the crime In open court, was
used as a witness against Verril. He detailed
crcumstantially the Misunderstanding that they
met by agreement in the road, went to the
house together and forced an entrance by the
back door. The negro stated that he killed
Miss Caswell by striking her on the head with
Z chair, as she came from the room-a sepa-
rate apartment from the one occupied by Mrs.
knSley. He said that Nerril killed Mrs. Kins-
ley Ivy stabbing her with shOeknife, as well
rs committed another and nameesS Grim up
on her person. The defence for Verril was
solely an attempt to prove an alib, which was
successful only so far to show that he went
TO his boarding house and to bed at an early
hour. The theory of the government was thai
he arose when all was still, and went to the
rendezvous The jury found both guilty o.
murder
NERRIL DISCHARGED.
Nerril's counsel filled exceptions and motor