The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1870-07-08
me, "must consider yourself under
arrest until . definite course of proceed
ings can be determined upOn.n

what ready money he had on deposit
at the bank, together with all the mon-
ey he could raise by mOrtgaging his
stock, and thereby cover to Mr.. Cum
mings the loss of his jewel. Accord
ingly, having thus made himself res
ponsible, he determined to carry on the
prosecution in his own name.
b Scott was at once arrested and put In
the "jugv until the time when be
should be removed for trial. For my
own part, I made statement 80 per-
fectly clear and concise that was i'm
mediately released on witness bonds,
which 1 had no difficulty in finding.
My name was, temporarily, nnder
cloud, but the fact that neither want
ed money, indeed had no use for it, be-
ing single man, and brought proofs OF
decisive honesty, endorsed by Mr..
Greenfield, Ut once put me at liberty
and removed the temporary suspicion
that came owe me.
The time for the trial came on; Scott's
fellow workmen had subscribed an
amount ito which humbly contribut.
ed) sufficient to secure excellent legal
talent. But with twelve thick-headed
cl0ds, who knew nothing of the ele-
ments Of law or logic, the court was
onsnipotent; and upon this overfed,
fish-eyed Dogberry depended the chance
of poor Scott's freedom.
The court room was crowded. The
prisoner sat in his box, pale but full OF
confidence. He occasionally addressed
o word to his counsel, now and then
whispering bit of comfort to his anx-
ious, devoted wife, who sat close beside
him.
was put in the stand and gave my
evidence, and when I was through
turned o look of silent entreaty to-
wards Guy, who nodded reinsurance
of friendship He knew implicitly
that was conscious of his innocence,
and had done nothing but what simple
duty directed. Mr.. Greenfield, Cos
sage, and some other witnesses were
placed on the stand, and after the argu-
ments the court proceeded to charge
the jury.
When his honor (?) opened his lips
there was o breathless silence in the
room. "The prisoner" said muddy
headed fellow, heavily clearing his
throat ard lifting his dull eyes, " has
everything in his disfavGr. He was
i'm want of money, and witness tes-
titles that he loaned him an amount
about the time of the theft. The as
serted fact of, the stone being in the
safe when it was closed, after he had
been satisfying an unhealthy curiosity
about the lock, is quite indefinite.
Again, he was the only person that
left the house between the intervals OF
the diamonds existence in the deposi-
tory and the discovery of its loss. An
other witness testifies that the safe was
opened in his presence on the morning
Of the discovery, and that all the per-
sons who came into the apartment up
10 the time the gem was missing, viz !:
Mr.. Greenfield, his assistant, and the
witness, were submitted to q rigid
search. The prisoner himself is a very
index of theft and villainy, and think
that the jury will have but very little
trouble in rendering verdict.
I could have throttled the heavy
Drained fool as he comfortably disposed
himself in the chair, and cOmplacently
speechified away good mans charac-
ter in the face of few incidents that
would have had no weight in a real
court of justice. But then the old say
ing, "Heaven save us from lynch law
and country justice"
A sorrow unspeakable came over my
heart as / saw the poor wife clinging
with strained arms to all she held dear
in this life, and sobbing as though her
heart would break. There was but lit
tie hope and that was dispelled when
the foreman pronounced the single
word" guilty" A loud shrek, and a
senseless woman was borne from the
place. Hard hearts were throbbing,
and sent the tears quietly down many
a tanned cheek; a weak, pale man was
grasping at the raillings of his box,
with a mute appeal in his eyes, but it
never reached the heart of the scare
crow Of justice. /.
A year had gone by, and poor Scott
had served out a small portion of his
lengthy term. / had given up watch
making and took to studying surgery
at P-College.
One bright, moonlight night in April,
when the pleasant air was tinged with
q promise of more genial warmth to
come, the students had most all gone
out for an evening ride and frOlic.
Of our section, only my mate and
myself had remained behind We were
in our dissecting room. awaiting the
arrival of a subject" for which we
had clubbed together and were momen-
tarily expecting. The lights were
turned almost out, and only the thin,
spiral flame OF the surgeons crate sent
Pickering tongues of fire along the wall
and ceiling, and danced mockingly
about the dim precincts of the sink.
An hour or two went slowly by, my
companion occasionally opening his
mouth to give an opinion on some par
ticular operation, or to hum one OF
those questionable ditties which seem
to possess such attraction for students.
Jones was not q bad fellow, but, like
Hamlet's description of mankind, he
resembled an unweeded garden. His
moralities had been woefully neglected,
and carelessness rather than vices had
sprung up and choked the growth OF
his better principles.
"There is GrOgan," said Jones, as a
shrill whistle resounded. without.
await q bit, and I'll bring him up"
He then put on his coat and left the
room, bringing with him the MINER
a british looking fellow, with sufficient
nerve, apparently, for any species OF
work.
az left the stiff 'un right under the
| fence,n said this genius; "fiing out the
scrip, drop your grapple, and up ne
goes"
Having paid him the stipulated price,
he left the room. Jones then let down
through the suspicious looking wooden
tube in the corner of the room a stOui
rome with a small hook on the end, the
other extremity of the line passing
over a pully in the ceiling. Then the
whistle came again as signal that all
was right-a score of hard tugs with
our four arms, and a long crash bag
came before us like o ghost. Once on
the floor, it needed no conjecture as tt
its contents, for its grim outlines told
everything. The bagging was cul
away, and after q few other prepara.
tions, Jones laid the body on the dis
secting table, with q cloth over the face
He then proceeded to make few in
cisions on the body.
"I wouldn't work that tonight
Phil" / said; "you'll only spoil the
study, it is SO fearfully dim."
"Oh, Pm only going to remove thu
stomach; that's rough work and car
as well be done now as in the morn
ing; besides, 1 don't want that to &c
on ice.n
"Just as you please" said /, taking
my hat and coat; for my own part,
would rather be patient and get thu
good Of it."
"This chap must have been prec
ious hard liver" said Jones, not listen