Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1871-05-05
The Trial and Conviction of Mrs.
Fair.


trial of Mrs. Fair, for the murder Of her
paramour. 1t ended on Wednesday in
the conviction of tie woman for murder
in the first degree. Mrs. Fair is an ex.
traordinary character. Born in the South
she has the worst qualities of the South
ern blood. She had only reached "sweet
sixteen" when she began her matrimo-
NAL career in New Orleans. In less than
year her unhappy partner shot himself
and she became blooming widow. AT
eighteen she married again, only to sep.
arate from her new husband at the end
of six months. Proceeding to Caliior.
MIA, she was united to the individual
whose name she bears, and who soon re-
leased himself from the singular charms
of his vivacious spouse at the pistols
mouth. At the melancholy loss of her
third husband, she enlisted the sympa-
thies of the community who contributed
a handsome sum to her support. For
time she appeared upon the stage. Then
in 1868 she opened hotel with Yam
kee at Virginia city, and when he had
the presumption to raise the stars and
stripes over their caravansery, she, in
the true ardor of Southern blood and
patriotism, climbed the roof and tore the
flag down. When her rash partner gently
demonstrated she calmly shot him down.
wounding him severely. 1t was shortly
after this that she met Mr.. Crittenden.
She was then twenty-six, tall and shape
ly, with dark flowing ssesand danger
GUS eyes, clear complexion, snail hands
and feet, fascinating manners, the ter
for of wives and the magnet of men,
wherever she went. Mr.. Crittenden was
a Kentuckian by birth, educated at West
Point, nephew of Senator Crittenden,
democratic lawyer Of California, fifty
two years old, with an amiable wife and
interesting family.
A criminal intimacy between the two
ensued. Crittenden separated from his
wife on account of his preference for
Mrs. Fair. The two lived together in
the principal hotels of San Francisco,
and by her testimony, when she occupied
rooms apart from him he visited her sew
eral times each day, passing with her all
the time he could spare from his business
They talked together about his getting
an Indiana divorce from his wife. Mean
while Mrs. Fair married one Snyder,
without prejudice to Crittenden's rights;
but finding the new husband announcement
she and her subsequent victim hired
detective to watch Snyder, and in due
time found evidence on which a divorce
was obtained Cor her against him. Mrs.
Crittenden steadily refused to get d.
vorce from her untaithful husband out of
regard to her children, though she was
treated by both him and Mrs. Fair with
great indignity, She arranged to return
and live with him. Mr.. Crittenden went
to meet her and the children at Oak
lands, the terminus of the railroad, some
! FIVE miles from San Francisco. Mrs Fair
determined to witness the meeting of her
paramour with his family. For that
purpose she went also to Oaklands.-
While Mr.. Crttenden was beside his wife
on the ferry boat, the woman approached
drew pistol and shot him through the
heart, causing him instant death.
The plea of temporary insanity, which
within the last twenty years has saved so
many necks from the rope, was relied on
to clear the accused, AS in Mcfarland
case. But with Mrs, Fair this insanity
was ascribed to femin ne diseases, which
the physicians have assigned to her in
great abundance. According to the ties:
timony of a DR.. Lyford, she was at the
time "amenic," and had also "retroce-
dent gout," metatasis, catamenicals, /"
aud insomnia" besides being subject to
idiosyncrasies." OF course person
laboring under such a complication Of
polysyllabic disorders could find relief in
nothing short of murder. The sympa-
thies of the audience during the trial, TO
their shame, are reported to have been
with the adulteress and murderess -
though the coarse displays of passion
and recklessness made by her in the
court room, were enough to disgust all
decent people. While the wife was tes-
tifying, Mrs. Fair called her liar in
open court, and was fined two hundred
and fifty dollars for it by the judge
Unluckily for the theory Of the defence
the only insane act of Mrs. Fair was the
shooting of her paramour; and on the
same day she was proved to have been
negotiating about pianos, gowns and il.
vestments of money, in the calmest frame
of mind. 1t was also sworn that she
had threatened the life of Crittenden, il
he did not do what she wished. The
2 jury had really noalternative they con
victed her of murder; and though mo
ton has been made for a new trial W,