Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-11-04


ing peace paid IS and costs Patrick Foley,
Thomas Cobb and Jonathan II. Perry, each paid
fines Tor Drunkenness Michael Murphy and
John Croak, for disorderly conduct, each paid
81 and costs.
SUPERIOR (CRIMNAL) CoURT-DEvENs, J.
Friday, Noe IIorigan of NIillbury,
convicted of larceny from the person, was SEN
fenced to hard labor in the state prison for
three years.
Stephen Laughln, for drunkenness, second
offence, was fined So and costs
Richard Skanahan, Frank Seymour, VIM.
SaXtou and j. Il. West of Worcester, who
pleaded guilty of keeping liquor nusances, were
each fined $50 and costs, their fines and costs
in all amounting to S26S10.
In the cases Of Daniel Green and Eunice Ash
ley for lascvious cohabitation, and Eunce Ash
ley for maintaining a common nuisance, the
jury after being out about three hours and
half, from II A. NJ. TO g.! O'Clock P. NJ, returned
q verdict Of guilty on both complaints, including
all the counts. The argument OF Mr.. SennOt
for the defence occupied about one hour, and
that of District Attorney Rice about three
quarters of an hour.
The case of Sylvanus Sawyer and Ann NJ.
Morse Of Fitchburg for adultery, was begun at
half-past eleven O'Clock, and is still on trial.
Thcle are three separate counts in the ndct-
ment, charging the commission of the offence
in August, 1867, at Le0minster, in May, 1862
at Fitchburg, and in August, 1871, at Fitchburg
The district attorney in his opening alluded 10
the importance of the case, the high social stand
ing of the parties, and the array of able coun-
sci employed by the defence. He spoke of the
male defendant as man of great
wealth, one Of the most prominent and
enterprsing citizens OF Fitchburg whose
inventive skill and the value of whose inven-
tons placed him among the foremost men of
his profession in the county. The female de-
lendantwas the wife of an humble citizen of
LeominSter, she having the advantage of her
husband in intellect and intelligence while it
had been the husbands misfortune to be adj
dicted to habits of intemperance. Sawyer first
became acquainted with and visited Mrs. Morse
at her husbands house in Leomnstcr, in the
summer offset, the result of these visits, against
her husbands protest, being that she left Leon
mister to reside with Sawyer in Fitchburg, first
boarding with him, as the government claims,
at hotel, where they had rooms adjoining, and
afterwards, and since living with him at his
elegant residence recently built, he paying her
bills at the hotel where, it is alleged, they had
been found occupying the same bed. She had
also been more or less at his office or place of
business, under suspicious circumstances, as the
government claims.
The following witnesses for the prosecution
gave in their testimony: Joel R. Morse of
Leominster, husband of the female defendant;
Theodore B. Cook and Henry Cook of Leomin-
ser, whose shop is near Morse's house; Asa
johnson, of Fitchburg; Frank G. Derby, hotel
keeper, Of Lunenburg; Lysander +. Thompson
and John d. Williams of Fitchburg. Mr.. Morse,
who is man about fifty years OF age, and
is a comb maker, having his shop in an ell at
tached to his house, testified, among other
things, that he had resided in Leominster about
twenty years, and had always lived happily with
his wife Till the visits of Sawyer in the latter part
of the summer of 1867 That when he saw Saw
yer there late one night, in November, in his
front chamber with his wife, he told him to
leave, but his wife told him not to leave; that
Sawyer said he would leave; that his wife then
said to him (Morsc), 81 will not live with you
another days" that Sawyer did then leave, and
she with him, she being gone long enough to go
TO Exchange street and return; she went away
next day, and returned at night; since then hehad
not seen her more than five times, the first time
afterwards being at Fitchburg cattle fair
grounds, in September 1869, where she was with
him, and he saw her also with him at Clinton,
in May, 1871. They had been married twenty
eight years, and had resided successfully in
Lowell Lawrence, Boston and Lcominster.
C. II. B. Snow, Esq, opened for the defence
by a general denial of the charges alleged and
a reference to the high character for respect
ability Of the defendants, and especially of Mr..
Sawyer, whom he eulogized as one who had, by
his own unaided energy, raised himself to his
present affluent position, from poor boy, with
out the assistance Of friends, through his own
resources. He claimed that Mrs. Morse had
been driven from her home in Leominster by her
husband, previous to the acquaintance with
Sawyer; that she first went TO her sisters,
and then to serve as clerk in the office of Saw
yer, who employed her there to do writing for
him, for which he paid her. She was afterwards
employed at his house. Several witnesses, in
gliding Gen. J. w. Kimba A. P. Kimball,
Moses G. Lyon, and Chas. Fessenden, were then
introduced to impeach the character for veracity
of John D. Williams, one Of the witnesses for
the government.
The case eXcites great attention in Fitchburg
and vicinity, where the parties are well known.
Mr.. Sawyer is the inventor of all the American
rattan company's machinery, of the celebrated
Sawyer gun used during the war, of the Sawyer
shell, sel-explodng, and of many other valua-
bic inventions. He has resided in Fitchburg
about fifteen or twenty years, is about forty or
foriy-tive years of age, and was never married
Some fifteen more witnesses for the defence are
to be introduced.
Hon. P. Emory Aldrcb, c. IL. B Snow and
ID. II. Merriam for the defence; Rice and Fales
for the government.
AID FOR CHICAGO AND THE NORTHWEST
The following are additional subscriptions:
People of Boylston, S14l50; Farral McCarhil
81 81; Fred Passett 81 ;-S14417 previously report
ed, S4l, 5l5.25; total, S4l.659.42
CHAs. B. WHITING, Treasurer.
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