The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1871-05-10
CIRCUMSrANTIAL EVIDENCE.
A Narrow Escape from the GalloWl

young people of both sexes were
! gathered. Standing in their midst
was an old woman bent down with
age, looking as if she stood on the
brink of the grave. but her dark,
restless eye showed that there was
vigorous life in her mind, if not in
her body.
! She had been "telling fortune"
for the young people gathered
around her, and to all but one she
had foretold bright and happy
future. The exception OF this rule
of blessedness through life was
handsome boy of nineteen, with
dark, passionate face, anA an ey-
preston which indicated ossfe
i Ifeariezsness.
Five years before th e opening
this story an old gent eman and<l h
nephew had moved to VFiroiniy. -~oI
some Northern State. tand 'nS I"
/ farm bad made it theiIf h'hio
,fanoar o.a III noah pew, Frank,
woro ,rootaJ viii LA ness by the
/ gentlemen Of the nes ''' ''0'0'
and they received ind
visit the plantations ,.'i
Frank soon became acqr&
all in the country, buW
never left his farm, and
shun society. For this
ons were given, but thek
was he had lost all his fa
Franks parents having ID
Mr.. Mercer's charge5 he d
I, to devote himselfte9 he ~ "D
To-, a,.... .cuiovn,e mt in his
comr.n- "a in i enItiv. tting his
farm. Though eeportfd very
wealthy, ana that he salwaIs kept
la ge sum of gold in the hP Puse, Mr.
Mercer and Frank lived ini quiet
way and made no display.l
Thus passed Frank ear y youth
/ from his fourteenth until nip seven
teenth year, when our story opens.
a man Of superior educatidn' DIR.
Mercer had been his nephew
teacher, and bad imparted unto
him much knowledge of the sorid,
of letters and Of people, SCI that
Frank at nineteen vas as we'll in
formed as If he had po-sesAed
a cultivated education. Ihere
were those in the neighborA pod
who reported that the boy Was
wild an dsssipated, and this found
| ready UefTsvsTs IN o@uu1-s. <h-At ,
Frank had some enemies aud many
/ friends.
| Thus we find him ; and the eve
ming of the commencement of our
story he had been invited to an en-
/ tertainment given by a wealthy
/ planter to his children.
Mr. Dewes, the planter, had
three children, the youngest and
loveliest Of whom was Mary, girl
of twelve. Mary and Frank was
the best of friends, and loved each
o her dearly SO when the fortune
teller predicted dark and stormy
future for Frank, the tears arose to
the child's eyes, and she said
"Don listen to her, Frank"
But the boy laughed, and, turn
ing on his heel, walked away.
Two days afterwards he left
home for a weeks hunting in the
mountains; but the second night
after his departure the neighbor-
hood was aroused by the startling
news that old Mr. Mercer had been
murdered by his nephew. One of
the servants passing the house at
night heard cry, and seeing
| Frank window open, be sprang in
and walked across the ball to Mr..
| Mercer's chamber, from whence the
cry came. Lying upon the floor
was the old man, dead, while near
him stood his nephew, with
bloody knife in his hand. In
fright the negro rushed from the
house and gave the alarm. Per
sons from the heighborhood were
sent Tor, and Frank was seized
against every protestation that he
did not kill his uncle, and thrown
into jail.
The feeling against the youth
was intense, for the negro told the
story of how he had found Frank,
and wayfaring peddler, who had
just assembled the steps to ask to
stay all night, corroborated the
mans statement.
The trial came off, and the
charges were made known. Frank
was accused of starting upon a
hunting expedition as a blind, and
then returning from the mountain
by night, had entered the room,
and attempting to remove a large
bag of gold kept by his uncle. had
aroused him, and upon being dis
covered, had driven bis hunting
; knife into the heart of Mr.. Mercer.
The gold was on the floor, its
weight having torn through the
bag when it was raised The knife
with which Mr.. Mercer was killed
was one he had given to Frank
some days before, and was a large
dirk knife encased in a silver scabl
! ho~A Dali u