Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1873-01-31

when he was mad"
Dan, for tho only time that day, became
profane as he denounced the sneak, whoever
1t might be, who had started such supges-
ton. He expressed the conviction that the
fortune-woman had her footin II In some way.
Superstitious fools, he said. we're likely to be
suspicious.
But Dams anathomas did not stay the
rising tide. As the searchers came back,
suspicious glances were turned upon the
father, who sat with his afflicted family at
the house. Some of the searchers stealthily
examined under the barn, believing that
Willie had been "knocked on the head, )" with
fail and concealed under the floor.
But John, the father, was no coward, and
he had neighbors and friends who believed
in him. They told him of the suspicious
arising against him. On the instant he call.
ed meeting at the little howell Of a school
house, few rods down the road. The hun
bred searchers gathered there and filled the
room, sitting, lolling and lying upon the
benches. The father Of the lost child, al
most stranger to most of the searchers,
took his place at the teachers desk and con-
frouted his accusers.
1t was plain, direct work. Here were
hundred men who had exhausted all known
means of finding the lost boy and more
than City Of them had said in effect to the
man before them, We think you killed
him. All were looking at John he rose
up and, facing the crowd with dauntless
eye he made speech.
II this were a story told by Homer or
Herodotus, | suppose Johns speech would
figure as a wonderful piece of eloqueuce ;
for man never had grander opportunity
to try his strength in persuading others than
John had. But in fact there was nothing
grand about the matter, except that here
was straightforward man with nerves of
, steel, who had been hard HIT" as Dan said,
by the loss Of his boy, and was now repelling
with courage and almost scorn a thrust that
might have killed a weaker man.
5 His speech was dramatically correct,
e cool, deliberate, and dignl6ed. He said he
. had no knowledge of the black.hearted man
J who had originated so cruel suspicion at
/ such time, and he did not wish to know
8 who he was. He asked his hearers to con.
slider how entirely without support in the
a.. known facts OF the case the accusations were
that had been suggested against him. II
: was purely gratuitous assumption, with moi
K a particle Of evidence Of any kind to estab
,. fish it. He had understood that be was sup
8 posed to have killed his child in anger anC
Q then concealed the body. Such a thing
-" could not have happened with him as killing
1t his own child or any other child in that way
1t and if 1t had so happened he would not hav'
re- concealed it. He only wished to brand th
lie creation of some vile man, there presen
$ probably, as a lie. That was all he had t.
lie say upon that point.
e, In continuing his speech, when he alluded
,e to what he had suffered in losing the boy h,
loved the best Of anything on earth, Their
e was twitching of the muscles Of his face
W which, however, he instantly controlled a
% unworthy of him. He closed his speech b,
D appealing to his friends, who had known hin
IN long and we'll, to come forward at this tim
and testify to his integrity.
A.. L. Al q
,e benches and oonversed together freely Of tn
tie probabilities about John A group of thre
Q, or four gathered around him, and, placing
ID their hands upon his shoulders, told tn
70 crowd that they had known John for twent,
lie years, and that he was incapable Of murde
r. or perfdy or deceit, and as honest man a
n, could be found in the country.
O. 1t was decided not to search any farthe
IN that day, as there was no prospect now tina
err Willie would be found alive. The men wen
ee home, agreeing to come again after tire
days, by which time the sloet and light snoN
-, that had fallen would have all melted, an
~ search for the body might be successful
al made.
Ct John went to his house. As he met hi
G. afflicted family and realized that little Will
i. was now gone that the search was given u
:" and his child was dead, his Spartan 6rmnes
Oh yielded and he wept such tears as strong
I'M proud men weep when broken oD the whe'
o. of life The last cruel stab at his moral nj
re ture and integrity hurt hard He was
e- pure upright man, q Ohurch'member, an
he without reproach.
he As the three days were passing away tina
he were to eapse before the search for the bod
Ter should begin, it became apparent in the con
he mnnity that Johns Homerc speech had don
m. no good. The wise heads of Whiskey Ho
70. low declared that at the next search theI
ito would be first of all thorough over-haulin
cir about the immediate premises Their SUI
&c. picons found some favor in the communit,
by Some were discussing Indignantly and son
nd with tolerance the probability of Johns gull
ion Even good Deacon Beezman, a magistrat
1t was supposed to carry in his own person
Id, least half Of the integrity and intelligence
I'VE his neighborhood, declared that he would N
,re spend more of his precious time in searchiI
70. for the boy. lie made it the chief point
ces the case that John acted guilty" lie hi
er. noticed that this rustic Spartan sat in
it'll house and read his newspaper with appare
md interest as in ordinary times, on the day
TO the last search and this Indifference was e
ne. idence of his guilt. 1t was apparent tn