The Portland daily press., 1873-07-12

The First Parish Society take their annual
picnic excursion to-day. The go to Sebago
Lake A special train leaves the Walker
House, station" at 9.3o a. m
Erie G. Clapp, has been appointed railway
most office clerk between Boston, Mass, and
Bangor, Me. The pay and services of w. L.
Palmer, as railway post Office head clerk, Bos-
ton, Mass. to Bangor, Me-, are discontinued
G. r. kimball, Esq, has sold the lot adjoin-
ing Dr. 3. Fltch's residence, corner of State
and Congress streets, to Dr.. s. Fitch and ii. P.
Storer, Esq, for $4,000.
The members of the 18th Maine volunteers
are invited to meet at the Preble House at
p. m, August 9th, to affect an organizatiou,a and
make arrangements for reunion of the regi-
ment.
There were great numbers of itinerant musl-
clans about the streets yesterday. What has
Portland done that she should be so afflicted?
The deputies had a long and stern chase over
half dozen streets Thursday, after team
loaded with liquors They managed to secure
Jug of ale, the rest having been spilled
A Monster Attempts TO ktape ms Step.
Daughter 80 M onths OId-The Child in
n Critical Condition-The Arrest of the
Man-some Account of the Fiendish
Oufra ge-Much Excitement and Indig-
.na.iOn.
ste.day afternoon about four o'clock, Mr.
Joseph w. Merrill, work house keeper, appear
ed at the police station and stated that MUIR
der had probably been committed at house on
Forest street, by a man named Augustus "A.
Black. Deputy Marshal Bridges, who was IN
the Office at the time, at once accompanied Mi.
Merrill to the scene of the crime. Marshal
Parker also went to the place indicated, and
representative of the PRESS was not far behind.
On reaching the house on Forest street, it
was found crowded with excited women.
There we were put in possession of the details
of a crime too monstrous to contemplate and
unfit for the columns of any journal.
The perpetrator of this most fiendish act is
Augustus A. Black, native of Gray, q years
old, and is employed at the Salt Works in
Stroudwater. A little over year since, he
married a promising youngiNova Scotia woman
by whom he has had one child, but recently
born. AT the time of marriage she had an in
teresting female child by a former husband,
whom Black then appeared to be fond of, but
since his marriage has treated with persistent
cruelty. This child is now about t,Co and
half yUars old, and was yesterday lying in her
cradle up stairs in one of the two chambers the
house contains, Black from some cause was
not at work, but was in the adjoining chamber
The mother of the child who was alone in the
lower part of the house. hegrd Black go into
the room occupied by the child, and shortly af-
ter heard the child cry as though frightened.
Suspecting some mischief, the mother at once
went up stairs where she was Mortified by a
scene over which decency draws veil. The
mother struck the brute a stunning blow
seized her child and rushed down stairs into
and across the street, crying murder. The cry
startled the ladies of the neighborhood who
came there and took the child and sent for Dr.
Weeks. When our reporter visited the place,
the evidence of the outrage was unmistakable
in the abund INT traces of blood that stained
the room and marked the escape of the mother
with the half-dead child,
As soon as the mother left the house with
the child, Black with a mien of Indifference,
sauntered slowly up Congress street in the di-
rection of Stroudwater By this time Deputy
Bridges and,Mr. Merrill had reached the house
and on learning the facts, drove at once after
Black. AT the Salt Works they were informed
that Black had not been there since ten o'clock
in the forenoon. Turning about they drove
back to the house where they found Black un-
der the charge of Mr.. Julian johnson. 1t
seems that instead of continuing ON to the
Salt Works, he left Congress street and took to
tba old Kapnahao rai1rnod froo b.
Evidently bewildered, he did not proceed far on
this line before he turned about and struck
again into Congress street, this time heading
towards the heart of the city. 1t was at this
point that he was seen and recognized by Mr.
johnson who had learned of the crime. and
was on the lookout for him Black offered no
resistance and Mr.. johnson took him back to
the house.
Black is medium sized man with not a very
heavy build. His phisiognony does not indi-
cate strong passion. He lacks certainly that
bright, open look belonging to higher intell
gence, but ON the other hand there is nothing
gross or grovelling in his appearance He
made no remarks excepting when addressed by
the Marshal, to whom he replied that he in
tended no harm, bnt was only playing with the
Ouiiu copic lIOHl OTdy WHO KNOW Say
he is hardly "Conaposhmentis' During the
evening and until quite late, large crowd of
curious men gathered at the station all eager
to catch glimpse of him, many of whom ex-
pressed a wish to stretch his neck.
This horrible crime was the topic of CONVEX
sation on the streets last evening, and gener-
al feeling of satisfaction was felt that the
wretch had been so specify captured. Late in
the evening, DR.. Weeks thought it barely pos
sibe that the child might live.
CLEARING THE CHANNEL.-For the past TWEEN
ty years there has partially INSTRUCTED the ship
channel, one of the avenues from Portland har-
Dor to the ocean, the wreck of a vessel loaded
with bricks Gen. H. Thorn, United States En-
gineer, has recently been arranging to remove
this obstruction to navigation, and yesterday
morning accompanied by party of ladies and
gentlemen sailed down the harbor in the gov
eminent schooner to the spot where the wreck
lay. Submarine divers then descended and
placed in the most available place in the wreck
explosive material, which they had brought
with them for the nurnose of hreakinp nm the