The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1874-04-30
Celebrated Gases OF CirOumstautial
Evidence.

Celebrated Gases of cirOumstaHtial
Evidence. t.-.-..
There lived in Paris more than cen
tury ago, an old dame who kept q shop in
house not far distant from the Place st.
Michel. She was reputed to be rich, and
was supposed to keep her money in the
house. Her only servant was boy who
had lived with her several years he slept
in the house, but high up in the fourth
story, or rather loft. which could only be
reached by staircase, such as was COM
mon in those days, outside the house wall,
the old lady sleeping in room on the
ground floor at the back Of the shop. 1t
was the boys duty to lock the shop door
at night and retain possession Of the
key. ,..--'...-e---
One morning the neighbors found the
shop door open much earlier than usual,
and there was no one TO be seen in the
shop, some of them suspecting that all
was not right, went in. There were no
marks betokening violent entry of the
premises, but the old lady was discovered
dead in her bed, having received many
wounds, to all appearances, having been
inflicted with knife, and a knife covered
with blood was found lying in the middle
of the shop floor. In one hand Of the
corpse yet grasped thick lock of hair,
and in the other was neck-hAndkerchief
1t was proved beyond doubt that the knife
and neck-kershief belonged to the boy who
had been so long her servant, and the
lock of hair also matched his exactly. He
was arrested charged with the crime, and
| (probably under torture) confessed it and
suffered capital punishment as a muir
dersr. lie vas innocent notwithstaBd-
ing.
Not very long after his execution an
other boy, servant In a neighborlng
wine-shop, being taken into custody for
another effense, seized with the pangs Of
remorse. confessed 10 the murder of the
old dame. He had long been familiarly
acquainted with the shsP boy who suffer
ed innocently, and had been in the habit
OF dressing his hair. He managed by de-
grees to save up enough of the lads hair
from the comb he made use of TO make into
| a tolerably stout lock, and this he had put
into the hand of the dead woman. BE
had stolen one of the boys neck-kerchiefs
and also his knife, and by trying An i'm
preston in wax OF the key, had been able
to construct another by which to gain en-
trance to the shop. AT the first glance
the evidence IN this case seems at once
clear, natural and spontaneous; but the
very completeness Of the evidentary facts
! ought to have aroused suspicion, and there
is no doubt that, had rigid investigation
been set on foot, the innocence OF the ac--
cused would have been established
II
a case of fabricated evidence Of a sufii-
GENTLY remarkable kind occurred near
Hull, in the year I742 A gentleman
travelling to that place was stopped late in
the evening about seven miles from the
town by masked highwayman, who rob
bed him of a purse containing twenty
guineas. The highWayman gallopped of
By a side road, and the traveller, IN no way
| injured save in purse. continued his Jour
ney. 1t was growing late, and being ex-
cited and alarmed at what had happened,
he naturally looked out for place
| of shelter, and, instead of riding on to Hull
stopped at the frat inn he came to, which
was the "Bell Inn" kept by Mr.. James
Burnell He went into the kitchen to
give directions for his supper, and then
he related to several persons the fact of
mis- being robbed, to which he added the
further information that when he travelled
he always gave his gold peculiar mark,
and that every guinea IN the purse taken
from him was thus marked. He hoped,
| therefore, that the robber would yet be
detected. Supper being ready, he with
drew.
The gentleman had not long finished his
supper when Mr.. Burnell came into the
parlor where he was, and, after the usual
Inquiries of the landlords as to the desires
of his guests, observed, "Sir, understand
you have been robbed in this peighbor-
hood this EVENING"" "Yes." said the
/ traveller isI-ha.~o.S,- .An6 vonr money
! was marked pa continued the landlord.
cit was so. I" was the reply. "a circum-
/ stance has arisen" resumed Mr.. Burnell,
(which leads me to believe that can
point out the robber. Pray at what time
in the evening were You stopped?" at
was Just setting in to be dark" replied
| the traveller. "The time confirms my sus-
| picion," said the landlord; and then in
formed the gentleman that he had a, wal
ter, one John Jennings, who had of late
been 30 very full of money, and so very
extravagant that he (the landlord) had
been surprised at 1t, and had determined
to part with him, his conduct being every
/ way suspicious; that long before dark that
day he had sent out Jennings. to change a
guinea for him; that the man had only
4
saying he could not get change, and that
seeing Jennings to be in liquor, he had
sent him off to bed, determined to dis
charge him in the, morning. Mr.. Bur-
nell continued to say that when The guinea
was brought back to him it stT9ck him
that it was not the same he had sent out
for change, there being on the returned
one mark which he was very sure was
not upon the other: but he should probA-
bly, have thought no more of the matter,
/ Jennings having frequently had gold in
his pocket of late, had not the people in
the kitchen told him what the traveller
had related respecting the bold robbery
and the circumstances of the guineas being
marked. He (Burnell) had not been
present when this relation was made, and
unluckily, before he heard Of it from the
people In the kitchen, he had paid away
the guinea to q man who lived at some dis.
tance; and who Low had gone home "Tht
circumstances, however" said the land
lord in conclusion, "struck me so very
strongly, that could not refrain, as an
honest man, from coming and giving you
information Of it,"
Mr.. Burnell was duly thanked for his
disclosure. There appeared from it the
strongest reason for suspecting jennings
and II, on searching him, any others OF the
marked guineas should be found, and the
gentleman could identify them, there
would then remain no doubt in the mat
ter.
It was now agreed TO 60 up to his room
Jennings was fast asleep, his pockets were
searched, and from one of them was drawn
forth purse containing exactly nineteer
guineas. Suspicion now became q GER
| fha frorJalar daoloriun ihs
purse and the guineas to be iden tically
thoss of which he was robbed. Assistsnot
was called; Jennings was awakened, drag
ged ont of bed, and charged with the rob,
berry. He denied it firmly; but the cir,
cumstances against him were very strong
and he was not believed. He was securer
, that night, and next day was taken be-
fore justice of the peace. The gentle
man and Mr.. Burnell deposed to the facts
upon oath; and Jennings, having no proof
nothing but mere assertions of innocence