The Russellville Democrat., 1875-04-08
PERSONAL SKETCHES.
The Actors in the Vineland
 Tragedy.

MIR. LAsDIs AND HIS TROUBLES. Personally, Mir. Landis is tall and slender, with q quick, nervous manner, bright black eyes, hair and whiskers tinged with gray, and q gentlemanly manner. He is an energetic, earnest man, rath- sensitive to4die1le. Although long resting under the imputation of being an impractical dreamer, he has shown by the great work he has accomplished that he is a man of practical genius and re- markable perseverance and exec utive ability. He is greatly re- spected among the colonists; but for five or six years past there has been a gradually increasing party of malcontents in Vineland, called the independents, whose members are jealous of the influence which Mir. Landis still claims to exercise. Their policy is that, while they were perfectly willing to submit to his lead when the colony was in it's infancy, they have now grown strong enough for selfgov ernment. Some few of them ac- cuse Mir. Landis of reserve and haughtiness and are evidently his bitter enemies. Among this more violent class-which is also rep resented on the Landis side there is the greatest antagonism, and personal abuse of the most violent character is freely ex- changed. It was this independ- ent party (and possibly the most vindictive section of it) that Mir. Carruth and his newspaper, the Independent, represented, and for three years past the editor has made constant annoying allusions to Mir. Landis in the columns of his journal. Few of them were abusive, their prevailing spirit being that of ridicule and "chaff." Mrs. Landis was often referred to in these articles, though her name was not mentioned, and this was especially galling to Mir. Landis. He frequently consulted lawyers as to suing MT. Carruth for slan- der, but none of the attacks came within the libel law of the Sta.e, which is very lax. It was this continued course on the part of Mir. Carruth, and not any one par ticular article, that precipitated tEe terrible crime which has just occurred. Without this explana- tion it would not be understood how the ridiculous and silly arti- cle which the Independent printed on the morning of the shooting could have caused Landis to make the assault.
 SKETCH OF MIR. CARRUTH. ..
 Mir. Carruth was born in Phar- salia, Madison county, New York, in May, 1925. After his gradua- tion at Hamilton College, he re- moved to Berlin, Wis, where he studied law. He practised his profession for some years, occa- sionally writing for the papers, but never making that a calling until within recent years. About six years ago Mir. Carruth remov- ed to Vineland with his family, purchasing a ten acre homestead. Four or five years since he began writing for the Independent, which was then owned by William Fay Tor. He became identified with the independent party and q lead CT of this faction, and three years ago purchased the newspaper to which he had been contributing. He made it the organ of the inde- pendents, filled it with satirical filings at MT. Landis, seldom men, tioning him by namo, but always plainly indicating who was meant by q nickname. Mrs. Landis and his children were also noticed by him in the same spirit, and this was particularly rasping to Mir. Landis. Carruth always declared that he bore no ill-wIll to Landis, but merely desired to make his paper sell. He is generally spoken of as a very genial, pleasant man, He was robust, strong man and comes of very hardy stock, It is owing to this strength of con stitution, doubtless, that the wound has not killed him before this. He has n wife and fiva cb;l