Litchfield enquirer., 1875-06-24

people. They soon arriVed,-the servants. a physician, a magistrate, the sheriff, the minister, three or four other gentlemen, and two ladies. told them my story with much difficulty. had not been con- scious of grief, but now felt an aching in my throat which rendered me almost speeches.. could only give the merest outline of what had happened, before 1
 broke down and wept like an infant My grief was contagious. The house was fill
 ed with the lamentations of the women,
 and the men were visibly affected. At last Maggie Penfeld took me by the arm and led me to my room. I sobbed myself to sleep, and did not awake until ten o'clock or later.
 When | came down stairs found that l a coroner's inquest had been organized. and that the servants had already been ex- | am1ned. Of course was called upon to state under oath what knew of my aunt's | death. did so as clearly and succinctly as possible. The doctor then examined l the wound, and testified that the deceased
 had been shot through the heart, the ap- pearance of the wound indicating that the
 murderer had been sitting or lying on the ground when he fired. The verdict of the coroner's jury was to the effect that the deceased had come to her death by gun shot wound at the hands of some person ! unknown.
 It was now Saturday, nay publication 1 day. The editor of the Herald behaved very handsomely. He went to my office and helped the foreman prepare the Sin l side" of the paper for the press, himself furnishing well-written account of the | murder and a generous tribute to the | memory of the deceased.
 The funeral took place on Monday. I
 went from the grave to my office. and re- sumed my editorial labors. On the Thurs | day following. the papers of the deceased her relatives and those of her deceased l yer readily found will which he had
 drawn only few weeks before. My aunt's
 husband had left all his property to her.
 In her will she had scrupulously given all
 that had belonged to him to his brothers
 and sisters in common. A considerable
 portion of her estate, however, had be-
 longed to her in her own right before her
 marriage. This she divided among her
 own relatives. I was iberally provided
 for. The homestead farm and the library I were left to me, and was named in the
 will as sole executor and residuary legatee.
 There was passage in the will eniolning
 1t upon me to continue the publication of
 the Locofocoville Whig newspaper at least
 ten years after her death, if I should so
 loLg survive, and while should publish
 the paper to distribute weekly one thou sand copies of 1t to non-subscribers; 1t be- ing left to my honor to fulfill her wishes
 in these respects.
 The sheriff and his deputies and not 8 | few volunteers were very busy during the | five days succeeding my aunt's death, try
 ing to find her murder. and his compan-
 ions, OF some clew whereby to trace them;
 but all in vain. This signal want of suc-
 cess on the part of the officers probably
 set somebody to thinking-I never knew
 who started the idea-that they were on
 the wrong trail. The day after the read
 ing of the will,i as I went to my office, I
 met two or three people with whomI was acquainted. They answered my morning
 salutations hurriedly and constrainedly,
 and got out of my way as quickly as pos | slble. 1 paid little attention to these
 things at the time, as was very much
 preoccupied, but I soon had occasion to
 recall them. When arrived at the office.
 every one there looked at me in a strange
 way. but none of them spoke to me as I
 passed to an inner room where had set
 up my sanctum. They acted, so it seemed
 to me, as people do when surprised by the 1 sudden appearance of a person about
 whom they have been talking. As soon
 as l had closed my door a buzz of earnest | whispering sprung up in the outer room, which could hear, but no word of which
 I could distinguish.
 There was then in the office an old
 tramping 'jour," an Englishman and a
 thorough-going vagabond. It was then
 a rule amoug printers that journeyman
 on his travels, and out of money. had to
 be furnished with employment at what
 ever office he applied for it long enough to enable him to earn the means of con
 tinuing his rambles. even if a regular
 ''hand" had to surrender his Cease" tenn porarily to make room for him. Taking l advantage of this regulation, old George
 Armstrong had tramped wherever the Eng
 fish language was put in type. He affect ed seedy, moldy style of gentility. He
 had an eccentric habit of purchasing | quart of whisky once in two or three | weeks, retiring from the haunts of men. and lying drunk as long as the liquor last ed. This habit he justified upon the ground that 1t was expensive and ungen eAOAAtaAAy SO OAAAh at tAO OdEa LII DuDllC- houses. This demoralized disciple of Faust came to me in my room, and de- sired to settle; saying that he intended to resume his travels at once.
 'I thought you meant to stay with us a few days longer, MT. Armstrong; said I.
 ''We have so much job work on hand that you will leave us short-handed if you % now"
 '1 had intend to work here few days longer," said he, "but the fact is, sir. I don't think the office can go on much longer"
 ''The office can't go on much longer !
 What ails the officer"
 ''If you don't know 1t, sir, you ought to | be told. You are suspected of the murder | of your aunt. A great excitement is get l ting abroad in the street. You are in dan ger of violence every moment. If I might venture to advise, sir, I should say you ought to take prompt measures for your own safety. l need not say, sir. that have travelled too far and have seen too many men to doubt your innocence: but do assure you, sir, the people are great ly excited. The popular fury is spreading
 from fool to fool like a prairie fire in a high wind. Oh, sir, have reason to know
 what hopeless thing it is to face the
 blind fury of mob No wise man will risk it. am too old and worthless to be
 of any use to you in this emergency.
 Please pay me my little wages and let me go."
 paid the old fellow what he claimed. and he was gone before I had fairly real ized the full import of his words. When
 he was gone and I had time to reflect. all the strange conduct had witnessed that
 morning came back to me with awful sig nifcance 2-
 wrote brief note to the sheriff. say- ing that had just heard that was sus- peeted of the murder of my aunt, and re- questing him to come and take me into custody at once. This note committed
 to my printers devil. an inky little Arab. true as steel and cunning as a ten-year old fox. Gle is now the publisher of an or thodox religious newspaper.)
 watched my messenger from my win
 dow. He comprehended the situation hotknr than T di6 TnckaoI oe