The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1876-06-01

ma law sru ,uorr r.,

FstE 81 0uhN vs. Nafc4ANy which WAA
tried recently 10 tbe blank County Cont
L Involved The question o. the ownership
ol Guuns right leg Gnnn related he
facts u the case to us as follows
You see, one day last winter, v bile |
was shoyeliug snow of the roof Of ny
house ! slipped aud fell over on tbe
I pavement below When ihey picked me
up they found that my right leg was
fractured Dr Barclay examined Il and
gaye 4 a. his opinion that modification
would be certain 10 sci In unless thal
I leg came or So told him he a belter
chop i away And he went round to
his Office, and presently he came bat 1
With butcher knife aud cross-cut saw
and lot frags. Then they ehloroform.
cd me, aud while was asleep they re.
moved that leg, When came 10 fell
pretty comfortable, aud the doctor, after
writing some prescriptions, began wral-
/ ping my on.leg up in an old newspaper;
then be tucked the bundle under bis arm
and began to move toward the door |
was watching him all the time, and !
haloed al him!
Where in mischief are you going with
that leg Of mine?
I'm not going anywhere with that leg
Of you're, he said. But am going home
with my leg.
Wen, you'd better drop II, said /. 1t
belongs to me, aud want il for keep
sake.
Aud you know he faced me down
about IT, Said when doctor sawed a
man apart, he always took the amputated
member as one of his perquisities; aud
ho said that, as il was his legal right TO
take something on such occasions, Il was
merely optional with him whether he
took the leg, or left the leg and took me
but he preferred the leg. And when
asked him what he wanted with It, any
way he said he was going to put IL in
glass jar, full Of alcohol, and stand Il IN
bis office. Then | told him Il shocked
my modesty TO think OF a bare leg OF mine
being put on public exhibition In that
manner, with no pantaloon on; but be
said he thought he could stand It.
But ! protested | said had had that
leg for good many years, and felt
sorter attached to It. knew all its little
ways. would feel lonely without II.
Who would tend to the corns that
had cared for so long? Who would treat
the bunion with the proper degree OF
deicacy? Who would rub the toes with
liniment when they got frosted2 And
who would keep the shin from being
kickcdf No one could do II as well as |
could, because felt an interest IN the
leg; felt sociable and friendly, and ae-
quainted with IT, But Barclay said he
thought inc could attend to it, aud ii
would do the corns good to be soaked In
alcohol.
And told him I'd heard ulat, even
after a man lost limb, if any man burt
that limb the original owner felt II, and
! told Barclay wouldn't trust him not
to tread on my toes, and stick pins in my
calf, and make me suffer every time he
bad grudge against me, and he said he
didn't know; maybe he would If | didn't
use him right.
Aud | wanted to know what was 10
hinder him If he felt like It, taking the
bone out Of the leg and making part OF
It up into knife-handles aud suspendef
buttons, and working the rest up into
some kind of a clarinet with finger-hoes
punched in the sides ! could stand
good deal, said, even If had only one
leg, but couldn't bear to think Of a man
going around the community serenading
girls with tunes played on one Of my
boucs-a bone, too, that | felt a good
deal Of affection for. II he couldn't touch
a Rir'. heart without serenading her With
one Of my boue9, why he had better re-
main single.
We blalhered away for about an h0nr, |
and al last be said he was disgusted with
so much bosh about ridiculous bit OF
meat aud muscle, aud he wrapped the |
paper arouad the leg again and rushed
out VI the door for home. When sued |
him, aud the case came up in court, the |
judge instructed the jury that the evil |
dence that a leg belonged to a man was
that he had It, aud as Barclay bad this
leg, The presumption was that II was bis.
But no man was ever known to have |
three legs aud SIS Barclay thus had three |
tic second presumption was that Il was
not bis. Bat as GunA did not have il, /
the law could not accept the theory thai |
ig was Gums leg, and consequently the |
law couldn't tell who under the sun the
lex belonged to, aud the jury would
have to guess at IL. So the jury brought
IN verdict against both Of rs, and re-
commended that IN the uncertainty that
existed the leg should be buried. The
leg was ying during the trial out 10 the
Yestibule Of the court room, aud we
found allerward during the trial BID
Woods dog had run Of with II, aud that
settled the thing Queer, wasn't III
MoHAL LESSON.