Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1876-03-30

He lay awake for some time, and nres
emily heard footsteps in the room. The
next moment the curtain of his bed was
gently drawn, and he saw a face look
ing down upon him. He Law quite
still, though greatly alarmed. The face
disappeared, and retreating steps were
heard. He arose on his elbow and peered
through the curtain. He distinctly saw
two men at the farther end of the room.
near the peddler's bed. They passed
round the foot Of it and disappeared at
the other side. That moment he
heard a scream and scuff1e, and saw
the legs of the peddler protrude from
the curtains. There was a scuff1e and
suppressed cry, and next moment the
peddler bounded from the bed and ran,
screaming MURDER" toward SCOTS bed,
holding his vali5e at arms length Two
men followed the fugitive, and Scott, hor-
rified and fear stricken, slipped from his
bed on the other side and hid himself in
a closet. He heard the groans and blows,
and the sound Of retreating footsteps; then
all was still. The next instant, however,
the door opened, other footsteps were
heard along the floor and the curtains of
SCOTS bed were hastily drawn. The Wis
liant, whoever ne was, uttered an oath of
disappointment and fed from the room.
After waiting for some time, Scott came
forth from the closet, and found the ped
dler lying on the ground, dead Scott
was in a terrible dilemma and saw at
glance that he would be suspected of
having murdered the peddler Panic
STRICKEN he hastily dressed himself, picked
up his valise from the floor, took his horse
from the stable and departed from the
nm, resolving to seek safety in flight. 1t
was daylight when he reached Coninbro',
and then for the first time he discovered
that the vaiise which he had taken from
the floor was not his, but the peddler's,
which he had no doubt dropped when the
murderers fell upon him, and in the place
Of which they doubtless seized and carried
off SCOTS, which lay on the carpet
close by
This extraordinary story was not be-
lieved by the cOroner's jury in the face of
all the damning evidence against Scott
1t was shown that he had seen the peddler
produce his wallet from the valise in the
blacksmith shop; that he offered to &C
company the peddler to Doncaster, and
that he had taken up his quarters at the
same inn, and slept in the same room
with the murdered man. Besides this,
he was captured with the valise in his
possession, and what better evidence of
his guilt could there be?
Scott was sent to jail, and in due course
tried for Willful murder Out of charity
a young lawyer undertook his defense.
The evidence for the prosecution was
clear and convincing, and Mr.. O'Brien-
afterward Sergeant O'Brien-the prison
er's counsel, saw no chance for his clients
escape. The principal witnesses against
him were the blacksmith, John Steele, his
son Richard, the men that were in the
smithy when the peddler and Scott first
met the landlord Of the inn, who swore
that Scott urged the peddler to go to an
other inn, and the officers who found Scott
with the peddIer's valise in his possess
sion.
The hammer with which the murder
had been committed was produced on the
| trial and shown to the jury. One of them
remarked to the court that it was a black
smiths shooting hammer. Mr.. O'Brien
| quietly asked to be allowed to look at it,
and he examined it closely. Then he
stood up and handed it to the prisoner
Scott glanced his eye over it for mo-
ment, and then handed it back to his
counsel. The next instant he clutched it,
| drew it from Mr.. O'Brien's grasp and
scrutinized it with the most intense inter
est. Then he leaned on the dock and
| spoke in a hurried tone to his counsel.
| The latter, with flushed face and hasty
movements, made his way to the side of
the prosecuting officer, and cOnversed
with him in a low tone for several min
utes. The prosecuting officer then spoke
with the Judge, and after few seconds
beckoned an officer and whispered to him
a few words. Mr.. Steele, the blacksmith,
was recalled to the witness stand by Nh.
| O'Brien, who said:
Mr. Steele, you are an old and expe-
rienced blacksmith, are you not?"
Yes, sir" Steele answered, with a
perceptible tremor in his voice
Did you work at your trade in Holder
ness?"
Yes, sir, when l was a young man. y
g Anything peculiar in the manufacture
of horseshoe nails in that district, Mr..
Steele?"
&C think there is, SIR
p" Pray tell US What the peculiarly is,
Mr.. Steele"
"The head is divided like in the mid
die"
Anything like the head of that nail
| used as wedge in the handle Of that
hammer, Mr.. Steele?'' the counsel asked
handing the witness the weapon found
near the body of the murdered peddler
The witness hand shook like leaf as
he reached it out for the hammer, his
cheeks grew deadly pale, his lips became
parched, and though he held the hammer
in his hand, his staring eyes were fixed on