The Grange advance. [volume] (Red Wing, Minn.) 1873-1877, 1877-06-13

declared the teller had mistaken him for,
some other man.
Unfortunately for him, he was obliged
to admit that he was alone in his friends
Office at the hour in question, and he
failed to produce any witness besides
himself to prove definitely where he
was, though he had made every effort to
do so. It was question ofveracity, man
against man, but the clear and positive
statement of the teller against the accused
and the possibility of some motive pre-
sumed to exist in the mans financial cir.
cumstances, had decided the directors,
considering the interest at stake, to hold
him to answer at the next session of the
court. And now the day Of his trial had,
come. %.~a
Everybody was extremely interested in
his trial, for the prisoner was we'll known
in the town, and had always been sup.
posed to be honest. The anxiety4was in,
tense to know whether he would really
be proved a criminal. st. 'y2 =. -
The case seemed to be going against the
accused, for one or two other people had
been summoned. who testified that +" to
the best of their knowledge and belief.
they had seen this man, in or about
the bank at one o'clock on the day when
the check was passed. ~ i3s y
The prisoner sat in the courtroom,
pale, but with certain fearless tirmness
on his features that scarcely seemed like
guilt. .,~..gs y =
All the known evidence was in, and to
the last, save the statements of few,
friends as to his previous good character,
nothing in his behalf besides his own
unsupported word had been brought for
ward. "a WIPE o.
The prosecuting attorney rose and for
mally recountered the strong points, in the
case, dwelling especially on the failure of
the prisoner to prove an azibi, I. e., to
show to the satisfaction of the court that
he was elsewhere than in the bank at the
moment Of the crime, when suddenly, to
the unspeakable astonishment of all pres
ent, queer voice from distant part of
the room EXCHANGED
"But I can tell where he was.''
Everybody turned to look at the speak
er, who was none other than our friend
Dan. He stood with his mouth wide
open, clutching his cap with one hand and
with the other nervously poking his
tousled hair. Everybody laughed.
*Silence" roared the crier, in a fierce
tone, and then assuming that the boy in
tended to make sport, he ordered him to
sit down.
"No," drawled Dan, " guess won't"
Of course that set the crowd into still
louder uproar of laughter. The crier made
an attempt to get at the boy.
"Stop!" cried the judge, in a voice that
was heard in all parts of the room.
As soon as the silence was obtained, he
turned toward Dan, who was still stand
ing.
SYoung man, do you know anything
about this case!"
YES, sir" replied Dan, slowly. II
know"
"' I don't want to know that yet" inter-
rupted thesjudge. "Come this way" The
shrewd magistrate knew the youngster
we'll enough to surmiseo that ahe5 would.
neither care nor dare to be fooling at
such time
Dan, all stained and spotted, picked
his way out of the crowd and walked for
ward to the bench. A curious specta-
Gle he was, with his uncouth form and
dress, and his mass of white hair.
The judge leaned forward and said
something to him in very low tone, and
then Dan whispered back to the Judge
Soon the people saw the judge smile and
nod his head. "'
"Ah," said they one to another, sour
Dan has turned up something new. It's
just like him.
Their surmiscs were turned to certainty
when the judge announced, "This young
man will produce important evidence for
the defence. r.n.... ...
Dan made his way out of the court
room and disappeared. In ten minutes
| he came back again breathlcss. He had
never been known to run before.
In his hand he held paper as large as
the cover of a geography. This he handed
to the judge. The judge looked at it
curiously. Then at the paper again. In
! a moment he looked up and said - D@
"Clerk, administer the oath to this
boy"
Dan was sworn.
cannot repeat his testimony here, but
be sure it was drolly-worded and disjoint-
ed enough. It made everybody laugh
even while it interested them profoundly.
The substance of it was that on the day
when the forged check was passed, he
was taking photographs between the
hours of 10 NJ. and r. NJ. Among other
pictures, he made one of man standing
in the window of a building on the oppo-