The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1877-08-11

ana possessed extraordinary genius.
lie married beauty. who aftarwara
/ deserted him fosaao,her
/ On the Sab oi August 1871. the court
. house At ClsrksyiIle, Texas, was crowds
: "a 10 orer;lowng An exciting case
Nas 90 d. tried George Hopkins, a
wealthy planter had offered gross i'm
salt To Mary Allison, the Young and
J beautiful wife Of has oversaer The
husband threatened to chAst,se him fet
the outrage when Hopkins went ia
Aiiison's house and shot him IN his
door. The murderer was arrested. and
halled TO answer the charge The ocs
eurrence produced great excitement.
and Mr.. Hopkins. IN orieF to turn the
tide OF popular indignation, bad circu-
lated reports about her character, and
she bad sued him for SANDER Both
suits were pending-- ior murder and for
SANDER.
The interest became deeper when il
Arkansas, and 5. 5. Preutiss. OF New
Orleans. by enormous fees had been
retained 20 defend Hopkins
Hopkins was acquitted. The Texas
lawyers were overwhelmed by their OPP
poneuts II was a fight of dvarfs
against giants,
The Islander suit WAS ready for trial.
and the thropg OF spectators grew in
mum or, a. IL excitement Public opin>
ion -tas setting in for Hopkins bis
money had procured witnesses who
had served his powerful advocates
When the slaudsr case came up. 1t was
left without NJ attorHey--als had with,
drawn.
Have you no counsel inquired
Judge Mills looking kindly on the
plaintiff No, sir. they have all de-
serted me, and ! am too poor 20 EN-
pluy any more replied the beautiful
Mary, bursting into ieags Ia sueh
case viii not some ohivairous neu1ber
OF the profession volunteer said the
judge, .glaucing around the bar The
thirty old lawyers were silent Il viii,
your honor" said voice from the
thickest part Of the crowd behind the
bar. His clothes looked so shappY
that the court hesitated to let the case
proceed under his management. "ifas
your name been entered on the rolls OF
state' demanded the Judge. "lt IS
iinmaterial answered the stranger, his
thin. bloodless lips curling up with a
sheer. Here Is my license from the
highest tribunal in America and he
handed the judge broad parchment.
The trial went on. He suffered the
witnesses 20 tell their own story and al
lowed the defense TO lead otf Ashley
spoke first. followed by Pike and Prem
tiss. The latter brought down the house
in cheers in which the jury joined.
IL was now the strangers turn. lie
rose before the bar, not behind it. and
so near the wondering jury, that he
could touch the foreman with hi. long
bony finger lie proceeded to tear to
pieces the arguments Of Ashley, which
melted away at his touch like frost be-
fore the sunbeam. Every one looked
surprised. Anon be came To the daz-
ding wit of the poet lawyer Pike Then
the curl Of his lip grew sharper, his
smooth face began To kindle mp, his
eyes TO open, dim aud dreary NO
longer, but vivid as lightning, red as
iire-globes and glaring as twin meteors.
The whole sould was in his eye; the
full heart streamed out OF his face
Then, without making an illusion TO
Prentiss he turned short round, on the
periured witnesses of Hopkins, tore
their testimony into shreds and hurled
into their faces such terrible iuvectiyes
that all irembled like Aspens. and two
Of them fed trom tie courtshouse. The
excitement of the crowd was becoming
tremendous Their united life aud
soul seemed to hang upon the burns
ing tongue Of the stranger, aud he in
sPired them with the power of his pas
sion. tie seemed 20 have stolen ma
lures long hidden secret of attraction
But his greatest triumph was to come.
His eyes began b. glance at the assassin
Hopkins, AZ his lean, taper figure as
sumed the same direction. lie enclosed
the wretch within a ~aii OF strong evil
dence aud impregnable argument, cut
ting of all hope Of escape, He dug be-
meath the mnrderer's feet bitches Of
dilsmmas, ami held up the slanaerer
to the scorn and contempt of the popu-
lace Having thus grit him with a sir-
Gle Of fire, he stripped himself to the
work Of massacre
oh then ID was 2 vision both eiori-
Gus and dreadful to behold the orator.
His action too became as impetuous as
the motions of an oak in a hurricane.
His voice became . trumpet filed with
whirpools, deafening me esrs with
crashes Of power, and vet intermingIei
All The while with n sweet undersong
OF sweetest cadence. His forehead
glowed like "a heated iurnance, his
countenance was haggaFd like that of
maniac and ever aud anon he iisng his
long. bony arms on high, as If grasping
after : thunderboh.
IL Ir.s.f .,t.f.reo ~ 4.
appalling colors tiat in comparison he'll
itself might look beautiful he painted
the Islander so black that the sun
seemed dark at MONDAY when shining
on Such monster. And then. fixing
both portraits on the shrinking Hopkins,
fastened them there forever The agi-
ton Of the audience amounted almost
10 madness
All at once the, spesker descended
from his lofty height His voice walled
out for the murdered dead and living
the beautiful Mary, more beautiful
every moment as her tears flowed faster
and faster, till mon wept and sobbed like
children.
He closed by strong exhortation to
the jury, and through them to the by-
ISLANDERS. the panel. after they should
bring in verdict for the plaintiff not
10 offer violence to the defendant, how
over richly he might deserve tin
other words, mot TO lynch the villain,
but leave hrs Punishment TO God This
was the most arttnl trick Of all. and
calculated TO insure vengeance
The jury rendered a verdict Of ffty
thousand dollars, and the night after
ward Hopkins was taken out Of his bed