The Lamoille news. (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1877-1881, 1878-01-23
HYDE PARK, VT. WEDNESDAY. JANUARY 23 1878

hhuNs uuu Nllh llC btutI 0GlNOuelN
poking his tousled hair. Everybody
laughed.
"Silence I" roared the crier, with a
fierce tone, aud then assuming that the
boy intended to make sport, he, ordered
him to sit down.
"No," drawled Dan. 81 guess not.
OF course that set the crowd into still
louder laughter. The crier made an
attempt to get at the boy.
"Stop, cried the judge, in a way that
was heard in all parts of the room.
As soon as silence was obtained, he
turned towards Dan, vino still remained
standing.
young man, do you know anything
about this case q
Yes sir" replieds2ap4 slowly az
"I don't want to know that yet," in
terrupted the judge. Come this way,
my boy"
The shrewd magistrate knew the
youngster well enough to surmise that
he 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
forward to the bench. A curious spec
tacle 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, com
Dan has turned up something new. It's
Just like him."
Their surmise was turned TO certainty
when the Judge announced, "This young
man will produce important evidence for
the defence"
Dan made his way out of the court
room and disappeared. In ten minutes
he came back again breathless. He had
never been known to run before.
In his hand he held paper as large
AS the cover of geography. This he
handed to the judge. He looked at it
curiously then at the prisoner. In a
moment he said:
"Clerk, administer the oath to this
boy"
Dan was sworn.
1 cannot repeat his testimony here,
but be sure it was drolly worded and
disjointed enough. 1t 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 wa9 teaking photographs
between the hours of IL NJ. and 3 p. NJ.
Among other pictures he made one
of a man standing in the window of a
building on the opposite side of the
street. The man that he photographed
was the prisoner at the bar.
Immediately there was general buzz
in the courtroom. The prisoners pale
face flushed, and he gazed upon Dar
with a look Of joyful gratitude.
But there was still very important
question to be settled.
"At what time, exactly, was the phot.
ograph taken ?"
Dan took the picture and looked at il
closely.
"There's the clock ON ST. Luke's
church up in the corner" said he, point.
ing to the place, and handing the pic
ture to the judge.
"By the dial here" said the Judge,
cit was just one o'clock at the instant
when the picture was taken"
The jury and the counsel now exam.
ined the photograph minutely. 1t could
not be disputed there was the identical
man, and therefore he was not in the
bank at the moment when the forged
check was passed.
The teller was once more placed upon
the stand. He was confused by the evi
dence he had heard, and. was by nc
means as positive as he was before. Al
last he reluctantly admitted that he
might be laboring under mistake.
And upon that he retired into the crowd
with an appearance Of great chagrin.
Dams triumph was complete. He
was hero. People forgot his strange
dress and his wild-looking head, and
actually " lionized him The prisoner
was discharged. He instantly went to
Dan. and seizing both Of his hands, ex.
claimed 90
"You have saved me. You shall have
anything you want. cannot do enough
to show you my gratitude"
From that moment Dams star began
to rise. He had money to continue his
experiments, and he eventually discov.
cred process by which he succeeded in
obtaining the richest and most durable
photographs that are now taken in Wex-
ford. He still keeps the old camera that
made his fortune.