The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1878-03-01

| aDOuU tHe LoWnt moooy anu ulSlf0SSeu.
About this time trial was in pro-
gress at the court. A man was charged
with having passed forged check at
one of the banks. The teller fully
identified the prisoner, described his
movements, and related what was said
between them at the time, with the
greatest minuteness.
On the other hand, the accused indig-
nantly denied Che charge and protested
that he was not in or near the bank at
the time alleged, but in the Office of
friead on B street. He remembered his
whereabouts, for his arrest was not long
after the presentation of the forged
check, and all his movements of that
day remained distinctly in his mind.
From the first he continued to assert
his innocence, and 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 failed
to produce any witness beside himself
to prove where he was, though be made
every effort to de so. 1t was question
of veracity, man against man, but the
clear and very forcible statement of the
teller against the accused, and the pos
sibility Of some motive presumed to ex-
ist in the mans financial circumstances,
had decided the direction considering
the interest at stake, to hold him to
answer at the next session of the court.
And now the day of trial had come.
Everybody was extremely interested
in the trial, for the prisoner was well
known in town, and had always been
supposed to be honest. The anxiety
was intense to know whether he would
be proved criminal
The case seemed to be going against
the prisoner, for one or two other per
sns had been summoned to testify that
''to the best of their knowledge and be-
lief" they had seen the man in or about
the bank at on the day when the
check was passed
The prisoner sat in the court room,
pale, but with a certain fearless look on
his features that scarcely seemed like
guilt.
All the known evidence was in, and
to the last, save the statements of few
of his friends as to his previous good
character, nothing in his behalf beyond
his own unsupported werd had been
brought forward.
The prosecuting attorney arose and
| formally recounted the strong points in
the case, dwelling especially on the fail
ure of the prisoner to prove an aibi,
thai is, to show that he was elsewhere
than at the bank at the moment of the
crime, when suddenly, to the unspeaka-
bic establishment of all present, queer
voice from distant part Of the room
exclaimed:
"But can tell where he was."
Everybody turned to lock at the
speaker, who was none other than our
friend Dan. He stood with his mouth
wide open, clutehing his cap with one
hand and with the other nervously pok-
ing his fousled hair. Everybody was
laughing.
"Silence!" !" reared the crier, in fierce
tone, and then assuming that the boy
intended TO make sport, he ordered him
to sit down.
"No,7 drawled Dan, 81 guess net.
OF course that set the crowd into
still louder laughter. The crier then
attempted TO get at the boy.
''5toP@ cried the judge, in way
that was heard in all parts of the room.
As soon as silence was obtained, he
turned toward Dan, whe still remained
! =s,,ndjug,
Young man, do you know anything
abont this casef'
"Y-e-s, sir" replied Dan. slowly, 81
| know"
81 don't want to know that, yet" in
terrupted the judge. "Come this way,
my boy"
The shrewd magistrate knew this
youngster well enough to surmise that
he would neither dare nor care 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 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, "Our
Dan has turned up something new.
It's Just like him..
Their surmise was turned to certainty
| when the Judge announced, 'FThis 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 large paper and
this he handed to the judge. He looked
at it curiously; then at the prisoner.
In a moment he said: CLERK, admins
ter the oath to this boy"
Dan was sworn.
cannot repeat his testimony here,
but be sure it was drolly worded and
disjointed enough. 1t made everybody
laugh even while it profoundly interest
ed them. The substance of it was that
on the day the forged check was passed,
he was making photographs between the
hours of II m. and 8 p. m. Among
other pictures he made one of man
standing in the window on the opposite
side of the street. The man that he
photographed was the prisoner at the
bar.
Immediately there was buzz in the