The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1878-02-28
Hsw He Secured the Aequistal Of the Rev
EPhPain X. Avery.

KPhrai. x. Avery.
One of Mr.. Mason's earliest cases, after his re-
moval to Boston, in 1852, and the most celebrat-
etl criminal case he was ever ill., was that of the
Rev. Ephraim X. Avery, Methodist minister, who
was indicted and tried for murder in Rhode Is
land.
On the morning of the 2lst of November 1882,
the body Of u young woman named Sarah Maria
Cornell, was found hanging in retired field,
behind u haystack, in the town of Tiverton, r. l.,
and near to Fall River. The body bore marks
of violence. and the position in which it was,
together with other circumstances, seemed to
refute the idea of suicide. The deceased, who
worked in factory at Fall River, had been,
while living in Lowell, accommodated from
the Methodist Church by Avery, when be was
minister there, for unchastity and falsehDo,l. In
her bandbOx was found slip of paper, with the
following words written with pencil:
"If / sm missing. inquire of the Rev. Mr.. Avery,
Bristol. He will know where am gone.
IS. n. CORNELL.
November 90"
Two anonymous letters were also fonnd in her
trunk-one of q very compromising character,
making an appointment for that day !; and evil
dence in the case tended strongly to trace both
of them to Avery. 1t was proved, too, that the
woman had met Avery at a camp-meetng at
Woodstock, Conn.,, in the preceding August; and
that she afterward proved to be with child, and
had charged him to her friends with being the
hitherto borne an irreproachable character, and
was ut this time the minister of the Methodist
church at Bristol. He was shown to have cross
the ferry on the Goth, early in the afternoon,
from Bristol to Portsmouth, aud to have return
ed to the ferry at 10 o'clock OF night too late to
recross. man much resembling him in person
and dress, was traced to the neighborhood of Fall
River, and observed lettering near the haystack
at about sunset; and the young woman, who
had left her boarding house about the same time
. L., - H.
WINS last seen in company with q man about his
size and appearance. Shrieks had also been
heard in the evening, proceeding from near the
haystack.
The discovery of the poor womau's body caus-
ed an intense excitement in Fall River, and a
verdict of death by suicide, returned by the Cor
oner's jury, gave such dissatisfaction that Sec
ond inquest was held. Avery's statements as to
his whereabouts were very unsatisfactory. He
asserted that after he had crossed the ferry, he
had gone south toward some coal mines, and
taken an indefinite and seemingly purposeless
ramble of six or eight miles on bleak wintry
day, stopping nowhere until he returned, late at
night, to the ferry house and although he men,
TONED passing different persons-a man out gun
ming. and boy driving sheep-no one appeared
to corroborate him. He had, too, few days
before, declined an invitation for the Goth, and
had left home when one of his children was Sc
riously ill. He escaped to New Hampshire, but
was brought back and committed for trial.
LUG pr1SOner Was tT1e0 IN the supreme court
Of Newport, in May and June, 1888, the trial tax
twenty seven days. Mr.. Mason, who was now
IS years of age, Was retained as leading counsel
for the defence. The popular prejudice against
the prisoner was intense, and It was with diff
Guilty jury could be obtained. Strong opposi-
ton was made by counsel to the admission in
evidence, of the letters and the pencil memoran-
dunn, but they were admitted the letters as be-
ing to some degree traced by other evidence to
the defendant and the memorandum as tending
to rebut the theory Of snicide-a very question
able ruling. The defendants counsel, however,
wisely raised few objections to evidence.
Had it not been for the position and previous
good character Of the defendant, and the great
caution and skill with which his defsnce was
conducted, he would have been convicted and
there can be no serious doubt Of his guilt. The
evidence, however, was entirely circumstantial
part Of it very slight, and, the whole, perhaps
the case was not proved beyond legal doubt,
and the verdict ultimately rendered was right.
Mr.. Mason's argument occupied over seven hours.
1t was entirely bare Of all rhetoric or ornament,
and was devoted to showing that several essen
tial links in the chain Of evidence, required to
bring home the crime to the prisoner, were too
weak to justify verdict Of guilty; particularly,
that it was by no means satisfactorily establish
ed that the deceased did not commit euicde.
The analysis Of the evidence was extremely able;
and the skill with which the prevailing feeling
against the prisoner was used to warn the jury
against too ready an acquiesence in il, and thus
turned into weapon of defence, was very great.
The Attorney General replied in speech of much
power. After an absence of seventeen hours, the
jury brought in . verdict of not guilty.
Although Avery WAS unanimously exonerated
by the Conference Of the Methodist Church, (ac-
ton that has more than once had its counter
part in other denominations), he afterwards left
the minstry. He survived his acquittal more
than thirty six years, during which be led Sc
cluded and inoensive life, and died at Pittsield,
Ohio, where he had long resided in 1862 We
never heard that he made any confession of the
heinous crime Of which he was almost certainly
guilty.
Speaking of the trial. Mr.. HiIlard says:
81 will not voueh for the truth Of the follow
ing anecdote, but, If not true it is probable: 1t
is said that some time afer the trial, friend of
MI. Mason's not . lawyer ventured to ask him
whether he himself thought Avery was innocent
70 which Mr.. Mason replied, with smile
Upon my word, I never thought of in that light
before ?"-1aevicea Lsw Review