The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-11-13

whole matter 10 the Grand Jury for fur.
/ ther examination"
Weeks passed, and then the trial came
on at the Courthouse at Centreville
Samson Glider had been committed tc
answer charge Of willfally wrecking 9
train.
Mary Britton lived years in those few
weeks. She could not believe that Sam.
son had committed 50 great wrong. Yet
everything was against him. Track.
layers bars were abundant enough. He
could easily have found one about the
place, and with it have drawn the spikes
from a rail. Her mind went backward
and forward over all this hundred
times in search of something to prove
him innocent She still attend ID to her
duties at the station, sending and re-
ceiving messages. One morning, as she
sat thinking bitterly of the sorrow that
had invaded her life, her eyes fell upon
an old newspaper fallen under her desk,
the Iron Trade Review. She picked it
up, opened it, and turned to the second
page. All! why had she forgotten those
pictures? Strange, black figures, etch-
ings of iron, nature-printed. Given this
| light clue, her mind leaped TO brave
resolve. She would bring science to
loves rescue; how, she could not tell
She had vague idea of what might be
done, and, asking her father to attend to
the telegraph, she ran hastily out on the
line, and down the road toward the vii
lage. Stopping at certain little house,
she found q girl who was a good operator
and at once hired her to take her place at
the station.
Before night she had taken every dol
lar she had in the world from the savings
bank, and was on her way to the city.
The cars seemed to drag too slowly. Why
had she fingered so long, and Samson in
danger3 -. v.o ..O.
The day of the trial came on. All the
testimony that we know, and much of
less importance, had already been offered
by the prosecution. The defense set up
the previous good character of the priso-
ner, and that seemed all that could be
said. s.aI s.... ....,a, y .
Mary Britton had given her testimony
early in the trial; she had more to say,
but was not yet ready to speak. All the
morning she had sat in the court room,
watching the clock, and waiting for one
brave defender to come to her assistance
AT the last momeIt she spoke to the
counsel and asked for a slight DELAY.
There might be yet other witnesses. The
defense began to talk against time, and a
messenger was sent to hasten the tagging
aid
The knight arrived. A pale thin-faced
Young man in glasses appeared and de-
manded to give his testimony. Behind
him came marvellous array-men with
strange TOOLS, lanterns Of singular con-
struction, bars and rods Of iron, and
number of gentlemen who seemed to be
prosperous merchants and manufacturers.
There came also an old German Jew and
a farmer from Bastow's. The Young
man spoke to Mary Britton with the ut
most d ference, and she consulted with
him For moment and then presented
him to Samson's counsel.
There was slight murmur of surprise
at the demonstration, and then Samuel
Mayer was duly sworn. He testified that
he was an expert in metals. He had ex-
amined the bar found under the wrecked
car, and was prepared to prove that if it |
was used in wrecking the train, it was not |
the one purchased by Samson Glider
With the permission of the Court, he
would like to have the room darkened,
that with the aid of lantern he might
project some nature-printed pictures of
the iron used in making the bar.
The prosecution objected. What |
scientific jugglery was this? The old
lantern dodge familiar in cases Of for
gerry. The court overruled the objection,
and the young man produced some pieces
of cloth, which his assistants spread over
the windows, till the room became quite
dark. A gas jet was lighted, and in the
dim light other men vet up a screen and
jime-light lantern as for lantern proiec-
tions. In wonderfully short time there
on the white screen a strange
fgure--a cloud or blotch of blackness.
Samuel Mayer then testified that at the
request of Miss Britton he had planed
one side of each of the two bars till a
smooth surface had been obtained. A
portion of this surface on each bar had
then been etched with acid, and from this
etching had been obtained nature-printed
copies or prints mink. This well-known
method Of etching gave prints showing
the disposition of the particles of the
metal, and also its quality.
These etchings and a number of others
taken from other bars and rods made by
the different irOn-makers of the country,
had been photographed for lantern pro-
jcctions, and, with the permission of the
court some of these would be exhibited
TO the jury. The projection now on the
screen WAS from the bar purchased by
Glider and stolen by the tramp.
Every eye was fixed on the singular
picture on the screen, and a murmur of
applause filled the room. Suddenly the
picture was removed and another put in
its place. 1t did not require much at
Iention to show that this represented an
entirely different sort of metal.
"This, gentlemen saM the young
man, sis nature printed etching from
The iron har found undar fire car 7