The sun., 1879-02-26
A VICTIM OF DETECTIVES.
MANS LIFE THICE ~ JEOPARDY
ron 4 SINGLE CRIME
Once Acquitted. then Convicted, aad Dosraed
10 the Gnllows-N~w tte Chier Witness foe
tonNtctton RetrNcta his CaufessIan.

an exposure OF "a alleged plot 10y which a man
has been convicted OF murder.
On the 2d day Of November 1874. Susan A.
Hanson was murdered while sitting in tho
kitchen OF her mothers house ut Brook
field. N. II. On the evening Of tho day
in question, Miss Hanson was sitting at
table. in the room above spoken Of to-
gether with her mother aud brother Al about
72O gun. discharged near the win
dow. lodged n heavy charge OF buckshot in her
face and neck. killing her instantly. Every Of
fort was made ut tho tine to discover who tho
murderer WINS. but. beyond tho fact that tho
marks OF carriage wheels wcro discovered
on tho road leading TO tho house. and
tho impression OF the butt OF gun and
mans feet In field near the house. no trace
was then discovered. Miss Hanson WAS thirty
i've years OF age at the timo Of her death.
and, previous TO the murder, had kept
company with ono Joseph b. Buznll. n
stonecutter. thirty-eight years old. Buzznll
was engaged to bc married to NJ - Hanson
at one time. but. so report says. he post
poncd the wedding several times. He
was finally compelled TO marry another
woman. whereupon the murdered woman
brought suit against him for breach OF
promise. which suit was pending at the time
Of her death. As was natural. under the cir
cumst0nces. Buzzcl was suspected OF the
murder. and almost Immediately taken into
custody. lie protested his innocence saying
that on the day Of the murder he worked all
day in Woliborough. ending his work NJ
5k. going home by the mountain road and
arriving there at 7:20. This road would
not lead him within two miles OF the Hanson
house. He claimed that he did not leave home
after his ARRIVAL there from Wollborouch; hut
the theory 81 the prosecution WIS thnt h" did.
taking his gun with htm and proceed iug To- tho
Hanson house. The distance be would have To
travel WIS about two miles. aud the road WIS n
very rough one. The time when Miss Hanson
was ehot was from i've to fifteen minutes pust
z. and. IN order To- give BuZZ'll time enough to
make the Journey. n discrepancy of from half to
an hour was claimed between tho time AT his own
house and the time Mt Miss Hauson's. II wns
well known that he had "A larc" gun which
was missed Just after the murder. aud has
never been seen sine. although every effort
hes been mad" to discover iis whereabouts
When asked whore II WIS, BuZI'l told con-
nicting stories. every ono OF w'ich fastened
he Tns2im prlminarW %oTT SooTsSV GsSV HpW h
Junction, his testimony ns To his whereabouts
his wife and Charles W. Cook. the boy VINO sub
him in the. crime At the arst trial.
ncss@s we're s exanined. d soSms "i" oi them S
testified that the impressions Of the carriage
| wheels and horses feet on the road leading to
| the home OF the murdered woman, together
with the imprints OF mans loot IN ne h'li
the feet Of Bnzzeil's horse. the wheels ~ lis
carriage. and the boots worn by him: and vet
| others. equally Trustworthy, were quite sure
| Tint such Was not the case. Buzle.l was acqut-
| tel by the Jury.
Boiween the time OF the first trial aud ac-
/ Quittal of Mr.. BuZzell and tho ullecod confess
sion OF Cook. which was mad" May g. 1878 snv-
sral houses and barns in the vicinity 81 Brook
| Held We're destroyed 10y IRE. among them the
! house OF John Churchill. who WIS very proml-
| nrnt in pushing the prosecution of Buzeil,
Every effort was made To secure the arrest and
conviction of the incendiHry. Tut without
| susTss, Finally. through the Efforts of Mr..
Churchill the services ~ D"teetiV" Cohen
were secured. He and his assistant. Jack
| Conway. arrived at Brookiirld. " H.. about
the last of April. 1877. and Immediately coul-
ings about the towns in the vicinity Of 'Brooa-
Held, they. either by accident or he'ause they
| had been instructed % do So paid visit to
| Farmington at which place they cultivated very
| closely the acquaintance OF Charles W. Cook. "a
| farmers boy. who sui ssduentiy made n confess
rests. Cook was arrested on the 2sth of April
upon complaint charging him with burning
hotel in Pennington and keut in custody three
days. From Farmington be was taken TO
over 10 tho custody Of iligh shcriT D~lncr-
| ru. During the time lie was under arrest Mt
| along. deprived Of water 10 drink. although
| lie nsk ed Tor some several times, aud furnished
| instead an abundance OF lager beer. OF course
| the boy Was compelled 10 drink something. and
| as a natural Consequence got intoxicated.
not having been accustomed to drink
month his confession. ,mF,,!ratng, Buz-
| throughout tho town and State. In the con-
| fesslon Cook said. and subsequently, sw0re to
placed the blame on BuZ.sel WHO. he awuro.
threatened to Kill him II he iaued to Kill Miss
The day prior to tho murder" he said.
| Buzzell prevailed upon me 10 leave the employ
| OF VIM. Jenness. aud the following day. niter
| telling me that his suits with Mirs Han
sou were to be tried soon. asked me II
! would Kill her. This refused TO do.
hut consented. after some narleying. %
bring his tBuzzell'sl gun after O'Clock that
evening. TO large elm tree near the house OF
appointed time lie came up by Churchill's 8
quite sweaty. aud was almost covered with
told him 1 was going back. He said
he wanted me TO 90 up with him
him again was going back. He said that |
| had better go with him II knew when my head
was leyel. He used no other threat tnen lie
hitched the horse to a tree by the side Of the
wc went up across tho hills and pastures
leading TO the Hanson house. 70 little knoll
| from the house. think he then asked me- II
| would Kill her, and told him no; that would
rather be killed myself. He said he would
| who would swear we were not on the road. We
then went TO the front side Of the house. looked
and mother, and little boy. Buzzo wanted
me to shoot. and said had got 70 do it, or
he would blow, my head Of s Tas
! the gun, and told 10 fire it,
took II and fired. then ran TO Buxzeli's house
| hid away the gun. and went 10 bed, After the
| arrest of Buzzell for the murder, his trinl and
final discharge for want Of evidence, the whole
| matter pressed so heavily upon my nina that
| finally spoke to several parties about it, and
| made q statement Of the facts to tho Attorney
| General OF the State and also confessed 10 burn
| ing the house OF Mr. Churchill Tor Buzzell."
| Buzzell WAS at once rearrrsted. and put on
| trial as an accessory to tho murder. The case
excited great attention. Buzlall's counsel
claimed that he could not again be put In
| jeopardy for n crime OF which he had been Hc-
| quilted and that the Constitution WIS evaded
| nullnod and violated by the prosecution. The
| Court however, decided adversely, and Buzzell
was convicted. The case comes up for review
before the Supreme Court in March.
Cook WAS set at liberty great many men
believed that Buzzell had been the victim Of a
conspiracy especially rs the detectives. Cohen
aud Conway. are far from being above suspi-
con. Several persons went quietly nnd
drterminedly to work TO get at the
inside OF the pfTair. and the result
has been that tho boy Cook has made
an affidavit affirming that Cohen and Conway
threatened and intimidated him into making \
false aud perlured statement and that. as a
matter Of fact he knew nothing OF the xii ing
OF Hiss Hanson. Conway and Cohen ara both
under arrest on charge OF conspiracy To