The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1880-06-03
Whiftaker's Prototype.


Whitaker by a story which AIr. Curtis tells
in his life OF Webster of the alleged robbery
and wounding Of Major Goodridge, Of
Massachusetts, sixty years ago, as inveSti.
gated and exposed by Dir. Webster. Mr..
Curtis's narrative is so clear and interesting
that we reproduce it in bis own words:
Goodridge was person OF previous good
character and respectable standing, who
professed to have been robbed OF a large
sum OF money at about O'Clock in the
night OF December 10, 1916. on the road
between Exeter and Newburyport, soon
after passing the Essex Merrimac bridge on
his way from New Hampshire into Massa.
chusetts. Among the proofs OF the rob-
berry was pistol-shot through his left hand,
received, as he said, before the rob-
bers pulled him from his horse, he and
one Of his assaiants discharglng their
pistols at each other on the same in
stant. He was then, according 10 his ac.
count, dragged from his horse and across
a fence into a field, robbed and beaten
until he was SeUseless. On his recovery be
went back TO the dollhouse on the bridge,
where he appeared 10 be for a time in state
of delirium. But he had sufficient self-pos-
session TO return to the place OF the robbery
with some persons who accompanied him
with lantern, where his watch, papers, and
other articles were found scattered on the
ground. On the following day he went TO
NewDurypOrt and remained there i'll, at in
teryals in state Of real or simulated frenzy,
for several weeks. Having rcgained his
health he set about the discovery OF the rob-
bcrS; and so general was the sympathy for
him in very orderly community that his
plans were aided by the innocent zeal OF
nearly the whole country side. His frs.
charge was against the Kennistons,
two poor men who dwelt in the
town of New Market, n. H., on the
other side Of the river. in their cellar he
found piece OF gold, which he identified
by a mark which he said he placed on all
his money, and 80 note which he also
identified as his own. The Kennlstons were
arrested, examined, and held for trial. He
next charged the -gatherer, one Pearson,
as an accOmplice; and on his premises. with
the aid of q witch-haZ coniurer, he also
found some of his gold and papers in which
it had been wrapped. Pearson was arrest
ed, examined before two magistrates, and
discharged. GOOdridge then complained
against one Taber, person who lived in
Boston. Finally he followed a man
named Jackman to the city OF New
York, in whose house he swore that he also
discovered some OF bis marked wrappers.
The machinery OF an executive requi-
sition was put into motion and Jack
man was brought into Massachusetts and
lodged in Jail. He and Taber and the
Kennistons were then indicted for robbery
in the county OF Essex. So cunningly had
this man cOntrived his story that the pOpu-
lar belief was entirely with him. The
witch-hazel OF his evidence probably did
not diSincline the populace to believe him.
But it is even said that there were few mem
bers Of the county bar who did not regard
the case of the KennistOns as desperate.
There were some, however. who be-
lieved GoOdridge's story TO be false,
and these persons sent for Mr.. Web
ster TO undertake the defence Of the
accused The Indictment against Taber
was mol. pressed. That against the Ken
nistOns came on for trial at Ipswich in April,
1917. They had nothing on which to rely
but their previous good character and the
negative fact that since the supposed rob-
berry they had not passed any money nor
were seen TO have any, and the improbable
ties with which their advocate could de-
yelop in the story OF Goodridge. The
theory OF the defence was that Goodridge
was his own robber and had fired the pis-
tol-shot through his hand.
In the power Of cross-eXaminsing wit
nesses Mr.. Webster had no superior OF the
day, and his reputation in this respect doubt
less aided the impression which he produced
upon the jury.
There we've traditions which bad come
over the border from New Hampshire OF
his terrible skill in battling the deepest
plans OF perjury and fraud, which excited
the jury to the closest attention to his
method Of dealing with Go0dridge. They
saw his well-concocted story laid bare in all
It's improbable features, while every aid
was given to him by Mr.. Webster to de-
yelop suggestions which could be set of
against the theory that the latter meant TO
maintain. But when all the evidence
for and against Goodridge's narrative
had been drawn out, and il came
TO the summing up, there remained
two obvious difficulties in the WY
OF that hypothesis. One OF them was that
no motive had been shown for 80 strange an
act as a mans falsely pretending to have
been robbed and charging the robbery upon
innocent people; the other that the theory
Of Goodridge being himself robber appa-
rently made it necessary to believe that he
had proceeded in this fraudulent manufac-
ture OF proofs to the extremity OF shooting
a pistol bullet through his own hand.
These were very formidable difficulties, for
The law OF evidence, as administered in our
criminal jurisprudence, very properly re-
CARDS the absence OF motive for an act, the
commission Of which depends on circum-
stantia proof, as one Of the important
things TO be weighed in favor OF inno-
cence; and as to the shooting, 1t was
certainly 10 high degree improbable that
man would MAIN himself in order to main
tain false statement that he bad been rob-
bed and maimed by some one else. But IN
graphing with these difficulties Mr.. Web
ster told the jury that the range OF human
motives is almost Infinite; that desire 10
avoid payment of his debts il he owed debts,
or whimsical ambition for distinction,
might have been at the bottom of Good
ridges conduct, and that having once an
nounced himself TO a community as man
who had been robbed OF large sum ana
beaten nearly 10 death, he had to go on ana
Charge somebody with the act. THIS was cor
rect reasoning, but still no motive had Deeh
shown for the original pretence; andn tbere
had not been some decisive circumstances
developed on the evidence 1t is not easy 10 say
how this case ought to have been decided.
These circumstances make 1t necessary 10
believe that, although Goodridge had MN,
self discharged the pistol which WOUNDED
him. be intended that result. His story
was that the pistol OF the robber went on at
the moment when he grasped II win his
left hand. Yet, according 10 the tcSIimopy