Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1880-06-04
THE CHILD WITNESS.

Inc AlnOlus nVeu III Tue Olu Drown
house which you may yet notice at the
right of the road just M you enter the
village OF L., Pennsylvania, from the
south. The house stands back about
ten rods from the road among peach and
apple trees, and the little path running
up from the gate Ia bordered with pinks
and moss.
should not speak SO confidently; il
is five years since saw the village or the
house. and perhaps the awful tragedy
enacted under the moss-covered roof
ono night may have kept the house
tenantloss and allowed time totumble ii
down.
One day, in answer TO telegram sent
from the nearest railroad station To
l., n matter OF dozen miles, rodo
into the quaint old village on the top Of
/, he stage, and Mt once reported myself
t. the town authorities. Every inhabi-
tant Of the village, even TO the ragged
urchins sitting on the tavern porch, car
ried u grave face and talked in whis-
pers. Had not known )uble muir
der had been committed the night be-
fore, ! could have read some news
almost as bad by glancing Mt the faces
OF the town'speople.
While was eating my supper ut tho
only hotel the town clerk and the presi-
dent of the village sat opposite and
told ms the story. II seemed that Ar
mold, who was nearly sixty years old,
had two sons In another part Of the
state, and wishing to divide up his
property before his death, and, u few
days before the murder, disposed of u
farm and some manufacturing interest
in Pttsburg, realizing several thousand
dollars in cash. He intended visiting
the sons and dividing the money be-
tween them, but had IL in the village
bank until he should be ready to go.
Mrs. Arnold was old and gray headed,
and the couple would have been all
alone had IL not been for Little Jack, M
he was called, child four years old.
The child had been abandoned by q
woman passing through the village,
and the Arnold's had taken il for com
pany; in fact had made provision to
adopt it.
The night before, Mt 8 o'clock, u citi-
zen had seen Arnold at his gate smok-
ing pipe. No one heard amy alarm
from the house during the night, but
about sunrise Little Jack crept down
into the village, his night gown red with
blood, and told the first one he met,
Somebody Ind hit grandpa and grand
mn on the head with nh axe"
There was nm investigation and the
aged couple were found at the house
dead and terribly mutilated. The old
mans head was nearly split in two, and
Mrs. Arnold had horrible wound on
he temple, which had caused death
almost Instantly. The child was not
in the least injured, but seemed to have
been badly frightened.
This was the gst of the story got
while eating, but l found that none of
the sensational points had been over
drawn when reached the house. The
corpsea had been washed and placed in
collins, but the rooms had not been dis
turbed. A constable hadbeen there ut tho
time TO see that any clue which might
have been left of the murder should
not DO erased by careless hands or feet.
The room where the tragedy occurred
was double bed room on the ground
floor. II contained two beds, one of
which was occupied by the old lady
alone, AID the other by the old man
and little Jack, The murderer had
come in Mt the back door, ard brought
along the axe from tho woodpile. lie
had passed into the bedroom, lighted n
candle which stood on the stand, and
had been seme time in the room before
thn I ErAt., thtu no
cause the top drawer of the old bureau
was pulled out, its contents tumbled
over, and there were no bloody finger
marks on anything. The three other
drawers were daubed with blood, show
ing that he searched those after the
murder.
Something had aroused the old man
from his sleep. He had started TO get out
Gfbed when struck by an AK. The old
lady had just heard the noise when the
cruel implement decended on her head,
the positions in which the bodies were
found bearing out my theory. The night
had been chilly, and Little Jack prob
ably snnggled down under the quilts,
and had thus escaped harm, though, as
afterward shown. he had been " silent
witness Of part OF the proceedings.
The murderer made thorough
search of the house, taking his time
about it. He had first felt under the
old mans pillow after money, and then
under Mrs. Arnold's daubing his fingers
with blood, and leaving his his marks
on the pillows. l counted FIVE different
places where rested his left hand on the
pillow while searching with his right
and in every case there were only four
daubs or spots. There should have
heen five. He would not put down four
fingers and hold up his thumb. No.
the thumb ON the left hand was miss
ing--cut off at least Mt the first joint.
This was clue and all my suisse
quent Investigations proved that was
correct in believing 30. There was
another thing. The man had torn up
the carpet Of the bed room in several
places; had got out the Bible and look
ed between its covers; had taken down
and searched the clothing in the closet;
md had been 80 cool and thorough in
his search that knew he was no ordi-
nary ofipnder common thief would