Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1880-01-09

brought into town, and purchased by T..
j. Brin, of the New York Store, who
will keep him him on exhibition for the
inspection OF seekers after the curious in
natural history.
One fltilul Christmas.
From tho New York World.
Among the prisoners arraigned at Jefferson
Market Police Court Christmas morning was
man who said he WAS James Smith. He
had been arrested tho night before for having
committed burglary At the plumbing. shop of
James Fleming, at rs West Twenty seventh
street. Joseph Murphy saw the prisoner
break the glass in the show-window and steal
eight faucets and three water filters, worth
altogether $12. When brought into the court
room the prisoner, who is forty years old, was
crying, and when lead before Justice Flammer
| was almost unable to speak. eyes. broke
into the place; admit it, be finally said !;
"my wife and child were starving and was
forced 70 do It," Thinking that the prisoner
might possibly be telling the truth Justice
Flammer questioned him at length. His story
was as follows: 'T am an American, and q
carbuilder by trade. live at No. 172 MuI-
berry street. For four years I was employed
in the Hudson River oar-shops. A year ago
was compelled Iy sickness to quit work.
took cold my throat swelled 90 that could
not swallow, and almost lost the use of my
right arm from rheumatism. For a month
was treated at home by DR.. Purcell, who, 1
think, is one of the sanitary inspectors. was
told could not live. My wife induced me to
90 to the Metropolitan Throat Hospital, and l
was cured there after three months. bad J.
little money laid up when left my work, but
| it was soon spent. My wife worked at max
ing straw hats for Mr.. J. Sears, sasnusact-
urer, Of No. 1856 Bleecker street. She made
sometimes 81 and So week. had to buy
expensive medicines, and when ny slouey
was gone pawned my clothes to buy them
and help support my wife and eight-year-old
SOD. Our bedding went in the same va, we
had temporary relief, but that was all. l
rried to get work, but couldn't. I carried
baskets about and picked up few odd pen
MES. My clothes we're not fit to 70 any
| shere after work. Then my wife was taken
! sick. She had worked herself to death.
have seen her sit up and work on those bats
from 6 O'Clock in the evening until in the
morning. She could not stand it, and began
to fail some months ago. The slight cough
| she had became worse and worse. For four
weeks now che has had hemorrhages from the
| lungs. she had q doctor from Broome street
but he did her no good, and she tried person
who advertises to cure by electricity. Lately
she has been SO feeble that ahe could not
leave her room OF even 90 down stairs, and
| every day she is worse. She is dying of CON.
sumption. Ny boy is at home with his moth
er. He workf sometimes at Gaming chairs and
makes or ce is q day. For many a day
my wife and child have not had a decent meal.
The people in the house sometimes sent US up
crusts or perhaps potato or two, but we have
even that. On Christmas Eve we had
not tasted bit of meat for a week, and had
nothing in the house to eat. My wife was
! very feeble, my boy was hungry and food
must be got somewhere. dumped out of bed
and left the house. Before I went my wife
begged me to do nothing wrong. walked
up Sixth avenue towards my mothers: I'd
rather not tell her name. She is very poor
and my sister works hard for her living.
When reached Twenty seventh street it be-
gan to rain. Istepped under an awning there
to keep dry. Then first the idea of stealing
occurred to me. picked npa clan.-shell
from pile near by and broke one CT the side
windows Of the shop. did MT even know
what kind of a shop it was, hut snatched
what could get through the broken pane.
When I got the property-I did not know
what to do with it. should not hav. stolen
it knew, but was desperate. 1t is enough
to drive a man mad to zee bis wife dying and
his child starving with poverty, and she had
been good wife to me-" Justice Flamner
was quite satisfied that the prisoner was telling
the truth, but was forced to hold him for trial.
Smith was put under 81 OGO bail. and locked
up in the Jefferson Market Prison. As soon
as the court proceedings we're over Justice
Flammer sent Officer McsaIly to investigate
the case. In small, dingy room. in the
fourth story of building in the rear Of No.
172 Mulberr, street the officer found the pris
oner's wife and son. The four pairs of stairs
leading to the room from the ground a,e on
the outside Of the building. The officer found
that the risoner had told the truth except
! that he had given a wrong name The officer
, reported the case to a Mr.. Parker, a visitor
for the Society for the improvement Of the
Condition of the Poor, whom he happened to
meet, and that gentleman ordered some sup
plies for the family from neighboripg grocer.
Mcsally's statement was yesterday reduced to
writing, and Justice Flammer sent it with the
papers 20 the District Attorneys Office The
prisoner will undoubtedly he leniently dealt
with. His wife said yesterday afternoon
speaking in a whisper, that the food sent to
them bad. she thought already done her much
good. For many bours before she had eaten
nothing and was too weak to move about the
ro"m. day or two before. she bad fallen on
the floor while ber son was away, and was un-
able to struggle up again for what bad seemed
to her at least two hours. She had been sick
for several months and had do,e no work for
six weeks. Her cough had prevented her from
sleeping for an hour upinterruptedly for d
long time. But she thought that if she could
get enough to eat she could regain much of
the strength she had lost. Hor husband. she
said, had always been good to her She was
fri ghtencd or Christmas morning when she
saw him jump out Of bed and, after pacing
the room for some minutes, 60 ont hastily, and
called after him, bidding him do nothing
wrong. Justice Flammer SATURDAY morning
receive several letters containing money for
William Howard, the man who committed a
burglary on Christmas Eve to obtain as he say
few cents to keep bis wife and child from
starvation. One letter which bore no sigma
ture contained $50 note and rap as follows
If the story contained in the inclosed article
tcut from n wspaper) is true. will Justice
Flammer be kind enough to see that the fam
lily receive from time to time such assistance
az may be proper until the money forwa rdet
-$50-is exhausted. If the story is not true
then will His Honor be kind enough to see
| Al -.