Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1881-12-24

each barrel loaded with ball, and she re-
| turned home. That evening about
o'clock, the neighbOr who had loaned
her the pistol came over to see If her
husband had returned, and found his
dead body just inside the gate. He had
been shot and fell dead in his tracks.
THE WIFE WAS ACCUSED
of the deed, almost as matter of course
A dozen people could remember of hav-
ing heard her wish "the old fool dead"
and when she gave up the pistol one bar
rel was found to have been recently dis
charged. There were those, too, who
had heard Chaplin say that she was
desperate woman, and that he feared for
his life, and altogether they made out
Very strong case against her.
HER DEFENSE. f
The woman seemed to be paralyZed by
the great crime. She hesitatsd, told
contradictory stories, and betrayed her
guilt to the eyes of all, and yet she de-
MED the commission of the crime. She
claimed that about six o'clock in the
evening strange dog entered the lot
next to the house and began worrying
the sheep, and that she had fired at him
and broken his leg. Thus her defense
was substantially negative one, and
1t did not stand minute with the jury.
When the case came to trial she was
promptly convicted of murder and sent
to state prison for life. She went there
declaring her innocence, but every per-
son knowing the circumstances Of the
case thought her justly punished.
LIVING EVIDENCE.
The Chaplin women had described the
dog over and over again, but because the
description did not tally with that of
any dog owned In the township there
was reason to believe that she invented
1t for the occasion. She had been in
prison two months, and over four months
had elapsed since the shooting, when a
farmer living within two miles of her
home discovered that an animal of some
sort was concealed under his barn. An
investigation brought to light the very
dog described by Mrs. Chaplin. Her bull
let had disabled it so that 1t moved
with difficulty, and from the appearance
of things under the barn 1t was clear
that the dog had been hiding there for
some time.
THE DEFLECTED BULLET.
A number of people now began to dis
cuss the wOman's case, and the investi-
cation was extended. On the opposite
side Of the highway, and no great dis
lance above the Capin homestead, was
another farm-hOme, whose owner cas-
ually mentioned the fact of his once
shooting at an owl sitting on certain
post: The post supported one end Of the
family clOthes-line, and had band of |
hoop iron around the top. An examina-
been struck by the bullet fired at the |
nd in foi 90
find out who killed Farmer Chaplin. A |
rifle was procured and bullet was sent |
against the band almost at the exact |
spot. 1t glanced away and flew down
the road and struck Chapin's house. A
second flew between the house and the
gate. A third passed between the gate
and the street. BY running back over
the dates and incidents the farmer who
shot at the owl fixed that occasion as
about on the evening of the murder.
Chaplin had gone to town with q neigh
Dor, and returned the last two miles on
foot. AS he entered the gate the reflect
ed bullet struck him down, and his wife
being busy in the kitchen, knew moth
ing of it.
PARDONED OUT.
Some would not accept the new theO-
RES, but all the jury did, the bar did,
and after serving six months of her
life sentence, the woman was pardoned,
and it is thought to be yet living. She
had settled down into kind Of dumb
lispair, and even when the doors were
opened to liberty her face wore no smile
# satisfaction or happiness. Here was
/ case where everybody thought there
vas an incentive to kill, where all cir
pointed to deliberate muir
Ter, and where the accused had no defense
worth putting forward, and yet sim
Die incident followed up established the
innocence of the accused, and proved
hat her defense was the truth.