The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-08-06
THE PRESS.
The Child Witness.


road, among peach and apple trees, and the
path running up from the gate is bordered
with pinks and moss.
/ should not speak so confidently; it is
five years since saw the village or the
house, and perhaps the awful tragedy en-
acted under the moss-covered roof one night
may have kept the house tenantless, and al
lowed time to tumble 1t down.
One day in answer to telegram sent
from the nearest railroad station to L.,
matter of dozen miles, rode into the
quaint old village on the top of the stage,
and at once reported myself to the town au-
thorities. Every inhabitant of the village,
even to the ragged urchins sitting on the
tavern porch, carried a grave face and
talked in whispers. Had l not known
double murder had been committed the
night before, could have read some news
almost as bad by glancing at the faces of
the towns people.
While was eating my supper at the only
hotel the town clerk and the president OF
the village sat opposite and told me the sto-
~. 1t seemed that Arnold, 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 had few
dogs before the murder, disposed Of a farm
and some manufacturing interests in Pitts
burg, realizing several thousand dollars in
cash. He intended visiting the sons and
dividing the money between them, but had
placed 1t 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 1t not been for little Jack,
az he was called, child four years old.
The child had been abandoned by woman
passing through the village, and the Arnolds
had taken it for company in fact, had made
provision to adopt it.
The night before at nine o'clock citizen
had seen Arnold at his gate smoking pipe.
No one heard any alarm from the house dur
ing 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 had hit grandpa and grandma
on the head with an axe"
There was an 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 the temple, which
had caused death almost instantly. The
child was not in the least injured, bat
seemed to have been badly frightened.
This was the gist of the story got while
eating, but found that none of the sensa-
tional points had been overdrawn, when l
reached the house. The corpses had been
the subject of inquest, and had been washed
and placed in collins, but the rooms had not
been disturbed. A constable had been pres
emit all the time to see that any clue that
might have been left of the murderer
should not be erased by careless hands or
feet.
The room where the tragedy occurred was
a double bedroom on the ground floor. 1t
contained two beds, one of which was occu-
pied by the old lady alone and the other by
the old man and little Jack. The murderer
had come in at the back door, bringing
along the axe from the wood pile. He had
passed into the bedroom, lighted a candle
which stood on the stand, and been some
time in the room before using the weapon.
1 knew this because the top drawer of the
old bureau was pulled out, its contents were
tumbled over, and there were no bloody fin
ger-marks on anything The other drawers
were daubed with blood, showing that he
searched these after the murder.
Something had aroused the old man from
his sleep. He had started to get out of bed
when struck by an axe. Tho old lady had
just heard the noise when the cruel imple-
ment descended on her head, the positions
In which the bodies were found bearing out
my theory. The night had been chilly and
little Jack probably Struggled down under
the quilts, and had thus escaped harm,
though as afterwards shown, he had been a
silendwitness 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, daub-
ing his fingers with blood and leaving marks
ON the pillows. / counted five different
places where he rested his left hand on the
pillows while searching with his right, and
in every case there were four daubs or spots.
There should have been five. He would not
put four fingers down and hold up his
thumb. No; the thumb on the left hand
was missing-cut off at least at the first
joint.
This was clue, and all my subsequent
investigations proved that l was correct in
believing So There was another thing.
The man had torn up the carpet of the bed
room in several places; and had got out the
Bible and looked between its covers; had
taken down and searched the clothing in
the closet, and had been SO cool and thor
ough in his search that / knew he was nc
ordinary offender. A common thief would
have fled after committing murder, or at
most stopped only long enough to search
the bureau. Whoever the man was, he had
not secured a dollar in money. He had,
however, taken away an old-fashioned gold
watch belonging to Arnold, which was out
of repair, and chiefly preserved as an heir
loom. A dozen persons could identify the
watch, if found, and here was something
which might prove good clue.
could not expect to get much out of the
boy, owing to his youth. Taking him on
my knee made his acquaintance, gave him
some pennies and then asked him what he
saw.
"You see," began the child, very gravely,
81 heard granda talking and getting up,
and then l saw big robber jump up and hit
him with the axe. Then grandpa fell down
and the big man went over and struck
grandma. Then he looked in the bureau,
on the bed, in grandpa's box in the closet
and then went off, and then went to
Sleep"
dreaded to ask how the man looked, for
much depended on his answer. But he was
ready with his reply, and all my cross-ques-
tioning could not alter bis statement
"Big MANFRED collar (necktie) on-great
big breastpin-red whiskers like Mr.. jack
son there-shining ring on his finger-one
eye almost shut up.
tried to make little Jack believe that the
murderer had black hair and was a little
man, but he stuck to his story. Then one
of the constables talked to him about some
thing else for ten minutes, and then ques-
toned him as to the appearance of the man
but the story was the same as told me at
lIbl. Several OI US Wrote IL GOWN, anu
charged the child to remember it.
Twas convinced that the murderer was a
stranger in that part of the country. No
one had seen him come or go; no one knew
the hour of his arrival or departure, and he
had left no clue Misunderstanding but my
theory that the thumb was missing from the
left hand. l rode out to the toll gates, but
he had.not been seen to pass. questioned
the stage drivers, but they could give no sat
isfactfon. went to the railroad station,
but no one could remember having re-
marked the presence of stranger on that
night. The murderer had arrived and depart
ed like bird.
Twas considerably discouraged in not
striking his trail, but l was determined to
pursue the case until there was no longer
any hope, or until had found the criminal.
Visiting Pittsburg and Harrisburg laid my
plans to trap him if he tried to dispose of
the watch, 1 wrote letters to various Off
cials and then could do no more. For six
months had the case uppermost in my
mind, while transacting other detective bust
ness, but failed to find the least clue.
Then one day got trace.
was riding on the cars of the Pennsylva-
mia Central railroad when l observed an old
lady shaking gold watch in her hand and
then holding it to her ear to see if it would
run. Crossing over to her l asked to look
at the watch, and she handed it out with the
remark.