The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1882-08-18
The Baby Witness.

The following touching scene recent
ly occurred in n court of Justice in Paris
A poor pale seamstress was arraigned fol
theft. She appeared at the bar with her ba-
by of eleven months on her arm. She went
TO get some work one day and stole three
gold coins OF 10 francs each. The money
was missed soon after she left her employer,
and a servant was sent to her room to claim
it. The servan found her about to quit
the room with the three gold coins in her
hand She said to the servant 81 was just
going to carry them back to you" Never
theless she was carried to the commissioner
of police, and he ordered her to be sent be-
fore the police court for trial. She was too
poor to engage q lawyer, and when asked
by the judge what she had to say for her.
self, she answered: "The day | went to
my employers l carried my child with me.
1t was in my lap as it is now. / was not
paying atter ion to it. There were several
gold coins on the mantlepiece, and unknown
to me, II stretched out its little hands and
seized three pieces, which l did not observe
until l got home. l at once put on my
bonnet, and was going back to my employ
er to return them when | was arrested
This is the solemn truth, as l hope foI
heavens mercy.n
The court could not believe this story.
They upbraided the mother for her impu-
denco in endeavoring to palm off such q
manifest lie for the truth. They besought
her, for her W sake, to retract so absurd
q tale, for it could have no effect but to
oblige me court TO sentence her to n much
severer punishment than they were dispos-
cd to int1ict upon one SO young, and evil
IDENTIFY deep in poverty.
These appeals had no effect, except to
strengthen the poor mothers p%ertinacous
adherence to her original story. As this
frmness was sustained by that look of in
nocence which the most adroit criminal
can never counterfeit, the court was at
some loss to discover what decision Justice
demanded. To relieve their embarrass-
ment, one of the judges proposed to renew
the scene described by the mother. Three
gold coins were placed on the clerks table
The mother was requested to assume the
same position in which she stood at her
employers house. There was then a breath.
less pause in court. The baby soon dis.
covered the bright coins, eyed them for Q
moment, smiled, and then stretched forth
it, tiny hand and clutched them in its
fingers with a miser's eagerness. The
mother was at once acquitted.
NEED NEVER GROW OLD.-The heart
of man need never grow old. 1t may in
crease in depth, and grasp, and power of
affection, till it ceases to beat. But in or
der to do this, in order not to grow old in
heart, the affections must be exercised.
And they must be directed toward objects
of worth and ~permanence. II you love the
world your heart will grow old. If you
love the riches of earth you will become
a miser. If you love the honors of the
world, you will become a disappointed
~misanthrope. If you love the pleasures
of the world, you will become nauseated
and sick, and loathe the very objects that
excite YOU passions. But if you love vir-
tue and goodness embodied in the virtu-
GUS and the good of your companions and
friends-your heart viii be us young al
sixty as sixteen.