Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1884-06-11

| Criminal Court, this week, was the shortest
on record-a short half day; from Monday
noon till Monday evening. The only juries
called were those on the Saxonburg liquor
cases, and those only on the question OF costs.
| The informations in the cases of Muder, Laube
and Kohnfelder were defective, in that the
constable had not sworn to the written parts OF
| the informations and had omitted the names
of the defendants from the printed forms,
which let them out. Montgomery the coun-
terfeiter, plead guilty and was sent TO the PEN
itentiary for one year; Leonard, for assault and
battery, also plead guilty and was sentenced,
and the other cases on the list were settled.
The stables of Mr.. J. r. Spang and Mrs.
Steen, located on Lincoln Way, between Penn
and West Pearl streets, were destroyed by fire
last Saturday afternoon. The two stables were
about dozen feet apart, with a chicken coop
and wagon shed between them, in which the
fire originated, though the cause of its origin
is not known. Some loose straw lying on the
lower floor of Spang's stable made the fire
spread almost instantane ously over the whole
building. The hose companies ran line from
the plug at corner of Main and Pearl streets as
soon as possible, but could do nothing but save
the surrounding buildings, particularly the
residence of Mr.. o. K. Waldron, which was on
fire several times. Spang's stable was not in
sured, and his loss will probably reach S400,
as his stable was an unusually well built one,
having solid oak floors and joists-and at the
time contained sleigh, pair of bob-sleds,
chest of carpenter tools, and many other things,
all of which were burned. This fire proves
the necessity of the water pipe being laid out
to that part of the town. Some twenty houses
there are now unprotected from fire, and there
are a dozen families who would use reservoir
water If given an opportunity to do so.
Among the incidents related to a reporter
by commercial traveller named John Gilbert,
as occurring during late alleged 'eyentful
trip" of his from New York to this section and
back, are the following:
"At Butler, man 5S years old, with great
grandchildren old enough to be married, had
came in from the back country and was look
ing for someone to marry him to girl not yet
sixteen. He was leading her around by the
hand This didn't stop business in the place,
but it made talk. He wasn't married yet when
| left. The girl was nice looking, neat and
smart and wondered what she could be think
ing Of / found out later that the old man had
a tip top farm and $4,000 in cash.
"At Petrolia the people were out looking for
a wild man. They hadn't lost one, but they
seemed anxious to find this one, because he
was chiefly engaged in butchering sheep and
things that are usually left around loose in the
fields out there Before the wild man came to
disturb them a long-headed old citizen had
been robbed for the third time by masked bur
glars. He had the habit of keeping hundred
thousand dollars or so stuck away in coffee
pots, stockings, old boots. and such, because he
didn't believe in banks. The folks were so
broke up over the wild man that | thought it
would be too bad to mention business to them,
so / grabbed my gripsack and shook the place"
These and dozen other similar items, are
an indirect reflection on the quality OF the
liquor now sold in Western Pennsylvania.