The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1889-08-31

flock another visit. He throttled but
one sheep at a visit, and even in this
particular evinced more prudence than
many such peccant CANNES exhibit.
A great deal of the evidence against
Brown was largely circumstantial, and
although altogether it made damag-
ing mass of testimony, the boy who
acted as his counsel would probably
have cleared him, but for single wit
ness which the prosecuting attorney
was able to produce.
This witness was boy about four
teen years of age, who had set line
of mink traps along brook. in a
woody valley between Browns home
and the pasture where the sheep had
been killed. The lad suspected another
boy of robbing his traps. and very
early one morning had hidden himself
near the brook to lie in wait for the
supposed pilferer.
Unwittingly he became the agent of
Browns detection, for as he lay con-
cealed, he saw large dog come down
the hillside from the direction of the
sheep pasture and approach the bank
of the brook. 1t was not so early and
dark but that he could distinguish that
the animals paws and mouth were
red with what seemed to be blood.
But in moment. he asserted, the dog
bounded into the brook. and began to
RIM up and down in the water, sousing
his nose and entire head more than
twenty times. and indeed, continuing
in the water for ten or fifteen minutes,
till not stain was left upon him!
The lad was very sure that the bath
had not been taken for the pleasure of
the thing, since the morning was SO
chilly that. as he lay watching, his
teeth chartered from cold.
He identified Brown as the dog which
he had seen at the brook. So positive
had he been that the dog had been
killing sheep, that later in the morn
ing he went up into the pasture, and
found freshly torn carcass, as he had
expected.
Browns counsel being quite unable
to shake the adverse strength of this
testimony, the case went to the jury.
The judge charged them that as the
accused had shown himself fully as
shrewd and tricky as boy could have
been under such circumstances, he
must be held accountable for his crime,
and that no plea that he had acted
merely from instinct" would be al
lowed in that court. The jury re-
turned a verdict of guilty and the
judge formally sentenced Brown to be
hanged.
Brown, who had willingly and of his
own accord accompanied the boys to
the school-house, showed signs of great
uneasiness, it was said, before the trial
had progressed far, and would have
escaped had he not been held in the
witness box, tied with a rope.
After the court had adjourned, they
led Brown away to back pasture, and
hanged him to one of the lower limbs
OF wide-spreading beech-tree at the
edge of a wood-lct.
Two years after, as it CHANGED, L
taught the winter school at the little
school-house where the trial had taken
place. Late one autumn afternoon |
was returning homeward across pas
lures and forest land, with string of
cartridges, when my attention was ar
rested. suddenly, by what seemed TO me
a very singular spectacle.
Ithad grown rather dark-the opaque
gray dusk of cloudy November even
ing was setting in. was just emerging
from tract of woods, and directly in
front of me was large beech, the dry
leaves of which were rustling with a
chilly sound.
Beneath those beech limbs and leaves
stood an object which, in the dim light,
resembled a shadowy skeleton form,
standing as If awaiting my approach.
! stopped short. shall not attempt
to describe what strange and fearful
sensation stole over me, at the sight
of that thing with its dim, white bones!
AS / stood staring, l plainly saw that
it moved. that it turned half around. l
imagined that it started forward as If
to approach me. And
Well. I did not remain there any
longer to observe its movements.
moved myself tangentially, SO to speak.
My locomotive powers were good in
those days, and l arrived at my board
ing place, shortly afterward, much out
of breath.
had sufficient sense to resist my
first strong inclination to tell OF what I
had seen to the people of the house,
for 1t occurred to me, that for the
school-master to see ghost was not