The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1889-09-12
AN ALIBI.

G14N 4AA1D1S
The man who sits down to deliber-
ately plan crime works every point
and detail to one common center
an alibi. The law has common sense
enough in this one particular opre-
sumo that man who is in Boston,
for instance, when a murder is COM
mitted in Cincinnati could not have
fired the shot or struck the blow.
Therefore, let one accused Of crime
prove to the jury that he was at
some other point at certain critical
hour, and he must be declared inno-
cent. This knowledge makes the
alibi a favorite defense. If not clear
ly proved, it always raises doubts
and affords opportunity for argu-
ment. On the other hand, however,
when an alibi is fairly beaten by the
prosecution, then circumstantial evil
dence becomes the death trap of the
accused, and he has no show.
One of the best laid alibis I ever
ran up against in my career as de-
tective, and one of the easiest to
work out after I got the end of the
thread in hand, was put forward in
case in Iowa about twenty years
ago. The situation was this: In a
small village in the western part of
the State lived a Miss Clarinda
Moore, a spinster about forty
five years of age. She was
worth fifty thousand dollars,
and she had adopted a boy
named Byron Fergus. At the date
of which am writing this boy was
no longer boy, but young man
of twenty-three. He was employed
as a clerk in a dry-goods house, and
boarded and lodged at home. He
was adopted at the age of twelve,
and on the day he reached his ma
iority Miss Moore made a will leav,
ing him everything. This fact was
known to all in the village. Fergus
was model young man. No one
could point out a single bad habit,
He was trusted and respected by all,
and had he been accused ofthe slight
est dishonesty no one would have
believed the charge.
In a smaller village six miles away
Fergus had an aunt who was a
widow and lived alone, with the ex
ception OF having the company of a
servant girl. He was in the habit
of going over there about once in
two months and remaining over
Sunday. On these trips he drove q
horse and buggy belonging to the
village cooper. The horse had a
peculiar habit VIII ch will be described
later OH. One Saturday evening o
q July day Fergus drove away on
one of these trips. There were two
or three women at the gate in com
pany with Miss Moore when hedrove
away. the only thing out of the
usual run was the remark that
Byron looked rather pale and seemed
q bit nervous, but probably this
would never have been thought oi
but for what came to pass.
At eleven o'clock thnt night there
was o thunder-stornyand an insur
ance agent who was ON the road be
tween the two villages, with horse
and buggy, drove into a fence corner
and sheltered himself as well as posi-
ble with the waterproofs. In th'
midst of the storm a horse and bug
gy came along. The dryer was sC
enveloped by waterproofs that tn
agent could not tell whether he wa
old or young, large or small, blacl
or white. At that spot the road hat
been graded up and was very soft
The stranger was urging the hors'
to trot, but the beast found the muC
too deep, and could only proceed a
a walk. AS the strange horse CAM
opposite there was a long, vivit
fash of lightning, and the agent say
that the animal had his head turnet
to the right and his tongue out
this was the peculiar habit of tn
cooper's horse when on O walk
When trotting he held up his hea,
and kept his tongue back. The agen
identified the horse to his perfect sat
isfaction, and called out to the driv
er, asking who he was. Instead O
hating or replying the man strucl
the horse sharply with the whip an,
was out of sight in q moment.
THAT'S old Shepperd (the cooper
and he's afraid lam q highwayman.
laughed the agent, and, the rain no,
beginning to cease, he made ready t,
resume his journey.
i Miss Moore was an early riser, an
moreover never missed church sci
vices. As the day was fine and sh
was not seen at church, two or thre
of her friends called at the house o.
their way tol ascertain her excuse
They found the curtains down an,
the doors locked. As they knew c
young Fergus going to his aunt th
evening previous they reasoned
out that he must have returned dul
ing the night for Miss Moore, sh
perhaps being wanted for an emel
gency. This theory satisfied ther
until iour in the afternoon, when on
of them returned to gather q bot
quet of flowers. She then notice
bloody finger-marks on the bac
door, and, trying the door, found
unlocked. She dared not enter th
house. but two or three men wer