The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-06-20
ON TRIAL FOR LIFE.
THE wOODFORD MURDER.

Another scene in the Bent and Roberts
tragedy, the killing Of Louis Valdez last
December, was acted at Manchester this
week when the two respondents, charged
with the murder Of the WoOdford wood
chopper, were arraigned before the
County Court and placed on trial for
their lives under an indictment for muir.
der in the first degree.
Thursday the 18th. in the afternoon
the court ordered the impanelling of a
jury and the trial opened. Notwith-
standing the wide notoriety of the case
in the vicinity of the occurrence of the
affair, much less trouble was expert
enced in the selection of the jury than
was anticipated by those in attendance
although the panel was exhausted and
several lalesmen were named; and at
half-past seven the court ad journed pre-
pared to go on with the trial in the
morning.
As at the hearing before Judge Oar
ling at Bennington last August, the ten
yeaT-old son of the victim was the
first and principal witness for the prose
cullOn. The direct examination was
comparatively short, conducted by States
Attorney o. NJ. Barber with Hon, j. X.
| DdNShtluNA anu u. W. Icl., luE
associates, but at its close the cross-ex.
animation for the defense, conducted by
Hon. W.B Sheldon assisted by the Hon.
f, L. Waterman of Rrsttleboro, Hon.
LOveland Munson and Seymour Van
Santyoord, & a of Troy. N. Y, was
poured IN upon him for three and one
half hours comprising over a thousand
questions covering the whole ground
travelled by the former hearings before
Hon. g. II, Darling and States Attorney
Barber, and through the entire course of
which the boy preserved a wonderful
GOODNESS which impressed all in the 70 )m,
although his former testimony, taken in
short hand and written out by steno-
grapher, confronted him at every step
and was constantly referred to by Mr.
Sheldon in the course of his examina-
ton. 1t cannot appear strange that his
evidence in some particulars should
have been somewhat shaken, but on the
whole his story was told again substan'
italy as at first although the positions
of the men were changed a trifle and his
recollection appeared to be somewhat
confused as to who had the long ide.
pole, how it was obtained and who
struck the first blows; but when al
length the long ordeal was over the gen.
erul impression as to the truthfulness OF
the boys story as a whole, remained, al.
though it is true, il had been shaken in
its vital parts. an ! was still to receive
another blow from the witnesses called
for the defense.
August Valdez was followed upon the
stand by witnesses testifying as to minor
points, the care of the injured man, the
actions of his wife and the miniature oil
the scene after the blow had been struck
illustrated to the jury by survey and
map of the premises prepared for the
State by Surveyor Bacon, occupying the
whole day Friday and part of Saturday
morning, until the expert medical testi
mony, with DR.. G. G. r. Jennings as
the first and principal witness for the
prosecution, was reached and another
long aud searching cross-eXaminationb by
MIR. Van SantvoOrd followed, occupying
very nearly the balance of the day. The
expert testimony also cOrresponded quite
closely with that of the former hear.
ings, giving edemd of the lungs as the
immediate cause of death. under an i'm
poverished condition of the blood and
exhaustion of the system resulting from
the injury to the brain; the many frac'
lures of the skull. the discovery of the
heart-clots and the paralysis of the right
side as consequence of the injury tC
the lett hemisphere of the brain, all Of
which is already familiar to the readers
of the BANNER as having been elected al
the hearings before the Municipal court
Saturday, also, Mrs. Valdez, the wife
of the dead man was called by the State
lnFN nd n0N cd 20 but Inc .
her Polish dialect it was impossible for
the interpreter to comprehend her or t.
make her understand the questions di.
rected to her by the States Attorney
and when it Ahally became necessary tC
tell her she could not be understood and
that she would have to give it up, she
burst into a flood of tears, and rising in
the witness stand raised her hands to-
wards heaven and in her strange, strong
language called upon the "Groschen
Colt" to come and help her in her cause,
The scene created a much deeper i'm.
preston upon all who witnessed 1t than
testimony could possibly have done.
She was finally led from the court room
and the trial proceeded. Once after
wards upon suddenly catching sight of
her husbands shattered and severed
skull as il was presented to the view of
the jury, she was strangely affected aud
was again led from the room.
After making out dangerous case
against the respondents at the bar the
prosecution rested and the court ad-
jlurned until o'clock Monday morn
ing, the jury being kept in ''close con
finement" rs it were over Sunday under
the charge Of three deputies who made
it as easy for them as circumstances
would permit.
Tuesday afternoon after the evidence
in rebuttal and sur-rebuttal the case
closed for the arguments. DR.. + w.
Goodall, called for the defense had testi-
fled substantially with the other physi-
clans as to the immediate cause of the
death, but had not been so positive as
they that the victim could not have
travelled the distance of some thirty
seven feet, including his length, from
where the dsfense claimed the blow was
| delivered, to where the blood spot lay on
the snow and where it was concluded
Valdez had fallen. He also claimed and
gave scientific reasons for his opinion.
that blow not fracturing the skull
would be more likely to fell a man in
!
skull owing 10 the difference of concus-
zion, DR.. r. w. Bennett was also Of
that opinion and cited several cases from
the books in its support.
When the respondent Bent took the
stand murmur of interest ran through
the whole court room. In its minor de-
tails the story told by him agreed with
that of the witnesses for the State, but
when it approached the occurrence of
the affdy it differed widely from that
told by the boy. Mr.. Bent testified that
after the dispute between himself and
Valdez over the pay for the days labor,
which is already familiar TO the readers
of this paper, he had no more words
with the victim but went on about his
business loading his wood from the dray
TO the wagon handing it to Roberts who
piled ii upon the wagon and who stood
with his back to Walder and who was
quarreling with the latter over wrench
he had lost which Valdez supposed he
was being accused of stealing. Bent is
deaf and heard little of the conversation
but turning in his work he saw Valdez
rushing towards Roberts with his up
turned axe in his hands as if to strike,
and CRYING out warned Roberts just in
time for him to escape the blow. Rob
erts turned and dealt his assailant blow
upon the shoulder with fOur-foot stick
OF small wood which he CHANGED to have
| in his hand but which flew away from
him when he struck This blow fell
upon Walder's shoulder who recoiled a
couple of steps and infatuated by the
sting sprang at Roberts again, who sez
ed the long sled-pOle which lay by the
side of the dray and struck him upon
the head as he advanced, but without
sufficient force to stop him, and as he
drew nearer with the axe still in lis
hand, Roberts dealt the last and fats