The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1891-04-23
THE ORIGINAL EUGENE ARAM.


re Ecgan Lie an 4 aner ana was
Teaching school When Arrested.
| While nearly every school boy in the
land has read or rccited Tom Hoods
poem. The Dream Of Eugene Aram,"
and Bnlwcr's novel of the same title is
well-known among their elders, few
are acquainted with the fact, perha ps.
that Eugene Aram was real parsonage
and the most famous murderer Of his
time. lie was executed on the 9TH of
August. 1850, and Bulwer, in an unpub-
lishcd preface tn his novel, said that it
was founded upon "a very remarkable
murder by very remarkable man, half
century ago In short, upon the story
of Eugene Aram."
in company with his own strange his
tory. combined to make his trial, while
it lasted, the reigning sensation of En-
gland. One of his ancestors had been
high sheriff Of Yorkshire, in the reign
Of King Edward H., but the family
having been gradually reduced Aram.s
father was almost a pauper. The son.
however, was sen. to school near Rip
pom. where he became expert in writing
and arithmetic, and then went to Lon
don as merchants clerk After two
! years in that city he was seized with
the smallpox, recovered and went back
to Yorkshire for the improvement of his
health. There he secured the situation
of usher in public school. but owing
to his limited education received only
scant salary. Ills will was indomitable
and his memory phenomenal; so devot-
ing all his leisure time to hard study
he at last became an excellent Greek
and Latin scholar. In 1884 he gave up
ushering. and was engaged as steward
of an estate belonging to a Mr.. Norton,
of knarcsborough. While in this posi-
ton he acquired thorough knowledge
Of the Hebrew language. and contracted
a marriage which resulted most unhap,
PLY.
i Among Aram's acquaintance at
knaresborough was shoemaker named
Daniel Clarke. who married soon after
Aram. and Immediately spread story
among the friends that Mrs. Clarke
would soon receive large fortune
which she had inherited. Aram and
fellow-con>pirator Richard Housesnan
decided to victimize the simple minded
shoemaker. and persuade him 10 make
display of his own money with view
toward iinnressin- his wife's supposed
rich relations Clarke was easily rul,ei
and plunged into ahslir! eN.raya-anees
Among other things. he borrowed and
hs,,, r.
>ilver-plate. with jewels, watches and
rings. telling the people from whom he
purchased these articles tina, he was
acting as the agent for London firm.
He suddenly disappeared in February.
l.i5. and it was supposed that he had
gone to London TO dispose of his plate
and iewelry.
Aram and Houseman had been keep
ing an eye on these goods. and finally
agreed to murder Clarke and share the
booty. With this end in view they in
iuced the shoemaker to take walk
with them through the fields outside of
knaresborough on the night of Febru
airy s, 11ia. At small distance from
the town. in a stretch of open ground.
was "a grotto known as St Roberts
cave, and when it was reached Aram
and Clarke crossed the hedge and went
toward it together lIouseman testified
at the trial that when they were within
few yards of it he saw Aram strike
Clarke several times. telling him to the
ground As soon as life was extinct in
the shoemaker the murderers went to
his house. found the treasure and
jiyiInI II HnnSaunan hnr,-inr h;s half
in his garden. 4 year afterward he
took it to Scotland and sold it. Aram
took his share to London, disposed Of it
and became an usher again at an
academy in Piccadilly.
During the next twelve years he
arifted from school to school, teaching
the higher branches and indulging in
his leisure in his fondness for the study
Of foreign languages. He learned
French and acquired Arabic, with sew
eral other eastern dialects. Admiral
Barney. who went To school at an es-
tablishment where Aram was usher
subsequent to his crime. said Aram was
generally liked by the boys. and that he
often used to discourse to them about
murder in a highly peculiar fashion. As
he ceased to write to his Yorkshire
friends it was thought that he was dead
In 175s man who was digging for
limestones near st. Roberts cave found
the bones of a human body. 1t was
conjectured that they were the remains
of Clarke, and that he had been muir
dered
Houseman, having been in the COM
pany with Clarke shortly before his dis
appearance. was arrested on suspicion
!. and locked up in York Castle. where he
| was severely questioned after looking
| at the bones eNhumed by the limestone
| digger. He denied that the bones were
, those of Clarke, but pointed out the
spot where they were buried. The
skull found with them was fractured.
and was entered as an important piece
Of evidence at the trial Officers went
on the trail of Aram, and found him at
: the town of Lynn. in Norfolk where a
warrant was secured for him. He was
arrested while teaching his class. taken
to York Castle and imprisoned with
liou>eman. At the Lent Assizes fol-
lowing the public prosecutors were not
ready TO go on. and Aram was remanded
!, till the summer term, when he was
brought to trial. Aram wrote his OWL
! defense. which he read in court, ant
Judge Noel, who presided at the trial
= remarked that it was one of the most in
genious pieces OF reasoning that had eve
fallen under his notice There are Oh
record perhaps few more able and con
:. vincing addresses to a court and jury
from criminal than Aram's, and it al
: most won for him an immediate acquit
! tai. The public belief in his innocenc,
:, was strong, and would have remaine'
SO. despite the adverse verdict. had h
: not made full confession in letter L
! his attending clergyman. This lette
was written when Aram had deter
mined to cheat the rope by committing
> suicide. and it was a melodramatic com
:, position. When he finished it he ha
cut his left arm above the elbow an
u near the wrist with razor. but MISE
= the artery Precautions to prevent cor