The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1891-01-22

Chas. o Collins, a Justice of the Peace
in and for Clay township, has vo, him.
self into box. In administering the
peace of his neighborho III he h .s great
Iy troubled his own. Some months ago
he wrote letter to the Mayor of Hsr.
rodsburg, KY, Of the date and purport
following:
BUroRD, ONO, Oct. 8, 1890.
Dear Sir will you be 20 kind as to
let me know what T P Vance was do
ing at your place some two weeks ago
My reasons for inquiring are these I:
About the 4th of September Vance went
to Harrodsburg. and when he brought
George Brown, his son in law, home with
him, and ever since then has kept Brown
al his house and will not allow anyone
outside Of his family communicate with
him, and he is telling everybody that
Brown is crazy, The people here be-
lieve it is scheme to get Browns prjp-
ertv into his hands. He il cold. blood
ed villain, and would rob his son in.law
as soon as he would \ stranger. Some
two weeks ago he got u telegram from,
some one in Harrodshurg, and he went
over there and was gone more than a
week. Since his return he keeps "mun,"
about his business at Harrodnbnrg, and
1t IL supposed by many here that he went
over there to take possession of Browns
property Some weeks ago one of his
boys, Grant Vance, went over there and
it is reported here that he is now run.
ming Browns saloon He ia q bad char.
act.r, in fact h- il q thief. H. was about
-ix months ago discharged from saloon
a. Lynchburg for stealing money out of
the till, and he was discharged from q
saloon ut Mt Oreb for the same cause
just week before he left here for Har
r'dsburg From the best information I
can get, Brown don't know that Vance
is representing him to be crazy, or even
that Vance has been at Harrcdsburg this
last time. Brown has some warm friends
h. re, and they are anxious to know what
Vance is doing in regard to his business,
and some information as to what he was
doing at your place this last time will be
regarded as great favor.
Yours truly,
G. 0. COLLINS, Justice of the Peace.
U. &. Vance, a son of T. P. Vance re.
TERED to in the letter, took up the mat
ter and determined to have Collins ar
rested for libel. Collins being something
of jurist as we'll as charming epistol
arv correspondent, concluded to take
advantage of that clause in the constitu.
ton which forbids that a>man shall be
put twice in jeopardy for the same of.
fence. Accordingly he drew up an
affidavit charging himself with libel
and had his son.in.law, Ed. Haines,
sign it with the mark of the cross.
Collins and Haines went over to
Squire J. A. Armentrout, of Dodson
township, and there all in one room the
affidavit was sworn to, the arrest was
made, the plea OF guilty was entered and
fine of 81 was assessed within the space
Of few minutes. Meanwhile Vance
proceeded with his case before Squire
Meek. Then Collins sprung the defense
that he had already been tried and pun
ished for the offense. The case came up
before Judge Kelly on Monday. 1t was
claimed by Prosecuting Attorney Gar.
rett that Collins had never been legally
punished for the otfense, and that the
pretended conviction before Squire Ar.
mentrout was procured through fraud
and the connivance of Collins himself
Judge Kelly ruled that Collins might be
tried again, and the case will be set fol-