The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1892-03-24
FRAilEN DISCHARGED
The Assailant of Maggie By
ant at Liberty.

i no lri2l OF hOOG trallon, who was
charged with assaulttug little Maggie
Bryant, yesterday morning, was u sur
prise to the public, as no announcement
had been made OF the fact and there
was comparatively small crowd in at.
tendance. Officers Eanes and Berry
brought him from Lynchburg and
quietly conveyed him to Headquarters.
After about an hours delay, caused
by the attorneys being engaged in the
Hastings Court, Justice Turner called
the case. Roy B. Smith represented
the commonwealth and j. w. Hartwell
and G. B. Moomaw defended FRAZIER.
A warrant charging Frailen with
attempting rape was substituted in place
of the warrant on which he was arrested.
which charged him with rape. The
defense requested that the common.
wealth's witnesses be separated and
they were sent into an adjoining room.
Campbell Bryant, aged eight years, a
brother of the little girl, was the frst
witness. When questioned as to whether
he knew the nature of an oath he said
that he knew the difference between
the truth and lie, and that the bad
man would get him If he lied. He told
whore he lived and described the prem
ises. He said that Robt Frailen came
there just before shutdown and Essie
and Maggie, his little sisters. were
playing in the house while their parents
had gone to market.
Frailen gave Essie and himself candy
to go out Of the room. They went into
the kitchen and looked through crack
in the wall caused by the plastering
being knocked off the laths. The
witness then described the repulsiye
scene. His statement was the same as
published Sunday morning. He said
that himself and Essie tried to open
the door, but Frailen told them to wait.
Maggie was crying and trying to get
away from the man.
The little fellow described all the par.
ticulars without sirgle break, al
though he was put through rigid exam.
ination. He said he knew that Frailen
had acted wrong and told his mother
when she returned.
Essie, the only other eye witness, is
five years old, and in very intelligent
manner explained her opinion of the
fate of people who lie Colonel Hart
well asked her il she knew what the
truth was. This question was cut short
by the justice, who said it was di flicult
thing to know the truth for adults, let
alone children. Her evidence iully cor
roborated that of her brother, except
that she said she told her mother first
OF the affair, She hesitated at first in
describing what she saw through the
hole in the wall, but upon the assurance
that she would not be hurt told it in a
simple, straightforward manner, depict
log an awful scene for children to have
the misfortune to behold.
An express driver named Ramsey tes-
titled that he saw Frailen coming out of
the house and saw Maggie with him.
She looked like she had been CRYING but
he did not know the cause.
Mrs. Bottle Bryant, the mother of the
child, said that she and her husband
had gone down town and on their return
her husband stopped just outside the
house, while she went in. AS soon as
she entered her children met her and
shocked her with the details of what
they saw. She Immediately examined
Maggie's person and clothing and found
unmistakable evidence of an assault.
While making the examination Maggie
was crying and sobbing and telling in
her baby way what had happened.
DIR. Lawrence testified that he made
an examination the next day of the
child but found no bruises or infamma-
ZION. There were some stains on ner
clothing, of which he was unable to
state the cause without q microscopic
examination.
j. A. Pugh, in rebuttal, stated that
Mrs. Bryant made substantially the
same statement to him that appeared in
The TIMES. She told him the child was
bruised, and that the children came
down on the street to meet her.
Frailen being examined, said that he
had just been paid off Saturday and had
gotten his valise to go to his home in
Lynchburg when he was arrested. He
denied the statement of the children
and said he had no idea of harming any
OF them. He bought, candy for himself
and went to the house to see Mr.. Bryant
He went into Mr.. Angels, who lives in
the same building, and gave them some
brandy to make a toddy for sick wo-
man. He remained there probably half
an hour, when he left.
He denied having thought of commit
ting such crime, saying that he thought
as much of Bryant's children as he did
OF his own. He aid he was not drunk
until he got down town.
number of witnesses testified that
Frailen had always borne good repu-
taJion.
The case was submitted without argu-
ment. Justice Turner said that the
evidence was rather unsatisfactory on
which to send man to the grand jury,
as he thought the stains on the clothing
were the only evidence that would be
produced before the higher court, and
dismissed the case.
His decision was received with ap.
plauee by Frailen's friends who immedi-
ately gathered around him and con-
graduated him on his narrow escape.
In THE HUSTINGs COURT.
Several ,Judements were Granted yastar