Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1893-12-29
AppIson COUNTY OouRr.

the concluding plea for the prosecution
Friday morning. BOih Judge Sade anC
MIR. Bliss made strong and acute argu
ments from their different standpoints
and they were attentively listened to by
large audiences. Judge Munson gave d
brief charge to the jury and at II &c
o'clock Friday forenoon they went OUT
to consider their verdict. At II 80 in
the afternoon they came in again, hav.
ing reached an agreement. The foreman
said mot guilty, and Wilson was al
once discharged from custody. Thus
did the Wilson's in the end come out
victorious over the Blys and the solid
value of Il good reputation in times of
trial was once more made manifest.
But the mercury in Frank Bly's heart
must have tumbled rapidly to the lower
most mark when he heard of the verdict
of the jury and learned that his alleged
principal in the burglary, against whom
he had given an informer's evidence and
whom he had done his very utmost to
convict, had been formally acquitted by
the jury. while he himself stood self-con-
victed of participation In the crime.
This trial lasted eight days and cost
the State not small sum of money and
the expenses of making the defense can
not well have been less than $1,000. The
/
worth, as also was the defense, and it
was the quality and character of the
evidence for the State which saved the
prisoner. The jury simply refused to
find Wilson guilty on the testimony of
the unsavory Bly, family, and with the
Blys left out the State mad no case. 1t
is extremely inprObably that Wilson
will ever be tried IN New York State on
either of the indictments pending against
him there, as the case made out against
him here was an intrnsically stronger
one than can be put before jury across
the lake.
Friday afternoon young fellow
named George Palmer of Ferrisburgh,
who had been indicted for an assault
with intent 10 kill and murder, was in
court to plead to the Indictment The
assault was committed with butcher
knife upon George Preston, the respond
ent's brother in-law, in Ferrisburgh, on
the Both If August last, and appears to
have been IA rather picayuue affair at the
worst. States Attorney Fish stated to
the court that from his knowledge Of
/ the testimony he did not not think that
the intent to kill and murder could be
| proven and he didn't believe himself
that there had been any such intent.
| The respondent was then permitted to
! plead guilty of a simple assault, and the
court sentenced him to serve four
months in the House of Correction.
There were two liquor cases standing
over for trial. In one the respondent
was sick abed and in the other the
State wasn't ready to go to trial Just yet,
and there being nothing else in shape
to come on recess was taken at 3 10
O'Clock Friday afternoon until 10 o'clock
Tuesday morning.
Court re-assembled at 10 80 o'clock
Tuesday morning and half an hour later
another criminal case was begun. This
is State VS.. Adelbert IIier, Jointly indicted
with Henry Bushee for the burning of
the buildings of Charles NJ Robbins in
Hancock on the night of the 2lst of last
month. Bushee, the correspondent, hav-
ing turned States evidence, HER was put
on his trial alone. On representations
that HER was without means, Judge
James M. Slade was assigned to defend
him and has Charles f. Kingsley of Sal
isbury assisting him, and f. II. Button
of Middlebury is assisting the States at
torney.
The evidence for the prosecution was
got in Tuesday and Wednesday. the State
resting Wednesday afternoon, but reserv-
ing the right to PUT on additional witness
es. The case against Her rests largely
on the evidence of Bushce, who testified
| Wednesday forenoon. As the main facts
in this case must be fresh in the minds of
our readers, we shall not take up much
space with it here. The claim of the State
is that on the night of November u HER
and Bushee drove from their home in Sal
isbury up TO Hancock and at about mid
night set fire to the buildings of Charles
NJ Robbins, including large horse and
cattle barn. sheep barn, "A long shed and
a lean-to shed, aud they were burned to
the ground. The horses, cattle and most
of the wagons, etc, were saved. Mr..
Robbins went to the residence of COnsta-
BILE Lyman ID. Rose and woke him up.
They found where horse had been
stopped beside the road some 40 rods west
of the burned buildings and followed the
horse and wagon tracks in the newly
fallen snow back to Salisbury and into
Bushels yard. The horses tracks had
evidently been made bv a horse with
smooth shoes in front and no shoes be-
hind, and such a horse it turned out was
the one that Bushee had had out. Bushee
was arrested November % and bound up.
In the meanwhile it became nosedNabout
that Hier had been with him on the eX-
petition to Hancock, and Bushee informed
the States attorney that such was the
fact HER was arrested December and
has since been here in Jail. The grand
jury reported a Joint indictment and Hi
er's trial is the consequence. Bushee.
who is 60 years old, testified that it was
llier who planned the burning of the
buildings, made all the arrangements and
started the conflagration, although he
himself had procured the horse. The only
motive developed for the crime was that
HER had worked couple of weeks in
haying for Robbins and had had to take
his pay in beans end sugar, all but thirty
five cents which Robbins paid later in
cash. They started out of Salisbury about
o'clock at night, Bushee overtakiug Hi
er on the road. Her had bag of shay
ings, and these he used to set the fire.
According to his own story, Bushee and
Her worked together in the saw mill in
Salisbury and IIier had talked the matter
over with him at different times while
they were at their work. Bushels part
in the crime consisted merely in obtain
ing the horse and riding over the noun