St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1894-05-03
A SERIOUS CHARGE.

GabriaI GhOor, a Syrian PeddIer
brought to St. Johusbury on Suspicion
of Having Murdered Fellow -PeddIer.
Since last December, when the
town of Groton was excited over the
report that a peddler named Abbott
had suddenly disappeared and was
thought to have been murdered by
a companion, the authorities of
Caledonia county have been looking
for that companion-one Gabriel
Ghoor, Syrian peddler. On Satur-
day last Sheriff Sulloway brought
Ghoor here from Burlington, where
he had been traced, and lodged him
in Jail to await developments.
The prisoner is not up in the
English language and tells broken
and rather mixed story-in fact, sew
eral stories. He claims that one day
last December he and Abbott went
from Montpelier to Barre on the
cars, and then started across coun-
try through the woods to GrOtOn.
The second day out they secured
lodging at a house in the town of
Groton, which they came to about
2 O'Clock in the afternoon After
resting a short while they started to
go to a saw mill some three miles
across the country to sell some of
! their wares. Snow covered the
ground to the depth of two feet or
more, making travelling difficult. A
road led through the woods to the
mill, but it had been abandoned and
was at that time rarely ever
travelled. They journeyed on into
the woods. Darkness overlook them
when they were midway through
the forest and they lost their way,
wandering around in the woods for
several hours. At midnight they
gave up all hope of getting out of
the woods that night. With one
match, Abbott started a small fire,
which he managed to keep alive for
half an hour or so, but it finally
went out. They were tired out and
chilled from their long exposure:
Ghoor being more feeble than Alb
bott, the latter told Ghoor to
stav there and he would try and
find the mill; get help and come
back after him. With this in
tention Ghoor says Abbott left
him, since which time Abbott has
not been seen. Ghoor strayed in the
woods till morning when he found
his way to the mill, neither seeing
nor hearing anything of Abbott.
1t is thought that GhoOr's COM
panion had forty or fifty dollars in
money-in fact, the prisoner admits
that he sold Abbott some OF his
goods and that in paying for them
Abbott displayed quite a roll of
bills. The authorities do not take
much stock in Ghoor's main story.
A brother of the missing man,
resident at North Adams, Mass,
learning of his disappearance, came
to St. Johnsbury early in April and
consulted States Attorney Bates.
The latter instituted a search, with
the result that the missing mans
pack was found in the woods near
Groton, the contents having been
overhauled by somebody. Quite
body of men have since been search
ing in that section, and Sheriff Sullo-
way went to GrotOn on Sunday in
hopes that the search had been sue
cessful; but as yet no body has been
discovered.
There are many suspicious circum-
stances connected with this affair,
and Ghoor will be held for a while
pending continued search for
evidences of the crime of which he is
suspected. He is not communica-
tive, but maintains stolid silence on
the subject.
Ghoor was taken to Groton on
Tuesday, but afforded the searchers
no help.