The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-06-07
TALK OF THE STATE.
What They Say in Dexter Concerning
Stain and Cromwell.
FOXCROFT STILL DISCUSSES THE
DOINGS OF TREASURER HALE.
Farmers To Be Asked to Meet in Conven-
tion by the Sounding Sca-PIans for a
Great Meeting. to Last Several Days.
Especial to the PRESS.

| o@oh Wy tAk0 oouhNtAB SCd-Ilaub 1oA q
Great Meeting. to Last Several Days.
Especial to the PRESS.
Dexter, June 6. - When Governor
Cleaves's Councillors listen to the hear
ing on the petition for the pardon OF
Stain and Cromwell it is probable that
they will hear more evidence than il
generally presented at the hearings on
pardon cases. The petitioners, who will
be represented by Judge Crosby, claim
to be able to show some new reasons fo1
doubling the justice of the verdict against
Stain and Cromwell, and the remon-
strants, for whom Thomas H. B. Pierce,
Esq, will appear, say they have some
new evidence of the guilt of the two men
behind the bars at Thomaston. Neither
| side is talking much about it's case, hut
it is believed that SO far as the remon-
strants are concerned their evidence will
be largely in the nature of completing
the Identification of Stain and Cromwell,
not only as to the men who were in
Dexter on the day that Cashier Barron
died, but also as men who were probably
connected with the robbery of the express
office a short time before when a pack
age containing several thousand dollars
belonging to one of the banks was stolen.
The petitioners for the pardon of Stain
| and Cromwell are among Dextef's lead
| ing citizens. On the other hand, the adj
herents of the theory that Barron was
murdered and that Stain and Cromwell
were guilty of the crime, say that while
| the signers of the petition are men Of
standing and Influence, they are few in
number, and that the general sentiment
| of the people is that the convicted men
are being justly punished. OF course,
| it is needless to add that this movement
| to secure the pardon re-opens the old
| time controversy as to whether Barron
was murdered or committed suicide
Naturally this re-opening of the case
recalls to the minds of the people here
| stories of the crime and the efforts to
| trace the course taken by the perpetrators
in their flight. One of these stories it is
believed has never been told in print
A Dexter man, now in business here
| was some years ago engaged in canvass
| ing, and in doing so went from house to
house through the country towns. One
night, at about the time of the trial of
Stain and Cromwell, the gentleman 81
| p1iedtfor a night s. shelter at farm house
on cross road near Hartland Conyer-
| sation naturally turned to the Dexter
bank robbery, and the wife of the farmer
said that she believed that one of the rob-
bers had called at the house on the night
of the crime 1t will be remembered that
Barron was found dying in the bank
vault between 5 and o'clock on the
afternoon of Washing gton's birthday
Evidence was afterward secured that a
| jumper drawn by a powerful, high
| stepping horse, left Dexter at about 6
| O'Clock. and was driven through St AL
bans, because it was seen passing through
that village during the evening. At
about 2 in the morning, this team was
seen passing through Canaan. Evidence
was found at the time of the trial., that
4 carly in the morning, the team was in
| Waterville, stable keeper remembering
feeding the high stepping horse and hars
had fnishedIeating, becauseEthe two men
whom the horse was hauling suddenly
i concluded that they must start right
| away. Now the house where the can
yasser from Dexter stopped for the night
at the time of the trial, is road lead
| ing from one main travelled road to an
other between st. zAlbans and Hartland
and to return to the woman's story, she
told OF a strange visitor who, on Ethe
night OF the robbery, applied at her door
for supper. 1t was early in the evening.
She let the stranger in and gave him
food, which he ate without removing his
hat acting SO strangely as to excite her
| suspicious. When he finished his meal
the man at once left the house and ran
down the road So suspicious were
his actions that the woman said to her
husband that she believed they should
hear of some crime being committed in
the neighborhood. They next day they
learned that Charles Barron had been
found dying in the bank at Dexter. They
were people who dreaded the possibility
of being called into court and said moth
ing about the affair, except as they may
have mentiond it to friends, until at
the time of the trial years after, they told
| it to the Dexter man
| Now II this queer acting man was con-
nected with the Dexter case, who was
he? Was he Stain or Cromwell who ate
a supper while his comrade wal ted
some distance away? That is not likely
but the woman's story may bear out the
impression of some of the people who
saw the suspicious team early in the
evening when it contained not two but
three men. When it was seen in Canaan,
and later in Waterville, there were but
two men IN it. Did third man leave
Dexter and somewhere near this farm
house get into the team leaving his
companions to go ON alone?
The incident has little value at this late
day, perhaps, but it is sample of some
which are recalled now that the case has
been re-opened. Somewhat similar is the
story. OF the woman found in Winslow
by the man collecting evidence for the
state at the time of the trial of Stain and
| Cromwell, she told of two strangers on who
the day after the robbery stopped at her
house and asked for food. They told her
that they were officers in pursuit of
the criminals, but in appearance they
correspondent to the two men seen driving
the high stepping horse. This woman W MAJ
| in Winslow, which is not far from Water
vile, in Kennebec county, told her story
readily, until her husband came into the
| room and advised her not to talk as
she might get into trouble by being
called into court. Thereupon she vlrtq-
ally took back all that she had said. 1t
would seem that 10 or 20 wears ago their
was great dread of the terrors OF the
Maanybile tbo ,,ordon netition has