Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1895-06-12

i've ran his all down, had him ident!-
fed, and he was soon tried on dlfferei.
charge and sent to prison. When Lee
was finally arraigned, he had three Of
the best lawyers in the state to look aft
er his interes is. The county re-enfore';
its prosecutor, and as the trial begun
people focked to town as if there was t"
be circus. No one outside Of the do
tective and prosecutor believed young
Lee guilty.
Scores of people were ready to testify
to his good character, and the judge who
refused him bail was harshly censuled
and later on virtually outlawed and com
PEELED to move away. The defense was
more than ready to meet every point
made by the prosecution. Yes; the two
young men were rivals in love, but the
farmers daughter testified that nothing
approaching quarrel had ever occurred
to her knowledge. The farmer who had
come upon them and heard harsh words
could not be sure of their identity.
Young Lee had returned home the night
of the party for money. 1t was raining,
and he had taken horse from the barn
without asking leave or referring to the
matter later on A brother and sister
swore that they talked with him at
home, and the brother handed him some
money. Money had been found in the
barn and knife in the shed A tramp
could have secreted the articles where
found Young Lee never owned such
knife. He had looked at one in store,
but the merchant was mistaken in swear
ing that he had purchased it. The de-
fendant did own a Pair of fine boots,
and the detective had the exact measure
ment Of them, but was not the country
full of No. calfskin boots?
1t was a trial lasting good many
days 1t was fight for life, and every
inch of ground was contested Little
Mr. Gray was busy night and day, but
Lee made such defense that everybody
looked for verdict of mot guilty. "
Just as the case was nearing its end the
state got to introduce new testimony. 1t
was mute testimony, but stronger than
any mans oath When little Mr.. Gray
looked over the ground the morning aft
er the murder, he found certain tracks in
the mud which he covered over. Later
OH he took casts of them in plaster of
paris These casts were placed beside
others taken from the feet of the farm
er's horse, and 10, they were exactly
alike! The man who pried the bars off
the window had removed his coat Two
letters had fallen from pocket-both
addressed to young Lee from the girl he
was counting. But the clincher appeared
a mere trifle when put in evidence. II
was bit of cloth torn from pair of
trousers on a nail in the window. When
young Lee was arrested, his clothing
had been gathered up, and here before
the jury were the trousers from which
the bit of cloth had been torn. The de-
fense could not dodge nor break this bit
of evidence, and as they vainly sought
to the prisoner weakened and soon made
a full confession. In that confession he
said he had got in the store without
awakening Yates, crept mp to his bed
and aroused him, and when the clerk re-
fused to discontinue his visits to the
farmers and attempted to get out of bed
he had been stabbed to the heart. He
was pronounced guilty and sentenced to
be hung, but the governor changed it to
life Imprisonment, and he is still living
within the walls of prison. On the day
the prisoner was sentenced a mob of
men who believed in his innocence start
ed out to find and lynch little Mr.. Gray,
but he had quietly disappeared to be
heard of no more