The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-01-11
He Tells His Side Of the Let
ter Trial.
THE TESTIMONY HAS BEEN ALL
TAKEN.

lioho-
Saco, January 1o.-Interest toiltinues
.unabated in the Buxton letter case today
and the court room was crowded: Many
women came and brought their dinners
and stayed all day.
Cyrus Davis who was on the stand last
night when court suspended, was exam
ined and corss examined for two hours
and quarter this morning. The exam
nation was mainly directed by the coun-
sci for the defendants to show that the
writing of the anonymous letters received
by Rev j. D. Waldron and Mrs Willis
Crockett were wri tten by Mrs. Mary ].
Frost, while COUNSEL for the plaintiff at
tempted to show by the same witness by
comparison of handwriting that Rev.
j. d. Waldron must have been the
author.
The next witness was
LEROY MoCORRISON
one of the defendants: He said 1 live in
West Buxton and have lived there twenty
years and am twenty six years old.
I married Alice Marston, the lady who
received the anonymous letter which
Mrs. Mary j. Frost acknowledged which
she wrote to my wife. I knew that Mr..
Smith was going down to see Mrs. Frost
and ask her if she did not write the let
ters to Elder Waldron and to Mrs. Crock
EFT signed the agreement marked app
SO that if Mrs. Frost did sign the confess
sion that she wrote the letters that she
might know and feel safe that I would
not prosecute her for writing the Alice
Marston letter.. I had no i'll will against
Mrs. Frost and did not expect her to sign
the confession unless she was the one
who wrote the letters. l was not before
business. thought that if Mrs. Frost
wrote the anonymous letter and would
acknowledge that she wrote it that it
would stop the trouble and talk that
there was in the com munity.
REV. JOHN D. WALDRON.
was the next witness: am minister of
the Gospel and was ordained in 1869.
I arrived in West Buxton the last of
April, 1893 I was only pastor in W est
Bux ton. My first talk about hiring
money was with Mr.. Hobson and he told
me to go to Mr.. Crockett and he loaned
me one hundred dollars. 1t was a note
ON demand. l told him could probably
a talk with him year after that. 1
asked him if he wanted the money and
he said no and paid him six dollars in
terest. The next talk was when he called
at my house and he said his son had been
sick and he needad the money. / told
him would get it for him as soon as
could.
had no hard feelings against him be-
cause he wanted the money. My salary
was $500. I he first of October paid the
whole note. He was the collector of she
societyand he kept back my salary and
paid him $36 from my own pocket and
l received the note. asked HIM if sc
ourity was what he wanted when he ask
cd me for the note. There was no i'll feel
| ing toward Deacon Crockett because he
wanted me to pay the note.
| ! received several anonymous letters.
The first was on July 81 of the year 1894.
l received an, anonymous note after that.
burned the letter the day ] got it.
| did not speak to anyone about 1T until
after I received the anonymous note
about preaching from certain text
death OF the righteous that my last end
/ may be like his l said in the pulpit
that Sunday morning, I have been re-
quested to preach from a text which /
have before me and from which I will
preach this morning l do not remem-
Der of walking home with Deacon Crock
EFT. l preached at Pleasant Hill that af-
ternoon. l do not remember of having
any such conversation as Deacon Crockett
details. I received an anonymous letter
Monday after ] had reached Sunday.
That is the one which l received marked
&C." The talk when showed it to Hr.
Hobson was this: i asked him what it
could mean, and he said some one was
trying to make trouble between Mr.
1 Grookaft and YnUSalf 10 advised IN
burn the letter. The first time ever saw
the Elder Waldron letter, marked &c"
was when l got it from the postoffioe. /
never wrote that letter. | went to East
Wakefield Monday and stayed until Fri
day. had conversation with Charles
Hobson. Mr. H1bson said, deacon
Crockett wants to see you. Mrs. Crock
EFT has received an anonymous letter. ~
drove up to his place OF business and
said. 81 have heard that your wife has
| received an anonymous letter. he said
yes. that he had and gave him the letter
which had received. | told him when
he got through with it to destroy it.
did not ses Mrs. Crockett's letter until
saw it before the council at West Buxton
during it's session. l did not write the
letter marked ssB." I asked Deacon
Crockett to let me have the letter
and he refused to give me back
my anonymous letter. November Il
came into my yard and accused me OF
of writing the letters. / said to him,
Deacon Crockett what do you mean?
I never wrote but one anony nous letter
in my life and SO help ME God, | never
| wrote these letters. y
"CHARGES WE'RE PREFERRED
against me by Deacon Crockett / did
not object to ADMINISTRATION. Only very
few voted to have an investigation and
the report was sent to the quarterly meet
ing and was returned. Then new char.
ges were made and sent In and the coun.
oil was appointed. 1 got the signatures
of all the. persons who hhad I'd
anonymous letters in the villa. i
last few years. l tried to get
nous letters and did get few.
not get The letters called the l. T.
dron' and Mrs. Crockett letters
81 first knew Mr.. Smith was going tc
see Mrs. Frost the day before the council
met. l did not ask him or anyone te
take charge of my defence. did not in
tend to take any action against Mrs.
Frost for writing anonymous letters.
signed the paper agreeing not to prose
cute Mrs. Frost so that if she did sigr
she could feel safe from prosecution