Middletown transcript., 1897-02-27

a
girl friend, the latter asked her to &c
up into the courtroom with her and
Esee the great trial, and Clara, afteI
some hesitation, consented. They
found large crowd of spectators
among whom were many girls aud wo-
men, and so going little back and to
one side, they sat down to listen. The
prisoner himself was on the witness
stand and as Clara looked at his pale
impressive face and listened to his deer
voice, now low and musical and now
raised in indignation, she soon forgot
the smoky room and the host of vulgar
people and became quite absorbed in
his story.
I His defense was strange and we'll
| nigh incredible. He said that on the
evening of the robbery he was walking
slowly down Main street on his way to
his lodgings. AS he thus sauntered
along, he Leard the shot in the bank,
and turning to see what it meant, a
man with revolver came tunning
around the corner and ran into him,
almost knocking him down. He
caught the weapon from the fellows
hand and tried to hold the man him.
self, but the latter escaped, and run
ming on down the street disappeared up
an alley, while he, after pursuing him
for short distance, was knocked
down by some one behind him, and
knew nothing more until, on regain
ing consciousness, he found himself in
the custody of the sheriff. When asked
to explain his presence in Vallombrosa,
he said that his father was man of
wealth. living in one of the eastern
states, and that having private reasons
for leaving his home, he had come out
west, where, never having learned any
trade or profession, he was obliged to
earn his living by manual labor. At
the time of the arrest he was working
for greenhouse man. The truth of
this last statement was presently veri-
fed by the testimony Of several wit
nesses, all of whom said that, as far as
they knew he was honest, sober and in
dustrious, though somewhat "ofish"
as one of them expressed it.
The court now adjourned, and Clara
went home withsa whirl Of strange
thorghts in her girlish mind. The
next day the case went to the jury,
who returned in an hour with YER
dict Of guilty.
On the evening of the day Went
worth was convicted, Clara sat alone
in the sitting room, her mother and
brother being away ON visit, and her
father having gone down town on some
business. On table in the center of the
room burned large Rochester lamp,
with red paper shade. The walls
were hung with engrayings and ANA
teurish looking oil colurs, there was a
bookcase filed with brightly covered
books, sofa, a large armchair, and in
the window wire rack filled with
house plants. A door the back led
to the main hall of the Jail. where the
prisoners were allowed to assemble in
the daytime and where as night, after
they were locked up in their separate
cells, the deputy usually loafed away
the evening with his pipe and news
paper. As Clara sat by the lamp read
ing, this door was opened and the de-
putty appeared in hat and overcoat.
"When your father comes back .
he said, 'tell him l have gone to Bow.
ser's to see about that land deal.n
"AA right" replied Clara, and the
deputy disappeared.
Clara was now the only free person
in the whole building, and she felt ra-
ther queer. She closed her book and
fell to thinking of the murder trial,
which seemed to exercise fascinating
influence over her mind. Ths.sudden,
unprepared-for death of the bank teller
arising from no fault nor neglect Of
his own; the pursuit and the fierce
beating of a man to the earth, tie
dread and suspense of the trial,
and the final downfall of the prisoners
last hopes-all these things forced
themselves upon Clara's mind with a
sort Of hazy awfulness and awakened
dim sense Of the tragedy Of existence
and the eternal conflict between good |
and evil.
This lofty mood could not last long
in so young q mind, and soon melted |
into one of simple pity aud sympathy. |
when she thought of The condemned |
man as he now lay alone in his little
cell, with none in the whole wide
world to do him kindness or look on
him with friendly eyes. She did not
consider the question of his gdilt or in I
nocence, but rhther dwelt on his
trouble and suffering and as she did SO
tears came into her eyes. Then there
arose in her breast strong womanly
impulse to do something, anything, to
1elieve him. Dared she speak to
him?
Clara had never been into the jail
without her father, and she knew the
inmates were sometimes very noisy and
rude. She stepped to the door opened
it and listened. There was no sound.
Then with timid. fearful footsteps she
advanced into the hall or corridor of
the jall. The air was oppressive with
dead tobacco smoke and the exhslation
Of unclean men; overhead the gas jets
burned low and dim. Clara knew the
number Of the cell in which Went
worth was con6ned-she hadlhsard
her father mention it. AS she ap-
preached and raised her eyey to the
grating, she gave an involuntary start,