The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1898-03-17
RESTED THE CASE.

The October sun struggled in dusty
beams through the grimy panes, on
which the flies buzzed noisily, and the
ed courtroom. In the witness chair sat
long, lank man, whose trousers wrin-
killed. over his boot tops. His face was
brown and lean, his sinewy hands clasp
ed and unclasped nervously, and his
keen, gray eyes rested fixedly on the
face of the man who stood before him.
The man In the chair was Vint Joskins,
on trial for his life; the man on the
floor before him was his attorney. The
witnesses for the defense had all been
examined, and now the prisoner had
been brought in to tell his story. The
preliminary questions were done with,
and the attorney spoke to his client.
said
The prisoner twisted his lean hands
together and looked from the lawyer to
the Judge "Go on, said the Judge, not
unkindly
"I'll tell hit as near right as ] kin, :"
the prisoner began. This man Deer
ing
THE murdered man." interrupted
the state S attorney The counsel for the
defendant objected to the interruption,
and the court told the attorney for the
state to let the prisoner proceed.
This man Deering," again COM
menoed the prisoner, she come down
. RI ua11axy hon thop h,,ilf
there railroad two year ago. He was
one of them men that lays out the way,
an while he was in our part of the
county he stopped at Sam Tice's. | seen
him there frequent. was sorter keepin
company with Sam q girl then. y The
speaker stopped and looked toward one
Of the dusty windows.
go on, said his counsel encoursg
ingly. "Can' you remember"
Hit ain no trouble ter remember, :"
the prisoner said slowly; "hit's the
trouble O. fergittin. Seems like / kin
remember ever leetle thing. Well,
Deering, he stopped at Tice's, an he was
mighty soft spoken to 'em ALL specially
ter Lizzie, but nobody didn't think
nothin O. that. When bad weather
come in the fall the men on the road
quit work an went away, Deering with
EN-. was sorter glad whenst he went,
fer | thought cd see more O. Lizzie.
| didn't, though, fer in less'n a week
after Deering went Lizzie was gone,
too. an we didn none of US hear moth
in of her till Nate Rogers brung word
that he seen her in the city. Nate
lowed that she were dressed fit ter kill
an were smilin an happy, all he heerd
her called Mrs. Deering. Then Sam he
got letter from her, an after that he
an her mother got letters reg lar most
all winter.
lone night in April was over to
Tice's, an we was settin there talking
whenst the door open all of sudden,
an Lizzie walked in. 1t WAS a-rainin
out, an she was all wet, an her hair was
kinder loose an her dress was muddy
Ivy. Lizzie, child, where'd you
come from an where's your husband?'
says old Mis- Tice, an went like ter kiss
her, but Lizzie sort O. sunk back in the
chair she had dropped inter an begun
ter cry, not loud, but jest sort q dry
sobbin, like she hadn no tears left An
then hit all come out, how she hadn
never been married, on'y thought she
was, till Deering got full one night All
tod her Then she come home.
AN, mother, she says, mother,
l-l-I'm goin-goin'- An then she
clean broke down, an we seen how hit
was Old Mis- Tice air an awful good
woman, powerful Oh churchgoin an re-
ligion an mighty up an down in her
idees, an she fiared up ter onst. Ye
good fer nothin hussy. says she, air
that how it isy Ye kin jest go back ter
the city an yer fine man Ge air no
child of mine-you, that we all WASH I
good enough fer An this air what yeve
come ter, eh-bringin shame on ter
the rest of us? An with that she sits
down straight an stiff on the other side
o the room an wouldn I say another
word, not even whenst Lizzie got up an
started ter 60, sayin nothin but Jest
oh, mother kinder pitiful like. Old
Tice he didn t dare say anythin contrary
t6T MS Nlit, Dub L Wdhil lleu NJ stCl
way jest slipped out n the house aft
er Lizzie, an | got her ter go over ter my
place, whar nam took keer of her.
II reckon thar hain't no use tellin
what went on after that bit. Any
way, got Lizzie ter marry me, an
sometimes she begun ter act real cheer
full like, She we're always mighty gem
tie an quiet an was always doin some
thin for me- like she were tryin ter say
that she thought heap O. my standin
up fer her. This were long bout har-
vest time. an | hadn't been feelin SO
good as then sence Lizzie run away.
The women folks didn It neighbor much
with her, but man, she says the women
air pack O. fools, an set heap O. store
by Lizzie.
lone evenin i struck up with Nate
Rogers on the road, an he says, says he /:
Say, did ye see that Deering Teller ter
day? He were round by your house
talkin ter Lizzie, he says, an seen her