The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-11-12
CONVICTED BY A MONKEY.
HIS DrMB ErIDENCE SENDS 4 MAN
TO 7HE GILLOHS.
A Woman Accomplice Sent to Prison for
Lif"-Thc Murdered Man Was the Non
keys Mastcr-ConSincing Evidence.

From n. Washington Post. =
Louisiana has Just furnished a sensation in
jurisprudence that has never been cquallcd in
modern history" said julius McGrcath Of New
Orleans What do you think Of a monkey as a
witness in a murder Trial? oh. that is not all
OF H. for his testimony led 10 the conviction Of
the man AMI woman charged with numbering
his master The man will I've hanged unless
Gov. Foster in tcvcncS, and the woman has
been sentenced TO the pcn,cntary for life
The evidence in the was all purely circum.
stantial-exccp, that given by the monkey, for II
animal spoke that monkey did.
IT is simply one more tragedy Of the did Mis-
sippi. whose iurgid waters have been Redeemed
more than once with human blood The story
sounds more like narrative al the ante bcllum
DAYS on the river, so rcplctc is it with incidents
reminding us OF byConc times
Perhaps you know that the houscboat has
not quito disappeared from the Mississippi As
a usual thing they start in below St Louis, fitting
OIL, either at Memphis, Cairo. or some other poin,
not too far from the scene Of their operations
They are equipped with groceries, provisions,
small farming implements. notions calico prints.
in fact everything which one would EXPECT To
lind in the stock Of u country store They drift
down the current Of the river stopping al ham
let's and houses on the banks, driving shrcwd
find the inland store too far away. OF too poorly
stocked to get what they want
Sometimes a rude SNil Is hOiStcd when IL is
desired 10 cross the river, but this is not often
done The tnblike craft is slccrCd and hAlf.pro-
PEELED by means Of long sweeps or clumsy oars,
from the stern II Is wonderful IL see the eyolu-
tons the houscboat will PERFORM when the sweep
l. in the hand Of an experienced rivcrman. These
travelling rmporiums used 10 do n thriving bust.
ness good many years ago, but lately the rail-
roads and other suNiliar,s Of civilization have
forced Is a
10 see one nowadays, They belong to past
epoch.
Alderman more frequently known aS Bill Nckcr-
man, came down the river In one of these house
boats lie wnsA ;hrewd fellow, and had realized
that there was little profit in n mere hucks,cring
enterprise. His sCow contained regular mrna-
Gcric, consisting OF trick ponies, performing dogs
n monkey and q merry go-round / have for
gotten where he came from, but he stopped at
every town and village along the Mississippi.
and he made money, for the country people have
few amuScmcnts, and almost anything serves
10 furnish diversion for them
AZ one Of the landings, about 100 miles above
who gave the name Of Starr, claiming 10 be- man
and wife, Alderman said that he needed help
In his show and agreed 10 give the pair certain
cooking ana the man 10 help with the perform
nnrc The trio led sort Of Ilmcklcherry Finn
existence, going wherever they desired, stopping
10 fish, and tying up 10 the bank n, night
II would he hard for the average person 10
understand the attraction such an entertainment,
people who live along the banks Of the stream
~ many cases a railroad does not come within
NIFTY miles Of them, and about the only nmusc-
mcnt they have IL To watch the steam packets
going up and down the river The majority
oil them never saw circus, and few Of them have
ever been inside the smallest theatre Acker-
man show, with its merry go-round, its ponies
and dogs capable OF pcrlcrming unheard-oi tricks,
set the rural denizcns Wild with delight r. Z.
Barnum g name would not have been one-half
as great a tasman as tina, Of Alderman. lie
absolutely owned tho community wherever he
went.
"rhc prize Of the whole combination was .Iocko,
the monkey. Ponies and dogs were ordinary
domestic animals, but this slmian, with its al
most human face. WIS something irresistible
u furnished the people sOmcthini; 10 talk about
for days to see him leap from his masters shout
der, take of his cap and make his tour Of col.
lection JockO ives devoted 10 Alderman, and
was his constant companion. Alderman never
left the boat without taking his pct with him
for Jocko would have been inconsOlable In his
masters absence The monkey had more ldcl.
ity even than dog, and was most intelligent
representative Of his species.
The houseboat continued down the river and
lie approach was heraldod By word Of mouth,