Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1901-02-18
@-%-~-@-%-~-&4--@-M-nA
I Mr.. SAMPLES SISTER )
BY M. QUAD.
COPYRIGHT, 1900, BY c. B. LEVI.


was looking around for site for a
large factory. lie was provided with
letters or recommendation. had the air
of a man Of business and soon hod tbo
two bankers In the town and otbor
business men interested In his nroioo+
HIS factory was to make a new kind
of cloth out Of what he called "perslon
hemp He had samples of the cloth
to show, and it could be made and sold
at 400 per cent profit. Samples him.
self would put 100000 into the enter.
prise, but he wanted the town to sub.
scribe 100000 additional. 50 as IN
make 1t home affair. That was =
pretty large sum to raise in town NJ
5000 people, and after the first half ot
1t had been subscribed the Thing began
to drag. Samples was coming and po.
Ing, but making our town his head.
quarters, and it was remembered aft.
erward that several tough looking men
called to see him.
On the second night Of Samples ar.
rival in our town a fine horse was
stolen from a citizen. During his first
| weeks stay there We're more run Off
In three weeks time II Of the best
horses in our township We're taken. As
sheriff was not idle for an hour after
| the first horse was taken Ever If
was q little green myself as an officer
, had two or three constables and den
uties who were old hands at the busi-
ness. Some of the horses we traced
for a few miles, always headed for the
| Ohio river, but the thieves were slick
fellows and covered their tracks 80
well that not horse was recovered.
My position was an uncomfortable one.
as you may guess. | got redhot crti-
cism from all sides, and, even though
offered large rewards out Of my own
pocket and went to the expense Of
employing detective for three weeks,
share Of the public still insisted that
ought to resign and open a kinder
garten for children.
One day while was shiyering in my
boots and expecting to hear that the
thirteenth horse had been stolen a
fash Of light came to me, Every horse
taken had gone south by certain
road. At certain point all trace had
been lost. Ten miles 10 the south Of
us was a big hucklcberry swamp Of
1000 acres. 1t was state land and had
only been explored by hunters. 1t was
big tangle, full of snakes and Wild
cats, and berry pickers took good care
not to penetrate toe far. II flashed
over me that the stolen horses instead
of being run out Of the state had been
corralled in this swamp to wait until
the hue and cry was over. Within two
hours l had started for the swamp ac-
companied by constable. by pure
good luck after tramp of half day
we came upon trail showing the
footprints Of horses, and following II
to the very center OF the swamp WE
came upon the whole T. stolen animals
Feed had been brought to them by an
other trail.
1t was a fine "plant" we uncovered
| i mere WSlc WV lltli w tuNS Ne'hN - "'-'
horses. One Of them was black
smith, and he had forge and dozen:
of horseshoen. AS the animals were
run out the plan was to shoe each one
with the Shoes reversed and thus de
ceiye us in case we struck trail. W.
made a cautious approach, but in sp Il
of us the two men got away. w
scarcely regretted it, however, in We"
of the captuie Of the third one, Wh(
had lust arrived. 1t was Mr.. Samples
the fax cloth man, the factory man
the man with letters Of Introduction
Yes. sir, he had arrived to give nj
subordnates directions, and as be Tee
with the others he tripped and fell
and we were enabled to overhaul hlm
He didn't even bluff. We had got MN
so pat that he couldn't say anything
In his pockets We're letters sufficient ''
convict him twice over, aud his game
was up. >,
You know what human nature Is II
a small town. had been mallSne'
and abused without stint for faIllhg u
cant,,re the horse thieves. Now ina
had got all the stolen horses ID
bunch. and the boss thief NJ aadItoh
nothing was too good for me, wa
called hero a1d all that ana got
serennde from the band ana Eau Don
fires galore in my honor. The arros
of Samples was a thunderclap' pu' 'n'
public soon got over its astonshlHen
and demanded that he receive ln'
maximum punishment OF the law ~
was examined, committed for ttia'
and took care to give INN 'he S'i0n
gest cell in the county jail. The MAI
rove me no trouble. After recoVerin'
his cheek little he claimed ll'at IN
would be able to prove his en'lre 'ino
cence before a jury, and ne was 81
CHEEKY and good natured tha' ! e'p''
TO like him. He had three months
wait for the circuit court. ana he ui''u'
no move in regard to lawyers Vi W.,
nesses until half the time had eAp'it.
By that time the public had los' inos
of its interest in the case
One day Samples aupouDc'" " 49,
that his sister would soon arrive ~ 50
about getting him a lawyer al'' y
forth. and two days later she c"'''" :, :,
the iail. She was rather qtle' i0o'
ing woman of about ~ SI'oNt ~
choked voice and wore Vel'' "nu ~.
cut questioning her much ''' I'' :
| | .,
Samples cell and left them ''" Wv inf
so happened that had 10 go tn'
court directly after and | lrit II 10
turnkey to let her out tie '.,' ,oa1
II was three hours later when ,''N
the discovery that the two ha' n rN
ohopo.d clothes and the womb" No
been left behind. Inc '.i'NV' IN
noticed anything out of the way TO w.
woman" passed out "a =
l,nE