Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-01-03
ADDISON COUNTY COURT.
Continued from first page. }

very well misunderstood his meaning.
The jury took the case at II 40 o'clock
and Immediately upon the assembling of
the court in the afternoon came into
their seats and rendered verdict of
mot guilty." Miss Dumas was there
upon Immediately discharged from Gus.
today. The verdict seemed to meet with
the general approval of the court-goers
who had heard the case through.
In the meanwhile, the grand jury had
come In for the second time on Friday
morning, when they reported two more
true bills and two bills not found. The
foreman stated that they had not COM
pleted their labors, they were accordingly
sent out again to finish up their final
report. 1t embraced one more bill not
found and written statement reciting
that they had been in session seventeen
days, had considered ten cases and out
of these had found six true bills and
four bills not found. They further
stated that they had found that the
public school moneys had been properly
expended in the different towns of the
county, and that the jail was in a fair
condition, but they recommended that
$500 should be expended in repairs on
the Jail Just as recommended by the
grand jury one year ago. Having COM
pleted their work they were thereupon
discharged for the term and paid of bv
the clerk. 1t was at this point that the
recess was taken to Monday afternoon.
Tuesday forenoon, pending the con-
SIEnr1flOn Ga i.f, Il,
the case of the State vs.. George ID.
Partch, in which the respondent had
previously been arranged and had plead
ed guilty, was called up for sentence.
The respondent belongs in Monkton and
was charged on information with having
attempted to burn the hotel buildings of
John Ladd in that town one night IN
November last. Judge Bliss appeared
for Partch and it was shown by good
oral evidence that the respondent was
ordinarily good and thrifty citizen. but
that he was addicted to the excessive use
of hard cider in the cider season and that
at such times he was so crszed that he
did not know what he was doing. Such
was the case in the second week of
November, when Partch made the at.
tempt to burn the hotel 1t was further
shown that Partch had fine family and
was respectable citizen except during
the cider-drinking interludes. Judge
Watson in passing sentence told the
prisoner that the crime charged was one
of the most serious known to the law
even being punishable in some cases
with Imprisonment for life, but he said
that under the circumstances the court
had decided to impose very light SEN
tence, and it was that the respondent
should serve not less than two years and
not more than three years at hard labor
in the state prison at Windsor. The
prisoner seemed greatly affected by his
sentence, but it was indeed mild one
compared with what he might have been
given.
Arthur Ainsley, a l5-year.old boy who
wandered into Vermont from Canada
some months ago, was arranged on a
charge of larceny of watch valued at
s. and SIS 30 in money at Granville last
summer, and he has been in the Indus
trial School at Vergennes since Septem-
Der. He had no relatives or friends in
these parts and no resources to employ
counsel, so the court appointed George
l.. llasseltine to defend the prisoner.
After consultation With his counsel the
boy pleaded guilty to the charge and
was sentenced to serve one year in the
Nergennes institution and in case he did
not obey the rules and regulations there
to serve for like period In the House of
Correction at Rutland.
! George ". Palmer of Ferrisburgh was
arraigned on an information charging
/ him with bigamy, to which he pleaded
not guilty. Further proceedings in this
case were deferred until the afternoon.
When the court came in after dinner
the case of Charles +. Stebbins of YER
gennes, charged on the states attorneys
information with exposing for sale and
selling" two wild ducks at Vergennes on
the Sth day of December, 1901, was
taken up. Mr.. Stebbins pleaded guilty.
After some consideration Judge Watson
stated that the court held the law to be
ambiguous, and the respondent was
fined $40 and costs as for one ofiense, the
killing and exposing for sale and selling
of two wild ducks being considered only
one act and the $40 fine for the killing
of each bird being only one ofiense. Mr..
Stebbins Immediately paid the fine and
costs, and probably won't do so any
more.
The verdict in the infanticide case was
then rendered, after which the bigamy
case against George w. Palmer was got
started and Jury drawn at once, neither
side making any objections to any of the
first twelve men drawn on the panel.
States Attorney Donoway appeared for
\ the prosecution and Ira II. LaFleur
represented Mr.. Palmer.
In this case the state claimed and
proved that the respondent was married
at Ferrisburgh on the 9TH day of April,
1896, to one Tena Schroeder and lived
with her as his wife for about year and
a half, when she left him and went to
Essex, n. Y, and and other places, her
latest known whereabouts being in Fair