The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1902-09-18
IA Fair Chance.

IT WAS drowsily warm that day,
i and though a murder case was in
course of trial at the county seat, it
had aroused no particular excitement
in the minds of the ilhabitants of
Willsborough. The courtroom had
hardly more than it's usual contin-
gent of idlers and loungers.
For one thing the case had no COM
plications or sensational features,
and there was nothing sentimentally
interesting in the character of the
parties concerned. 1t was just n coun-
try fellow, piny-woodsman who had
killed his step-brother, and then
seemed able to give no explanation
FOR his deed but, "He deviled me till
4 done it," The two, it appeared,
had had "words," and suddenly Al
pheus White picked up an adj
and struck Jim Jordan terrible blow
on the head that killed him instant
ly. The step-mother and step-sis-
ters of the accused and several Of
their kim" witnessed against AL.
pheus, and bore voluble testimony
to the fact that he had always been
full of pyore meanness;" whereas,
Jim had been beliked by all that
knowed him., According to them AL
pheus had "a-gredge" against Jim for
years, had always been jealous Of
him, and "spited" him whenever he
could.
Alpheus had previously borne the
reputation of a harmless, peaceahle
man, not "overly bright" but steady
and sober; yet the fact remained that
he had killed n man, seemingly up
on slight provocation. He did not
attempt to deny his crime, or even
to excuse it; appearing dazed into
submission to his fate. There was
nothing in his appearance to excite
the sympathy of those sentimental
with bouquets. He was just tall,
thin countryman, awkwardly put to-
gether, with freckled face, hair al
most colorlcss. and long, sunburnt
neck amply displayed by the turn
down collar of his checked cotton
there was sad, puzzled, rebutfed
look one sees in the eyes of some poor
homeless dog that everybody kicks
and abuses and drives away.
The case had been one easily dis
posed of. The lawyer appointed by
the court had pleaded somewhat
lukewarmly, the cause of murder.
Then followed the district attorney,
who referred to the prisoner as
fratricide, likened him to Cain, and
became eloquently impassioned upon
the duty of conviction.
The jury retired to deliberate.
Alpheus sat with his chin sunken
upon his breast, in sort of mental
and physical torpor. The wind
brought warm puffs of perfume
through the windows from the bloom
ing China trees in the courtyard;
slow oxwagon crawled creakily along
Main street, and some pigs grunted
and scuffled in the dust.
Its astonishing how near being
animals those piny woods people are"
whispered the district attorney to
another lawyer. THAT fellow is ac-
tually too dull and dense even when
his life hangs in the balance"
But Alpheus was not quite so dull
and dense. lie did not know what
fratricide meant, however, he under
stood dimly that the district attorney
had been "talkin' agin him" A
l.,
that if he had money or influence,
things might go easier with him.
The deliberation of the jury did not
last long.
At the verdict, Guilty" sort of
murmur ran around the room; for
there must always be a moment of
emotion in hearing sentence of death
pronounced even upon the most in
significant of human beings.
The prisoner still remained seated.
Some one took him by the arm and
helped him up. and as he stumbled
to his feet he spoke for the first
time that day.
"I-nuver-hed - a-fair-chanst,"
he said aloud in the queer, jerky
drawl of the piny-woods.
1t had comical sound and some
one Uttered in spite of the solemnity
Of the occasion.
"Did you ever see a convicted man
who thought he had had fair trial?"
one lawyer asked another.
But Alpheus had had no thought