Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-10-30
THE MURDER BELT.
Piscataquis County's Unenvi-
able Record of Crime.
Six Persons Murdered Within Past
Three Years.
Review of Gases Which Co. Atty.
Durgn Has Tried.

II gin has already had two murder
he took office, on Jan. 1, 1901, and now
has a third murder on his hands for
II investigation and trial next spring.
That is a record which is enough to
Il make most any official satisfied that he
Il is getting all the work in the job Most
\ of them would much prefer to have this
kind of cases omitted from the schedule
| Of the years service. AS officers, like
| DeggarS, can't be choOSerS he has to
stand it. AS he is a conscientious
official and begins work on the in
vestigation of crime as soon as he
hears of it, Mr.. Durgin does a lot of
work for the small salary which he re-
ceives. One of the two murder cases
| was the most sensational of recent
iyears in Maine and attracted attention
from all over New England. This was
| the famous Allen murder in which
| Selectnian ]. Wesley Allen of Shirley
his wife and daughter were killed and
| their remains cremated in the house
| and barn, which were fired by the
assassin.
It was on q Monday morning in the
| month of May, 1901, that a Shirley
| farmer taking his children to school,
| discovered that the Allen farm house
and buildings had been burned the
previous night. Further investigation
showed the charred remains of three
human beings in the ruins. Those of
the mother and daughter in the house,
| the fathers in the stable. Near the
/ 1ar 4 nfl II
indicating a tragedy. Inside of q
Hours suspicion had pointed to Henry
Lambert, young French Canadian,
who had lived in this country for
many years and had been a FREQUENT
visitor to the Allen family. To the
! fact that Lambert was a frequenter of
the Allen place it was known that he
had a camp, in which he lived near
there, also that he had made threats
as to what he would 90 to the young
Allen girl.
| From the first Mr.. Durgin was con-
WINGED that Lambert was guilty, but
| did not deem it advisable to arrest him
until after the inquest. Public opinion,
| however, was such that he finally,
against his own judgment, placed the
suspect in confinement.
| The case was to have been tried at
| the September term of the Supreme
cour for Piscataquis county, but it was
not tried until November, Justice
Strout and attorneys for State and de-
Efence deeming such continuance to be
advisable, as it was recognized that it
would be a long trial. The case began
on Tuesday, November 10, and lasted
| IA days, being the longest murder
trial in the history of the State. More
| than 100 witnesses were examined
| and a number of foreign occurrences
were dragged into the trial, which pro-
| longed and made it more costly. The
State was represented by Attorney
General Seiders and County Attorney
/ Durgin, while Lambert was defended
by Henry Hudson, Esq, of Guilford, a
most able lawyer. Here it may be said
! that Mr.. Hudson has been in the de-
tense of both murder cases and that for
manslaughter. While the case was in
progress the son of the county attorney
died suddenly, while in the woods on
hunting trip, and the son of one of
| the jurymen died.
This trial cost the county close to
$4,000, with the array of witnesses,
officers in attendance, mileage for wit
nesses and fees for officers in summons,
i pay of counsel for defense, jurors and
| attending officers. with their board.
| Lambert was convicted. but the case
went to the law court, the verdict being
sustained and the convicted man was
sc ltenced at the last March term to
life imprisonment in Thomaston.
! Following this came the Zero case.
In October, 1901. Thomas Zero of
Chesuncook Plantation, was killed by
his wife, Esther Zero, in the progress
of quarrel. The quarrel arose over
Mrs. Geros using her husbands hunt
ing knife to cut some venison for din
: der. In the clinch which followed the
alteration Mrs. Zero slashed her hus-
band across the right leg, near the
groin. cutting the femoral artery, he
bleeding to death in very few min
utes. The investigation of this case
necessitated Mr.. Durgin. and other
officers. going up across Moosehead
lake to Northeast Carry, thence over
land to the west branch of the Penop-
, scot river and by canoe 20 miles down
. the river to Chesuncook. An inquest
; was held, and Mrs. Zero brought PACK
to Dover and lodged in jail until after
the preliminary hearing, wheh sne was
released on bail, the charge against her
being manslaughter.
At the next March term OF the su-
prena court. the case was tried. 1t
> occupiel three days and resulted in a
conviction. Mrs. Zero was sentenced to
G months in the county jail. which was
served. 1t did not cost the county SO
much in this case, and as in the Lam
bert case. as there were fewer witness
es and the time consumed, the great
est expense being in the long fees Tor
travelling EXPENSES for the witnesses.
II A year ago the present month, Martin
s+.rton an aged woodsman, was found
aaad ~, tho EAGLE Lake road. some &c
r,i,es fron Patten. Fred Ballard was
arrested, and at the last Ma,en .,o.