The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1905-03-11
From a stan Correspondent

Bondville, March ll.-Held without
bail to await the action of the grand
| jury on charge of murder in the first
degree was the decision of Justice N
r. Swift 10 the case OF Fred Johnson
last evening after a hearing lasting
four hours.
Johnson was remanded to jail in
Bennington and will be taken there
this afternoon by Sheriff Wilson and
Deputy Sheriff Godfrey. Johnson was
much disappointed as he had confd-
emily expected to be admitted to ball.
charged only with manslaughter.
johnson arrived here in charge OF
the officers at ii o'clock Thursday eve.
ming after an all day trip around by
way OF North Adams and Greenfield,
Mass, thence to Bratteboro and up
the narrow gauge railroad to South
Londonderry and from there by team
to this little hamlet in the northeast
corner OF Bennington county
Though Bondville is less than 80
miles Ia a straight line from Benning-
ton the party Travelled a distance Of $50
miles to reach here, owing to the lack
ofconN eniences OF transportation the
other way.
Accompanying the accused and the
officers we're Justice Swift and States
Attorney w. r. Daley of Bennington
AT Brattleboro Attorney General Fits
and United States District Attorney j.
l.. Martin joined the party.
The hearing opened in the Winhall
town hall at ? O'Clock Friday after
noon. Work in Bondville and vicin-
ity was wholly suspended and the enc
tire male population crowded into the
little town hall. 1t was the most gen.
orally observed holiday ever known
in Winhall
Most OF those present we're person.
ally acquainted with the accused man
and many of them had known him from
the time he was child. TO all his
acquaintance he nodded cheerfully as
he noted their presence.
The state was represented by Attor-
ney General Fits and States Attorney |
Daley while the accused had brilliant |
array of talent composed of District
Attorney Martin of Brattleboro, Hon
A. f. Cudworth of South Londonderry
and Frank G. Archibald of Manches-
ter.
Fourteen state witnesses were sum
moned but only part of them were
called upon to testify. The testimony
of these tended to show the history of
the case to rival Kentucky mountain
county feud.
Fred Johnson, the accused, and Jay
johnson, his victim, were the sons OF
Solomon Johnson and grandsons on
their fathers side of q full blooded
Indian. They had another brother,
Herbert, who represented Winhall in
the legislature last fall. They had al
ways lived in Winhall or vicinity.
All the testimony agrees that the
family was always in a quarrel. Strife
was as regular as their meals and al
ways as frequent. Fred and Jay were
both scrappers, especially between
themselves and except for short peri
DDS of truce hated each other with all
the vindcativeness of the Indian race
from which they sprung.
The shooting took place on Wed.
nesday, Feb. %, but the final quarrel
began the day before, Tuesday, when
Fred Johnson drove to his fathers
house with team to take away some
goods that Fred claimed were his prop
erty.
While he was after the things his
brother Jay arrived home from Man
chester, appearing, it is said, some
what exhilarated. The two brothers
no sooner met than hot talk began,
ending only when Fred left the house
without taking the things be went af-
ter.
Next day however he returned for
them and the quarrel was renewed.