Perth Amboy evening news., 1907-02-20
THE STRANGE CASE
OF NILES O'BRIEN.
forieinal.1

for this story unless l state tnat IL Is
true. The names of the characters are
not their real ones, but the incidents
are exactly as they occurred in all
their improbability.
''rhe O'Briens," said a man standing
In his doorway, "are quarreling. Lis
i tenn
A mans voice was heard TO say:
/ BE quiet, Molly. Don't you see the
neighbcrs looking?'
Il don't care If they are. This life
I'm living with you is unbearable."
Very well, I'll trouble you no longer.
1 But remember-mind what l say Che
shook his finger VAT her)-you'll not get
me back for the asking
O'Brien strobe away, and his wife
/ went into the house and slammed the
1 door. Those who were watching the
4 couple went off about their respective
4 callings and thought no more of the
/ incident except that this was the first
! time they had ever known the couple
to quarrel Miles and Molly OBrien
had been supposed to be devoted to
each other.
The next day and the next and the
next the O'Brien house was closed.
j Neither Miles nor his wife was at
home, nor was either seen in the viii
| lage. Then one morning n crowd gath
cred about their house. In the yard
lay Mrs. O'Brien. dressed in her best
clothes and wearing ornaments which
she seldom wore except ON gala occa-
4 sions She had been dead some time.
Il A blow on the head had been the cause
of her death. The body was identified
before the coroner, the parting words
of the couple given in evidence, and
the police of neighboring cities were
notified to arrest Miles O'Brien for the
murder Of his wife. The same evening
he was lodged in jail.
Il The trial was one of circumstantial
evidence The couple had quarreled,
| O'Brien had gone to the city, where
| during the interval between his leaving
/ home and his arrest he had Stunned
| every one. His wife had disappeared.
Then suddenly she had been found In
her own yard murdered. wearing her
best apparel and her jewelry The
theory of the prosecution was that she
had returned to her home for the pur-
pose of taking away these valuables.
that her husband Aad found her there,
they had renewed their quarrel and
O'Brien had killed her.
4 The prisoners counsel tried in vain
to discover the exact time of the mur-
der in order to establish an albi, but
the corpse had been found in the
morning under some bushes. where ii
might have lain not only all night. but
for several days. The circumstantial
evidence against the accused was toe
strong to be controverted except by al
alibi; consequently there was nc
ground for the defense to stand on
The jury brought IN verdict of guilty
Miles O'Brien was brought up fol
sentence.
Have you anything TO say why the
sentence of death should not be passed
upon you?' asked the judge.
Il am innocent of the crime. My
wife and l never had but one serious
quarrel, and 1 never expected that II
would DE lasting.
The Judge then made some prelimi
nary remarks on the devilish brutality
of a man who would kill his wife will
Il club and was about to pronounce the
final words which would conslgn Miles
O'Brlen TO the gallows when there was
a commotion among those gathered IL
the back of the courtroom and wo
man came pushing her way down til,
aisle Rushing to the prisoner, she
threw her arms about him, he, though
astonished, returning the embrace.
Who are you?' asked the Judge.
His wife"
When the commOtion consequent up
on this sudden return to life of mur
dered woman who had come to save
her husband from the, penalty of hav
ing killed her had subsided, the judge
asked Mrs. O'Brien to give an accoun
of her Whereabouts since her partln.
with her husband.
After he left me-" she said, Il con
cluded to shut up the house and go III
into the country to my mother, wh,
lives on farm. They don't take ;
newspaper up there, so | didn't hear OF
my husbands arrest. But | found
couldn't live without him and came
back to learn what had become OF hin
and, if could fSd him, ask his for
glveness. When l got home. heart
he had been tried for my murder ant
was to be sentenced this morning"
Have you a twin sister,
mo, your honor"
The judge sat stupefied. Twelve goo
and true men under his legal guidanc
had pronounced Miles O'Brien guilt
of having killed the woman who wa
weeping over him and covering hin
with kisses. In another moment tn
convicted man would have been legal
guilty of the crime.
You are discharged" said the judg
TO the prisoner. Court is adjourned.
And rising from his elevated iudieia
chair, lie descended to the floor ant
stallSed out Of the room.
Miles and Molly O'Brien lived hap
PLY together after the lesson they hat
received for years before the error II