The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-06-18
DR., ROWLAND IS
"S|TT|NC TIGHT"
Behind Bars He Waits Re-
lease With Confidence.
HIS WIFE WITH HIM
RouIands. Husband and Wife, Face
Future With Appearance of Faith
and Happiness, and Contem-
plate Their roubi With
out q Show of Bitterness
out a Show of Bitterness

out a Show of Bitterness
A visit to the county Jail in which
Dr.. Rowland is confined awaiting his
hearing on the charge Of having muir
dered in cold blood engineer Strange.
whose widow he afterwards married
within six weeks, presents itself to the
intellect in this fashion:
Either the man who has been in
Jail since May goth is a victim Of cir
cumstances, malice and suspicion OF
a sort that is incredibly cruel; or
He and and his wife are alike the
most remarkably mated couple OF
monsters known in the criminal ms
tory of this country.
1t is fair TO the ROwlands, husband
and wife, to say in the beginning that
this is the intellectual equation. Ana
to admit that in their presence the
heart Of the visitor will accept but one
Of the Rowlands the idea that they
are guilty Of the things charged
against them presents itself as a thing
that has got to be proved against be-
lief; in the absence of any proof the
mind is perhaps all too quick 10 ac-
cept what the heart says.
1t would be interesting to have a
COMPOSITE photograph of the mental
image that the people throughout the
state generally have Of DR.. Rowland.
Undoubtedly it is fashioned after the
charge brought against him of having
in cold blood poisoned his son with
the motive of a very moderate amount
OF insurance money; with having
m his crime as a sequel to
the deliberate murder of a man whom
he scarcely knew for the purpose of
marrying his widow. The photograph
af tho MAN that crows from these
charges is inevitably the v~ariously
constructed prototype of a super-hu-
man villain.
The man himself is not striking ex-
cept for the contagion of his smile.
He is small of stature, thick-set, of a
quick nervousness of movement.
His manner is that of natural frank
ness. His eye is straight-t1ung. He is
glad to see the many people who,
with an elemental sense of relief,
have been coming increasingly to see
him during the last few days. Very
remarkably, it seems to me, the man
exhibits scarcely a trace of bitter
ness in manner. Speaking of the
prosecutions against him, he states
naturally enough that the charges
ought TO be dropped and that he
should be set free. He refers to the
origin of his roubles as having been
brought about by enemies who are
now seeking some method of justify
ing their course. He spoke of the
statement that Mondays hearing is
rumored to be contemplated on the
lines of an ex parte c%oroner's i~nvesti-
cation and stated that it was not right
and unjust. OF the prosecution and
charges he said that they were
"damnable;' and Of the outcome he
spoke with a confidence that his en-
him without a word.
And yet, with it all, there was a lack
of the bitterness which might have
been excused him; and a note of res
ignation that limited almost a gam
bler's depth of philosophy.
Looking in DR.. Rowland's face and
listening to DR.. RoWland's voice, one
is forced to the conclusion that here is
a mar who is going to construct no
decisions about life TO stumble over:
and who is not going to lose his sense
of proportion because he now and
again trips up.
DR.. Rowland takes life as he finds
it, and he leaves the impression that
he is going to enjoy it all it will let
him. If it throws him down he will
get up and grin and go on. There
are no mopes in DR.. Rowland and no
defiance. The writer has seen a num-
Der of men behind jail bars, but never
II who more entirely succeeded in
divorcing their presence from his per-
sOnality.
az bllC ILIlC vi IL NISlip IL NOW
land was seated within his cell talk
ing to his wife. whose chair was
drawn up close to the bars in the
narrow corridor. The two of them
We're in high spirits, notwith-
standing the Jail and Notwithstanding
the fact that of all people perhaps
their future is the most problematicaI.
With her veil off. Mrs. RoWland's
beauty IS disclosed and it is consider
able. Not a trace of the trouble is
visible in her features. which are un-
accentuated by lines. Her skin. that
is remarkably clear and white, has
freshness without color. n her smile
and eyes are unaffected and happy.
Only in q certain dignity of suffering
that one imagined gave an added
sweetness to her face was there the
record of the agony hat she must
have undergone. Needless to say
even more markedly than in the case
question that answers itself between
the charge and the suspect.
As Dir. Rowland talked, she listened.
and her eyes hung to his face and her
lips smiled their response as occasion
ally his voice rose to emphasis. 9th
erWise Mrs. Rowland sat still and quiet
IN her role of comforter. with hope
and confidence lighting her face.
h recent report of DR.. Syme, in
which he declares that he can find no
poison in the stomach of the dead en-
gineer Strange would, it had been
hought have ended the case. As has
been reported the prosecution says
not; that on Monday they will attempt
to develop a chain of circumstantial