St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1909-08-11

and was the first to inform Deputy
Sheriff Garfield of Walden of the murder.
In the meantime Pascal continued his
mad search around the house but could
not find his wife. But if he had looked
in an upstairs closet he would have
found a daughter-in-law, Mrs. Harry
Perkins, who with rare presence of mind
and the mothers instinct to protect her
children, had hid in the closet with her
three small children. When she heard
Pascal leave the house she hurried down
stairs and telephoned her husband and
his brother, George Perkins. One OF
them heard the words over the wire
Come as quick as you can they have
shot father" and then the connection
was destroyed. Pascal had been watch
ing the proceedings from the outside of
the house and when he saw Mrs. Perkins
at the telephone he began again his
hellish work. With the butt of his gun
he smashed the seven windows in the
front of the house and then aiming his
gun at Mrs. Perkins fired at her through
the window and so close that some of
the glass flew in her face. She probably
owes her life today to the fact that in
smashing in the windows the rifle struck
the sash in such way as to bend the
stock and interfere with its usually
accurate aim. Mrs. Perkins ran upstairs
just as Pascal entered the house again
and he vented his wrath upon the instru-
ment that had spread the news Of his
crimes by firing at close range at the
telephone and completely demolishing it.
Mrs. Perkins took her little children
and escaped. She carried the baby in
her arms and Glenna and Ilene, aged 10
! and II years old respectively, followed
her. Pascal did not attempt to pursue
them, but stood outside the door of the
Perkins house.
Mr. and Mrs. George Perkins and his
son Charles were the first to arrive at
the Perkins home and the father and
mother went into the house leaving the
boy to hold the horse. Just as the
parents had left the boy he heard a twig
break and looking up in the darkness he
saw Pascal less than ten feet away
pointing his rife at him. He did what
few boys would think of doing in such a
critical moment, jumped out of the
wagon, got behind the horse and led the
animal around the house, going so close
to the house that the wheels scraped on
the clapboards. The father came out
when the boy yelled and saw Pascal be-
hind the maple tree and the mother saw
the murderer pointing the gun at both
father and son and slammed the door
and ran into the house. Pascal could
have continued in his murderous course
as no one had gun to defend him.
SELF but it is supposed he had ex-
hausted his supply of cartridges or else
had discovered that his aim was not
true. At about IL O'Clock he left the
house and skulked around the woods in
that vicinity, going at sometime during
the evening to his own home for a fresh
supply of cartridges and possibly for
more alcohol
If he came to his home for the alcohol
he was doomed to disappointment for
his brother Corliss had been sobered by
the murder of Mr.. Perkins and gave him
self up to the Hardwick officers about
midnight. After securing from Corlss
over quart of alcohol he was locked up
in the Hardwick jail for safe keeping.
Corliss assured the officers that he had
no part in the affair and that his brother
had tried to shoot him before he came up
to the Perkins house.
Pascal left a light in his house and
about 2 o'clock in the morning three
Hardwick men went down there to hunt
for him. Pascal soon appeared in front
of the house aud told them to keep away.
AS the men had no guns they gave Pascal
the right of way and made no attempt
t<,C Nk.xs Iass, Ia
two men saw Pascal in the woods above
the Perkins house and heard the bullets
whistle over their head as he fred at
them to keep in practice and notify them
that he still meant business If they came
any nearer.
This was the last time Pascal was seen
alive as none of the St. Johnsbury party
saw him or any of the searching party.
For the next five days posse of about
rs men, well-armed, made thorough
search of the entire community. One of
the Perkins boys is sure he saw Pascal
not far from the house one night, and it
is very evident that he was in hiding in
that vicinity all the time. One of the
farmers reported that one of his cows
had been MIXED in the night and some of
LuC OliCCiS VlSltSu OuC VI ooSdl . (oulpS
in the woods and found it had been oc-
cupied the night before. The telephone
was in constant use and the officers and
all the people for miles around were on
the watch for the fugitive. The only
picture obtainable of Pascal was on a
gold brooch, about the size of silver
quarter This appeared in the Boston
Globe as a means of Identification if
Pascal had attempted to leave the state.
But with the curiosity which criminolo-
gists say is always uppermost in a
murderer after his crime, he stayed
around the surrounding woods, an inter
ested spectator in all the occurrences of
the week. 1t is likely he saw the funeral
procession Friday afternoon and he
must have been near some of the search |
ing party many times.
On Sunday afternoon about O'Clock |
as George Haynes was looking for his |
cows in his pasture near the Perkins |
house he found the dead body of the
murderer. The right temple was pierced
by rifle ball. Three empty shells by his
side accounted for the three shots the |
searching party had heard the night
before. and there was one empty shell |
and six loaded cartridges in the rifle.
The hall had nart1v h1ow, off h;c head |