The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1910-08-30

SHOWED HIM TEE NEW BIT OF EVIDENC0.
through the heart in his own house.
For defense the prisoners attorney
had elaborate diagrams made to DEM
onstrate that Cruikshank died by his
own hand
There is point made much Of in
such cases-the motive for the crime.
1t is certainly an important matter for
mistaken for proof. 1t does not fol-
low that because a man has had
motive for murder he has committed
murder. But an ingenious prosecutor,
taking such motive for a basis, may
weave in with it certain other circum-
stantial evidence and with the two
convict an innocent man.
Adrian Dresser and Florence Pit
man had been brought UP together.
That is, they had from birth lived in
the same neighborhood, had been play
mates and eventually lovers. Any one
looking at Florence would say, THAT
girl would love her lover with her
whole heart and soul" There was
something in the wonderfully express
sive eyes, the contour of the face, that
indicated this. And any one knowing
her would arrive at the same conclu-
sion as that reached merely by seeing
her.
There are people Of an entirely diff
ferent makeup from this, people who
cannot understand any such spiritual
depth. Such was Cornelius Pitman,
Florence's uncle. He had been money
to die, having no children, left his for
tune to Florence But his passion for
accumulation lived, so to speak, be-
yond his natural life He saw in a
relative, Roger Cruikshank, one capa-
BILE by shrewdness, foresight and
meanness Of increasing the estate In
tended for young girl whose heart
would rather lead her to scatter than
add to it. He therefore left a pro-
vision In the will to insure Cruik-
shank's management Of the property.
Florence was to marry him. By the
terms of the will Cruikshank had only
to refuse to marry the legatee to en-
ed. This he refused to do, and his &C.
ton called forth the scathing words
with which this story begins.
If they had not been spoken Cruik-
shank's sudden death would have
solved the problem for the lovers. and
they might have been united, the bride
inheriting the fortune bequeathed to
her. As 1t was. Dresser was put on
trial for his life, and that life depend
ed upon which had the greater in
genuity, the man who built upon the
theory that the accused was guilty or
the man who by his diagrams was try
ing to prove that the dead man shot
himself. The result in this case was
that the theory of the prosecutor was
established to the satisfaction Of the
jury, and he showed conclusively by
his opponents diagrams that a. shot
fred In accordance Herewith would
miss the mark by two and one-half
inches.
AS accessory to his theory counsel for
the defense proved that there was In
sanity in the family Of the deceased
and that his grandfather had shot him.
self He further proved that the day
of the death or the suicide had been
lowering, wild and blustery--just such
a day as would influence one with
suicidal intent to commit the act. But
all this crumbled before the mastery
handling of the matter of the motive
for the crime. BY Cruikshank's death
Dresser would possess the girl he
loved and fortune. If Cruikshank
lived Dresser would lose the fortune.
Nevertheless it was generally adj
mitted that the conviction of Adrian
Dresser was due to the ability of the
prosecutor, who tossed fact and fiction
up before the jury so rapidly that they
could not distinguish between them.
However this may be, he was con-
victed
One day few weeks after the con-
clusion of his trial Dresser received a
call from his counsel.
Il have good news for you," said the
attorney.
HAS your petition for a new trial
been granted?"
Better than that"
Dresser was then told that the real
murderer of Cruikshank had agreed to
make confession provided the matter
could be kept from the public and
light sentence imposed. The matter
had been arranged, the confessed muir
derer had gone before the court pr.
vately, had been sentenced and sent
to state prison for ten years. Ores
ser could not understand how this
could be done in private, but his coun-
sci finally convinced him that the state
had found way by which it had beer
accomplished.
AS soon as the prisoner was freed
he sought the girl he loved, confident
that his vindication would restore the
status that had existed between them
before his conviction. What was bis