Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-06-02

the bench-he had Just pronounced
sentence on a criminals hurry call
came over the telephone for him to
come home at.once. He Immediately
adjourned the court and, calling cab,
drove TO his residence. Hastily enter
/ ing. he found his family in a most dis
+ tressing situation. The house was In
/ the hands OF officers of the law. who
1 had in their possession the identical
ruby eyed bracelet he had thought or
/ buying for his daughters birthday
/ present. 1t had been found between
the mattresses Of her bed
That some OF the COASTAL les recog-
nized a Judge OF the criminal c5urt
! did not absolve them from doing their
duty. Miss Grifiths was taken by
them in a carriage to court, her father
! accompanying her. where a charge of
| larceny was made against her. Her
| father gave bail for her appearance
! for trial, and she returned with him
to their home
! A mystery doomed up before Judge
Grifiths. Not for a MOMENT did he
suspect that his daughter was guilty
of theft What puzzled MIN was that
he had examined this very bracelet
| with a view to buying 1t. He was
sure that he could net have taken it
from the store by mistake. And If he
| had done so how conld It have come
between the mattresses OF his daugh-
| ter's bed? But the mystery was nothing
/ to the terror with which the incident
inspired the judge. Without an expia-
I n o do1nykNn1 hn triad
convicted and sentenced to the peni-
| Tertiary. On Just such evidence he
had sentenced hundreds of criminals.
he went at once to Benkard's and
was closeted with the head Of the
| firm.
On hearing the judges errand.
Mr. Bernhard told him Of the anony-
Nous letter he had received and show
ed him another that had just come In
I apparently from a different person. au
thorizing him to say to Judge Griffiths
that 1t would be to his advantage to
recommend to the governor OF the
state that pardon be grante6to Edith
| Trowbridge, whom he had sentenced to
serve two years In state prison. This
was all the information received on
the subject. except that Bernhard had
recovered his lost property by acting
on the advice Of his first correspond
ent.
For the first time the Judge recalled
the Trowbridge case 1t was plain
that some one interested in that case
| had planned an ingenious method of
placing his daughter in the same posi-
| ton as that occupied by the girl he
had sentenced. Furthermore, he saw
at once that the scheme had been so
adroitly managed that there was little
| hope OF exposing the perpetrators.
Whether the scheme had been work
ed in the interest OF an innocent or
| guilty person the judge did not know.
| He had no evidence to prove that q
scheme had been worked at all that
could be satisfactorily presented to a
court. He went at once to the gov
ernor OF the state and laid the case
before him. The governor yielded to
his solicitations and issued a pardon
for Edith Trowbridge.
As soon as Miss Trowbridge was
free Judge GrifhthS received word
that the person who had worked up
the case against his daughter would
explain on a promise OF immunity.
| The judge, glad to remove the obloQuy
that rested upon his child, acceded to
the terms and soon after received a
visit from George Whitcomb, who said
to him:
you convicted an innocent girl on
circumstantial evidence. After the
trial saw you walk up the street and
enter a jewelry store. / went in after
you, stood beside you at the counter.
saw you look at the bracelet and heard
all you said. When the clerks back
was turned and you were intent upon
another article / saw an opportunity
| to steal the bracelet To do so and
make a plan for laying the theft at
your door occurred to me. At the risk
of you or some other criminal judge
sending me where you sent Miss Trow-
bridge 1 slipped the bracelet into my
| sleeve.
MY object thus far was revenge
upon you for sending an innocent girl,
| the girl loved, to state prison. Then
it occurred to me that my case would
be stronger and my revenge greater
If could fix 1t on your daughter. a
third idea was to show you the fall
| bility of circumstantial evidence, and,
lastly, saw an opportunity to compel
you to use your influence to secure the
release of the girl you had wrongfully
sent to prison.
ST wrote the note TO Bernhard & Co.
and employed a detective to steal into
your house and place the bracelet be-
tween the mattresses OF your daugh-
ter's bed"
When the marriage between George
WhitcOmb and Edith Trowbrtdge took
place a handsome wedding present
was received from Judge Grifiths.