The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-06-06
Painful Duty for Judge Taylor in
Mark E. Fosters Case
IN TOUCHING COURT SCENE
Absconding Fonv - arer Of Town of
Hardwick Ny & Less Than Two
Year ~ which Judge Grasps
- I'd in Tender Godspeed. 1

st. Johnsbury, June Cit was a
touching scene in Caledonia county court
yesterday afternoon when Judge w II.
Taylor, the presiding justice, was called
upon to sentence Mark Edward Foster.
his fellow townsman and present friend,
for embezzling funds of the town Of
Hardwick, of which Foster was the treas
urer four years ago, Not less than
two years and not more than five in the
state prison was the sentence which
Judge Taylor imposed.
It was ON the night of April 10, 1908,
that Foster left his wife and children
at Hardwiek and fled. 1t is asserted
in his defense that he did not have tne
criminal intent of the real criminal be
cause he left money in the bank at
Hardwick, OF which he had sole custody.
To make long story short, he had COM
mingled his funds and those of the town
and got into debt so that he could not
get out and became, in his dilemma, a
fugitive from justice. He had with him
barely 5000 when he left. For four
years he wandered from place to place
over the country, once coming back to
New York to see his aged mother for a
few hours.
On Friday, March |, 1912, about four
years after he left Hardwick, Foster was
confronted at Sue Belle, Texas, by How
ard w. Morgan of the Wood Morgan
Detective agency of Boston and taken
l aotr, IaJr rroI huf
hc was the man and that he would come
back without extradition papers. He
was brought to ST. Johnsbury and lodged
III county Jail to await this term His
conduct all the time has been that of
gentleman. which Mr.. Foster natural
| ly is He has been treated as a "trustys
at the jail and has made himself useful
| in all ways possible. He has been re-
signed to his fate since he was taken
prisoner, saying that he could never
| again suffer as he had suffered in the.
last four years.
While all the sympathy of his friends,
OF whom he had many, does not condone
| tile offense which be committed, no one
who knows him believes that what he
did was actuated by evil motive or a
desire to harm anyone,
Walter A. Dutton appeared as his
counsel yesterday afternoon and stated
that while he was acting in the capacity
OF an attorney. he was also acting as
a friend to a friend. He strongly urged
| that a sentence be imposed by fine only.
The states attorney urged the court to
exercise clemencv if in his discretion he
/ thought best. Both Walter A. Dutton
and the presiding Judge, William H.
| Taylor, are residents of Hardwick and
have known the respondent for many
years. The judges retired and after an
hours deliberation, the sentence was pro-
nounced.
Judge Taylor spoke very touchingly
of the unpleasant duty which hade come
to him to pronounce sentence to states
1 prison upon a one-time treasurer of
his town. an acquaintance and friend.
Saying that he would make wide di-
vcrgence between the minimum and
maximum sentence in order to give the
prisoner fair chance, he sentenced him
to the states prison for term of not
less than two years nor more than five
years Court was then about to take
a recess for the night when Judge Tav-
lor came down from the bench and babe
his erstwhile townsman and friend God,
speed.