The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-02-28

] L y
among its inhabitants one Joseph Tay'
Tor and his wife, Time was when 10
seph was hardworkipg man and he
and his wife were respected by all.
Then he broke his leg. and the acct
dent made a great change in him. PEG.
pie didn't sympathize with him as he
felt they should. and some said he bad
been very careless. and before the leg
was mended he was feeling a martyr.
He was also down on the world in
general and the people of Greenberg in
particular. What completely finished
him was the fact that he was dunned
for two or three debts he owed.
Susan. just think of it, he exclaim-
ed. Il take job of fixing over Elder
Courtwright's barn cheaper than any
body else. had to use old boards to
make a scaffoId / hadn't more'n got
up on that scaffold when the burned
thing came down with kerwosh."
.She did. Joe; she did"
''And broke my leg"
BROKE it like stick"
And | suffered for two months, and
nobody cared a cent. They went right
on and bad a camp meeting and cir
Gus same as IL hadn't been hurt"
That's what they did, Joe"
And now Jest because | can limp
about ag'in they dun me for old debts"
Pears that way"
.But have It, They shan't keep
me down. I'm going to make living
right here in this town. and hain't
going to work for it either"
A few days after the above CONVEX
sation Mr.. Taylor announced to certain
idlers of his acquaintance that he had
become a sleepwalker. That broken
leg had brought il about. On two diff
ferent nights he had left his bed and
gone prowling about and was so fast
asleep that be would hardly credit his
wife's statement that he had entered
the garden Of Elder Bliss and picked
and brought home a basket of veg
etabIes There was the plumber. how
ever, 10 prove that he had walked
II was soon known all over the vii
lage that Joe Taylor walked in his
sleep and that 1t would be dangerous
for anybody to suddenly wake him up.
That broken leg had left him with a
weak heart, and a rude awakening
might finish him. In his nightly wan
derings Mrs. Taylor followed him
about. but was careful not even to
whisper to him She returned home
with him, saw him back TO bis bed
and then let him wake up naturally.
For time the village was rather
proud of its novelty. Ii could boast OF
the only somnambulist for fifty miles
around. Various people interviewed
Joe as to how he felt when asleep |
what he thought when be woke up, |
If be had any perception at all when
sloshlng around, and the local weekly
paper wrote him up TO the extent OF
a column. However. ms time passed /
the novelty of the thing wore OFF. and,
too the sleepwalker became holder.
There wasn't field or garden or
he didn't plumber. He en-
tered cellars. and he stripped clothes
lines Sometimes he was seen at his
work and sometimes not. His wife /
was always with him. and when
caught red handed II was for her TO
say:
Hush, hush, You know how he is.
A sudden shock may mean death"
That went for a time, but one night
when he was caught with fifty pounds
IF pork on his shoulder be was ar
'ested and taken to the village lookup
When arraigned before justice OF
he peace point of law came up. A
,leepwalker was a person acting I'M
He knew not what he
lid There was no criminal intent, and
therefore, there was no crime.
This decision settled matters as far
IS the law was concerned. but there
we're certain citizens that believed they
ad another remedy. No one now be-
ieved that Joe Taylor was sleep
walker That excuse was played out.
In deciding for Joe the court had
ecded for others. If it was no crime
or him to sleepwalk then it wasn't
or any citizen of the village. One