The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-03-09
Two Gases Of
Clrcumstantlal
Evidence
By SARAH BAXTER

/
tunate when request came over the
telephone that he come home imme
diately. Realizing that something mo
mentous had happened in his house
hold, he adjourned the court and left
for his residence. On reaching it he
found his daughter, girl of twenty
In charge of policeman.
"Im only obeying orders, judge,
said the man, who recognized the
judge.
what does this mean:"
1--WE don't know" sobbed the prison
er. Some one reported to Hammer
stein & Co. that they would find goods
stolen from their dry goods store be
tween the mattresses of my bed. A
man came here representing himself
as water inspector and found those
things"
Don't cry, Lulu: it will be all right"
Though the Judge treasured his
daughter, he could not reassure him
self. He did not doubt that some one
had laid trap for him, but remem-
before the law, and unless he could
prove conspiracy there was trouble
ahead He cast glance at some laces
in the hands of man in plain clothes,
then went with his daughter to court.
where. having furnished ball. he took
her home. Then he repaired to the
Office of the head of the firm of Ham
merstein & Co.
All Mr.. Hammerstein knew about
the matter was that they had received
an anonymous note informing them
where certain of their stolen goods
were to be found. and they had sent
detective TO the address. He had Sc
cured entrance as water inspector
and found the articles. The Judge
went away much depressed The offer
of Mr. Hammerstein to refrain from
prosecuting the case did not relieve the
former because the state would surely
prosecute anyway. and. even If the
case was not tried. the stain would
remain. Judge Erskine believed that
some criminal whom he had sentenced
had taken this method of revenge.
A few days after his daughters ar
rest be received the following note:
Judge Erskine:
Sir-A few weeks ago you sentenced
Edna MacAlpine TO state prison on
charge OF shoplifting at Hammerstein's.
While she was shopping there thief who
feared TO be caught with the stolen goods
on her. noticing a bag lying ON the coun-
ter, put the goods in il. A few minutes
later one OF the store detectives arrested
Edna MacAlpine, TO whom the bag be-
longed. / know this, but / can't prove it.
Can't you secure a pardon for Edna
MacAlpine?
Here was the explanation. Some per
son In the interest Of one whom the
judge had sentenced. either guilty or
not, had undertaken TO force him to in
tercede with the governor for pardon
There was no signature to the note,
nothing by which to trace the writer.
The fact that it did notrefer to the
case against his own daughter did not
change the judges opinion. He be-
lieved that II he secured a pardon for
Edna MacAlpine he would receive an
exoneration for his daughter At any
rate, 1t was the only way that sug-
gested itself TO free his daughter from
the charge.
Judge Erskine went at once to the
governor and represented the case to
him. There was no evidence that he
could consider TO prove that Edna Mac
Alpine had been wrongfuly convicted;
but, being practical man. he put the
same Interpretation as the judge on
the connection between Miss Erskine's
arrest and the letter her father had re-
ceiyed. A pardon requires a good deal
Of delay, but this one, after much
labor and the cutting of a good deal of
red tape, was finally worked through,
and Edna MacAIpine was released.
The very evening the prisoner was
to her home n woman called |
On Judge Erskine and said to him:
Il am the sister of Edna MacAlpine. |
who is as innocent of the charge on |
which you sentenced her to prison as
your daughter is of a like offense. / |
look the laces found in her possession
and went to your house on various
,retexts till | gained admission to her
'oom, where. when not observed, | /
placed them between the mattresses of
Ter bed. l then Informed Hammer
itein & Co. of their being there, My Il
asst act in obtaining justice for my sis
err was to write you the note you re-
eived asking for her pardon. / dared
lot refer In the note to your daugh-
er's case or sign my name lest you
lccuse me Of conspiracy. and you
night have proved me guilty. In any
vent this course would have destroy
d my chances for obtaining the par
lon. Now that my sister is free you
re welcome to prosecute me for con-
piracy or any other crime"
The Judge listened to this confession
With intense anxiety. "You have con
inced me of your sisters innocence
( the crime for which sentenced her.
or were she guilty she would not have
Inspired the devotion of so splendid
The judge went to a desk, wrote out
bond of indemnity and the confes-
ion she had made He asked her to
ign the latter, and when she had done
0 he handed her the former, to which
e had attached his own signature.
hen he called his daughter into the
pom.