The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-04-09
Mortified Man Convicted
of Sending Blackhand
Letter
JURY HAD THE CASE
JUST 10 MINUTES
Own Attorney
Said That He Was
Guilty

Burlington, April 9.--Fred I. Slack OF
Northfeld was sentenced to Is months in
the federal prison at Atlanta, Ga, for
sending blackhand letter to J. Frank
Severance of Northfeld in the United
States court here to-day. The jury was
out with the case just ten minutes. Aft
er that the court adjourned.
| The trial of the case developed rath-
Ter novel situation in that the respond
ent and his attorney differed as to the
facts in the case. The respondent stuck
to his story that he himself was the in
nocent victim of blackhand scheme,
while John II. Senter, his attorney, was
positive that Slack wrote the letter
which demanded the money from Sew
erance. The attorney even went on the
stand and stated his belief that the
letter originated with Slack and also
that he had urged Slack to plead guilty.
Mr.. Senter taking the view that Slack
was not responsible mentally for the
act Slack maintained that he was all
right mentally; also that he did not
write the letter.
William e. Kingston, a handwriting
expert from Boston, was put on the
stand and qualified also as one ac-
quainted with the letters sent out by
the black hand in this country. He stat
ed that the letter received by Mr.. Sew
erance was not real black hand pro.
duct. He said the work of amateurs
was always printed as this one was.
He said the letter was evidently a crude
attempt of beginner. Then from other
writings of Slack he pointed out re-
semblances in spelling and other re-
spects which tended TO make him believe
that all the extortion letters were writ
ten by Slack.
The governments witnesses were j.
NJ. Donohue, c. ID. Edgerton, j. Frank
Severance, F. A. Phillips, Asa G. An
drews, A. /. Reed, John A. Hutchinson,
Sumner Kimball, John B. Houston, f. l..
Kerr, Mrs. Fred Slack, wife of the re-
spondent, and Mrs Grace Slack Sargent,
his sister. All of these were Mortified
people. e. c. Brown Of the Wood Nor
gan bureau, as we'll as nj. Wood, tes-
titled.
For the defense, George Sanborn,
Charles Duke and Dwight Howe testi-
fed The respondents attorney also
made several of the governments wit
nesses his own for the purpose of fur
ther questions relating to their impress
sion OF the mental status of the re-
spondent at the time, and admitted
much that the government offered TO
prove.
The Story of the Case.
The story, as given by witnesses. was
in substance this: Last December j.
Frank Severance of Northfield received
4. a. k,,.
dred dollars in certain shed under the
seat of wagon or suffer death. The
letter was printed and signed with the
black hand. 1t went on to say that
"we,' the black hand, were taking up a
collection in this state from those able
to pay and would pay it back with in
terest within two years. 1t said, I'VE
never break our word. We must have
two hundred dollars from you" 1t ad-
vised him: Don't be fool" A similar
letter came later.
Mr.. Severance consulted the local au
thorities and the Wood Morgan Detect
i've agency was put to work on the case.
1t was decided to set trap for the
sender of the letter, Mr.. Severance, act
ing at the direction of the detectives,
placed two one hundred dollar bills in
an envelope and took it as directed TO
the shed designated, which it happened
to Slack & Phillips, meat deal.
ers and in which Mr.. Slack's meat -wag-
on was kept. He put the packet under
the seat in the wagon precisely as he
had been ordered to do by the letter, |
and retired. From that time on the de- |
tectives watched the wagon.
How the trap was sprung was told on
the stand by James r. Wood of the |
Wood Morgan Detective agency. Mr. |
Wood said they watched all night and |
next morning, which was Sunday, they |
saw the respondent, Slack, come to the
place, enter the shed and take the letter
from the place, where it had been put.
They ran down from their hiding place
and caught him about 20 feet from
the door of the shed.
Mr.. Wood testified that he said: |
Well old man, you got it, didn't you"
He said that to this the respondent re-
piled: "Yes, but l don't know what's in
it. | received letter which told me to
come here and get it and would receive
q further letter telling me what to do
with it,"