Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1917-02-16
An Avoided
Judicial Murder
By RICHARD MARLEY

| 'I'N'lf Nll'l 'NNllIUllE llf hl'lt HOOK
~ on the Inside o. ll' ring md saw
Tie Initials l., A, H. to..E
what IL your name u,,od the
bruLor
'.ulia Amory,"
j, $, mlgl! mean Jane Severance, a
widow lOS whose murder Andrew Bow.
elS was 10 DO hanged the nest day
The pawnbroker Informed the police,
aud the woman was arrested
Julia Amory upon examination broke
down and confessed that she had muir
dercd Jane Severance, She said that
she had been Il scamstreSs In Mrs. Sew
frances home, had seen the ring IN
box of silver articles and Jewels and
had coveted 1t, She had gone into Mrs
Scyerancc's room 10 possess herself Of
the jewels and, being discovered, had
been obliged either to kin the owner
or spend term Of years IN prison
The cuprits story was probable
enough, but there was one flaw In IL
Why did she Offer the ring for pawn
in the very town where the murder
had been committed and ON the day
before the supposed criminal was to
he executed for the murder? Being
questioned MS 70 her motive, she con
lcsScd that her main object was 10
visit the scene Of her crime.
Andrew Bowers was u young man
about twcuN 1--WE years Of age, He
had become acquainted with the wild.
ow, who was thirty years his senior.
and she made ward Of him. One
day she showed him Il box Ia which
she told him there were articles that
concerned him, In case Of her death
he was 10 possess himself OF IT, She
kept it on the top Of the stone founda
ton to the house between two iolsts
supporting tho floor above.
bowers was seen with Mrs. Sever
ancc just before bedtime on the NIGHT
OF the murder. He claimcd 10 have
left hci at II o'clock. She was fouAd
dead the next morning One Of the
prosecutions witnesses at Bowers trial
sWorc that Mrs. Severance had told
her that she intended to leave all her
property to Bowers This was strong
point against him. No will was found.
aud Bowers, fearing one might turn up
in his favor in the box, kept his knowl.
edge of ii secret.
As soon as the authorities were con.
Ittli r'. 60 Il.
was true they released Andrew Bow
crs, but not before they had confront
ed him and her They took him TO the
prison where she was confined and left
him with her for n few minutes, the
detectives keeping within hearing
Nothing was said between the two
at least nothing was newfoundland
after he had been permitted to look at
her for a few minutes he withdrew
from her On rcjoining his keepers
he told them that he had never seen
her in Mrs Scvcrance's home, but that
didn't prove that she had never been
employed there, for he had never lived
at the house, and there were times
when he had not been there for
months,
After his release Bowers went to the
house where Mrs. Severance had lived
and possessed himself Of the box she
had told him contained articles that
concerned him. Hidden under some
old silver tableware he found will
leaving all her property to him There
was second paper which read as fol
lows:
Ten years ago was obliged to send
Susan Dugan, my cook. TO the peui-
Tertiary for stealing a valuable brooch
from me. She was very bitter against
me and said to me- When | get out
I'll fix YOU, | have since lived in the
fear that she would keep her word.
If anything happens to me she will
have caused it,"
Shortly after finding this paper Bow
erS appeared in the district attorneys
office and showed it to him Put be-
fore telling where he got ii he asked
the attorney to telephone the pcnitcn-
tiary for information concerning Susan
Dugan. \ reply came that Susan Du-
gan had been discharged from the
penitentiary on a certain date that
was found to be eight days before the
murder was committed. Her arrest
was ordered and Julia Amory was re
leased
The morning after Julia AmOry had
left the prison she appeared at the dis
trict attorneys office in company with
Andrew Bowers. She told the follow
ing story:
Several years ago this man left the
place where he lived to seek his for
tune. We were betrothed, and | PROM
Used to wait for him, When heard of
his arrest for murder it was great
shock to me. Being convinced of his
innocence, laid a plan to cheat the
state out Of victim. He had given
me an engagement ring without any
marking. | had the initials put in n,
the last two letters being those Of
the murdered woman. Then | offered
the ring in pawn that might be as-
cused of the murder The rest you
know"
Then Bowers told his story