Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-09-22
Paul V. Claude, Fairfield
Freed on Arson Charge

Pennington, Ne, Sept. o0-Paul Y.
Claude Of Fairfield was declared not
guilty by the Franklin County Su-
preme Court jury after IS minutes
! deliberation Wednesday. The case
has been the center of interest here
as Claude was indicted charged with
setting the fire which wiped out the
| business portion Of West Mills in the
, town Of Industry, May IS last. He
had been further charged by indict
ment with attempting to defraud the
| insurance companies, and further,
with having in his possession coun-
terfeit money.
His attorney was Hon. c. N.
, blanchard of Wilton, assisted by
Weeks, Jr. OF Fairfield. County At
torney c. c. Holman was the prose-
cutting attorney. ID. w. Mackinnon
and Paul V. Claude were partners in
trade at West Mills. Mackinnon, it
appeared, had induced Mr.. Claude to
invest some money and to go into the
partnership. That was back several
years ago. Under the terms of the
partnership Mr. Mackinnon was to
be paid a certain sum monthly, for
his services and was to carry on the
business.
The partnership was stated to be
unsatisfactory from the first, and the
details of the agreement were vague.
Neither partner seemed to know
where they We're bound or which way
they were going according to Mac
kinnon's testimony. Mr.. Claude was
silent
On the night of May 25th the store
and all its contents, two adjoining
dwellings, two stores across the street
and another building, burned to the
ground. Mr.. and Mrs. Mackinnon at
that time were spending the night at
Madison, or Whereabouts, visiting rel
atives.
Sometime in the night or early the
next morning they were both in
formed by telephone that their store
was burning. They took separate au-
tomobiles, starting from different
points. for home.
Mrs. Mackinnon testified that as
she drove out of one of the towns, in
the early dusk of the dawn she
PASSED a man coming from the direc-
ton of Industry walking. and she
spoke to Arthur who accompanied her
and said There's Claude" A little
later the same day. the sheriff who
had arrived at the scene of the fire
discovered certain tracks leading out
of the town of West Mills and in the
direction supposed to have been trav-
eled by Mr.. Claude The Sheriff with
an assistant followed these tracks the
entire distance where Mrs, MacKin-
non was said to have met the man
supposed to be Mr.. Claude.
Later in the day the sheriff ar
rested Mr. Claude charged with burn
ing the said store, and thus the trial
in Pennington Wednesday. The de-
PENDANT denies setting the fire, but he
did not take the-stand as a witness.
He was silent
. A great deal of testimony was in
troduced as to the strained relations
existing between Mr.. Claude and Mr..
MacKinnon. and several witnesses
were brought in who testified to the
good reputation of Mr.. Claude. An in
dictment against d. w. MacKinnon
found by the grand jury in the Fed
eral court was introduced in evil
dence. This was the last piece Of EVIL
dence presented. The case was ar
gued long and well by attorneys on
both sides Wednesday forenoon. It
went to the jury after an able charge
by Justice Morrill, /