Evening star., 1952-07-20

door. but it was wood burning.
There was a radio set but no
television.
Over on the next farm, Horace
Berry, brother of the Roberts
Landlord, tried to explain what
had happened to the dead mans
family. It was not due to poverty.
he said. but to the bottle.
Lester Roberts was a good
mechanic. he said. He could do
|anything-take down any of the
farm machines and put them to-
|gether. He was a nice fellow but
he was always falling out" with
the farmers he worked for due to
drinking. Mr.. Berry said. In the
mine years he had been in Mary
lland-he came from the mountain
section of Greene County, Va
he had worked twice for Mr.. Gar
diner. once for Joe Turner and
once for himself and his brother
Ed. before going to Carl Berry's
farm at the first Of this year.
Family Had Good Income.
The tobacco crop he had should
bring him $4,000 to $4,000 in next
Mays auctions. He had money in
the bank from the last crop he
had grown in the Gardiner place.
He was making $50 a week as a
carpenters helper building a bowl
ing alley at La Plata.
The boys were taking care OF
the tobacco. And they were
making money. ut was learned
later from the boys that William
was making $40 week at a serv-
ice station in Waldorf and Russell
and Lester make S. to 81 a day
at this time Of year stripping to-
bacco at S cents a pound. Even
the younger children make some
money stripping tips Of the dried
plants.)
Roberts would slaughter his
hogs during the winter and save
the fat meat for his family" Mr..
Berry said. Then he would sell the
hams and shoulders and buy
liquor.
"He wouldn't be bothered with
chickens. But he was crazy about
hunting. He had five shotguns
and repeating rifle in the house,
He used to be pretty lucky during
the turkey shoots. But he wouldn't
bring the turkeys home. He would
sell them and get a bottle. He was
always going places but I don't
believe that woman has been to
Waldorf since they moved here in
January"
Mrs. Roberts and her mother
came up the road a little later
with William driving. After Rus
sell was released they stopped in
at Hunts funeral home to see the
body but it had not been prepared.
Russell was not with them.
Mrs. Roberts motner said she
lives in Arlington, but she would
not give her name. She said she is
employed. Mrs. Roberts is her
only child. A son died some years
ago.
Violet Roberts had left high
school at II to marry. she said.
Not long after the marriage, her
husband shot and wounded a
horse belonging to his employer,
Joe Wheeler Of Vienna, Fairfax
County, Va, the mother said. The
whole incident might have been
overlooked. But he went to Mr..
Wheeler and said he was going to
shoot him too. That got him in
trouble with the law.
He worked for George Jones in
Vienna next and when he threat
ened Mr.. Jones. he had to get out
of Virginia.
Mrs. Roberts confirmed the
whole story, the hams that left
the farm, the turkeys that never
came home. It was true, she said,
that she hadn't been to town-twc
miles away-since they came to
the farm in January.
Her husband, she said, was an
orphan who was brought up by q
family named Roberts in noun
famous Green County, Va. They
are living and she is going to
notify them.
She was sure the family win be
able to get along all right. The
boys would be able to bring the
tobacco to ripeness and harvest it.
They had done most of the work
of planting 1t anyway. she said.