Jasper County Democrat, Volume 2, Number 15, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 July 1899 — Page 6

F CHAPTER XVIII. At 8 o’clock on the night of the 27th Battie Deßosette was seated in the hfcrsrjr of her home, the very room in which her father had so recently been murdered. Notwithstanding the fact that the banker had there been stricken to death, this i pom had been his favorite, and his daughter found fond memories clustered about ■ It. It was apparent that the young heiress had been weeping, and little wonder. For three days she had been seated in the court house listening to the evidence that ahe Mt to moat minds condemned the man she loved as the murderer of her father. She had listened to the evidence of Herman Craven and reluctantly had spoken words that substantiated his statements. She had noted with feelings better imagined than described that the stern, fixed features of the jurors seemed to admit of little doubt as to what would be their verdict. The statement of the prisoner, unsubstantiated as it was, seemed to bear little weight. The State's Attorney dispelled that little in his long argument for conviction. He drew a terrible picture of the crime enacted in the room in which she was seated, and stated that the evidence was ■uCn as not to admit of a single doubt as to who committed the horrible murder. “No other living soul!” he exclaimed, ns he pointed his shaking finger at the prisoner, ‘"had a motive! This man had. Where was it? Ask him! Where is the bag of coin he that night obtained at the express office? How did he obtain that canceled note? The dead banker cannot answer you. and the statements of his assassin should weigh not against the overwhelming evidence against him. His assertions are cunningly contrived; but would a wretch—guilty of such a crime—hesitate io save his worthless neck from the halter by false statements? You have, gentlemen, the evidence of the murdered banker’s nephew, his trusted friend, in whom he had such confidence that, unknown to him, he bad already named him the administrator of his will and the guardian of his daughter. Y'es, aud left, him besides a fortune in his own right. He has told you, though reluctantly and after being pressed by the counsel for the defense, that the dead banker had expressed to him a desire to live to see the nephew and bis loved daughter man and wife. In all this, gentlemen of the jury, the daughter’s evidence corroborates that of the principal witness, with the exception that she had no knowledge of the fact that her father hoped one day to see her wedded to the young man who is now president of ’The Cape Fear Bank.* Her father had never expressed that wish to her. Why, gentlemen of the jury? Because of her tender years! May there not. gentlemen, have been also a motive here ou the part of the prisoner for the removal of the murdered man? Did he not fear the banker, living, would thwart him in his design to make the daughter his wife? Remember, gentlemen, that if Herman Craven aud Miss Deßosette had been one moment later in entering the library they would have found before them naught but the lifeless body of the murdered banker! The fiend that murdered him would have made his exit from the house. And who shall ’say. not without a hope, nay, a belief, that the nephew would stand before the bar of justice, charged with his murder? Murder, so palpable and plain that even Lang Sellars, the great Southern detective, whom he had urged to take his case, abandoned him.” There was amazement throughout the court room at the calm appearance of the prisoner during the tirade of the prosecuting attorney. Not an exclamation left his lips. He sat pale and silent, with clenched hands and tightly compressed lips, until Lawyer Robbins had taken his seat. Arthur Dobbs plead long and well for the life of bis client; but no denunciations of Herman Craven left his lips. The ground he dwelt on was that no living soul had seen the blade of the sheath knife driven home to the banker’s heart, and that the evidence against the prisoner was entirely circumstantial. In his closing plea the district attorney, an old and experienced lawyer, ridiculed the idea fit the proof being of a circumstantial nature, and in closing his address used these words: ’’There he nits, gentlemen! There in the prisoner’s box —caught red-handed in his murderous act! Do yopr duty, aud free the Old North State of a fiend unparalleled! Take the case.” The judge’s charge had occupied an hour, aud it was apparent that he entertained no doubt of the prisoner's guilt. Not half an hour previous to the time we find Miss Hattie seated in the library, and after the jury had retired from the court room, had she left the court house, and then only after the judge had announced that the verdict would be delivered in open court at 10 o'clock the following day. “That is," said his honor, “if the jury agree, and they undoubtedly will. I trust,” he added. “that you will not be uncomfortable in the jury room; but owing to illness in my family, I am unable to remain and take your verdict to-night.” “I would have said more, much more,” thought Miss Hattie, as she pondered over the matter, “but for the caution of Mr. Sellars. I would have denounced HermaaOnven. I would have accused him of haying visited the attic. I would—” <-• Her.thoughts were Interrupted by the .euMtate of her cousin. , '“My dear Hattie! I find you alone!” cried Herman, as-he seated himself on the sofa besidk her. “Yon have been weeping. Ido not wonder] The three past days have been terrible to you; but the

AUNT HANNAH'S SECRET.

By B. E. Scott.

me to see you in her company. 1 did not see either the mother or sister in the court room to-day.” “They may have abandoned him to his fate,” said Hattie, “and he may not have desired them there to hear a son and brother condemned.” “Is it possible, my loved cousin and ward, that at one time you loved this wretch ?*’ “Pray do not speak of it. I —l fancied I did.” “Pure fancy and nothing more! Oh, may I not hope, dear Hattie, that your loved father’s desire may be fulfilled, and that at no distant day you will become my wife? I love you, my cousin, and would make my ward my bride!” “This is no time, sir, to speak of love to me! Why, not two months have passed siuce my dear father was alive and well. There is time enough for you to ask my hand, when his brutal murderer shall have paid the penalty of his, death on the gallows.” “But then, dear Hattie? Then may I speak, and will you listen to me?” “If you address me after my father's murderer shall have been executed I will listen to you; but I give you no reason to believe that I will become your wife. 1 never loved you, and certainly do not now.” “But you will, sweet Hattie! You will! You will learn how devoted I am to you!” “You say it was my father’s wish that I become your wife? I would certainly fulfill his every wish, but is it not strange that be never expressed such a desire to me?” ' ’ •»." “I think not, my dear‘Hattie. He did not desire you to think he was in haste to have you married, but he often spoke his mind to me.” “Strange; but as he evidently was not in haste to have me married, neither shall I be In haste to surrender my hand, now that he is no longer alive.” “Your father living, dear Hattie, you had a trusty guardian.” “Have I not one now?” asked the heiress, looking him fixedly in the eyes. His face colored as he answered: “Why, yes, certainly you have, and one who loves you with his whole heart! I would die to serve you!” “Well, speak of love to me no more until I give my leave. Good night!” and Hattie arose from her seat and left the room. “She is mine, in spite of the devil!” thought Herman as the door closed behind her. “Ere a year goes by she will have changed the name of Deßosette for that of Craven. Now to move cautiously and retain the confidence of the directors and the public until she has become my bride. Then my plan is to convert everything into cash. Cash? I wonder what—never mind, I shall hear from him soon enough. I will venture he is keeping track of events. Afraid to write too soon, possibly. Well, he is prudent; but all is smooth sailing, smooth sailing, aud 1 hold the reins! To-morrow the verdict comes. I think I hear the foreman’s words now: ‘Guilty! Guilty!’ Guilty, beyond a doubt. Then a short season in a condemned man’s cell under the death watch, and then—ah! a strangling noose! A fatal drop! A dead man dangling between the earth and sky, and Alvin Deßosette’s murder has been—gracious, it makes me nervous!—avenged, aud I have nothing more to fear. “What a difference it makes whether a man be poor or rich. Poor, I was Herman Craveu, the cashier of ’The Cape Fear Bank,’ the nephew of a wealthy man, but entitled .to little consideration. Wealthy, I am Mr. Craven, president of ’The Cape Fear Bank’ and entitled to all consideration. To the devil with conscience and idle scruples in this world, say I! Nothing but servility and beggery travels in their wake. Now for bed, and to-morrow for another scene in the drama. After the next one the curtain will drop. Strange, I feel so squeamish! I feel as though my every movement was being watched. Never mind, I will take a bracer when I reach my room, then sleep.” A moment more and Herman entered his room, closing and locking the door behind him.

A black, ungainly form had in the distance followed Herman Craven from the court house to the Deßosette residence on the night of the twenty-seventh. In fact, on each night that had preceded it since the detective’s departure with .Adam, the coachman, for Baltimore, and this form now lay beneath an elm directly in front of the residence of the late banker, and hut a few feet from the path leading from the gate to the house. A pair of large black eyes were intently fixed on the door of the mansion, and only removed from the same when from time to time the negro raised them and glanced for a moment at the light that shone forth from two windows on the second floor. Herman Craven’s feelings that he was being watched belied not the facts in the case. The eyes of Calban had never for one moment left his form, save when'he was beneath the court house roof, that of the bank, or beneath that under which he now sought repose. “Dis yere bard wuck,” muttered the negro, “an’ I knows what Ise gwine t* do when Mars Lang wine up dis case. Ise gwine sleep a week, dat I is. But I isen’ gwine close dese yere eyes till Mars Lang say, Calhan, you Sieved now!’ Golly, I spec’ dat Adam tink he own de yearth, now he splorin’ ’bout wid Mars Lang. I yere dem say dat de jury got de case. You better hurry up, Mars Lang! What I done wid my ’bacca? I hope 1 isen’ loss dat! Nd, yere it is!" and the negro bit off a goodly piece with his white ivories and composed himself for his night’s watch. In the offlce of Attorney Dobbs a father and son werw at this time in close conversation. “There to no question what the verdict will be, Arthur,” are the words that fall from the lipa of the elder man. “But for Sellars you could have made your defense much stronger.” “I know, father, but he protested

against such a course. You know he has his own theories.” “He is a strange man with his methods. He keeps his secrets to himself. Now as to this 0. A. Stephens that he la searching for. What possible connection can he have with the case? Why, the man may Sin Europe by this time. I think Sellars wrong with his theories. I believe Robert Campbell to be entirely innocent of the foul crime charged against him, and I believe every word of the statement he made to’ the jury, but I do not believe Herman Craven guilty of that murder. Neither do I believe him to have been an accessory to it, or to have had a knowledge of the fact that it was contemplated. I am fully satisfied that he believes Robert Campbell to be the guilty wretch who murdered his uncle.” “Possibly, father; but I have all faith in Sellars’ judgment.” “Little wonder, son; but Sellars in thia case has made an egregious blunder. My theory now is that there were two parties to this crime—tramps, probably. That one was secreted in the house, perhaps in the bath room adjoining the banker’s chamber, perhaps in the closet under the stairs, and that the other was on the outside of the house.” “Well?” “That the Abject was to rob the banker; that unexpectedly Robert Campbell appeared before that had been accomplished and was admitted to the house. The tranip on the outside waited perhaps half an hour after he had entered the house. Perhaps through the open window on the east side of the house he had a view of the two men seated in the library. Finally he ascended to the piazza and rang the bell vigorously, with a design of separating the two men. Possibly he thought the younger one would come to the door.” *Very naturally so.” “Well, after ringing the bell he dashed away in the darkness. Robert went to the door, as he stated. There was no one there. He walked out on the piazza and examined that. Next he descended the steps and peered round in all directions in the gloom and darkness. Presently he heard a groan from within the house. He retraced his steps quickly. The murder had been committed. The tramp had secured the bag of coin and in some manner made his exit from the house.” "Your theory is ” “Wait! Robert was appalled at the sight that confronted him. He cried, ’Help! Murder!’ and drew forth the reeking blade from my old friend's breast; but only to find himself a moment later charged by the nephew with having committed the crime." “You draw a fearful picture, father!” "The picture was a reality, iny son. You could have made your case stronger, much stronger! Y’ou.could have shown all these possibilities. You could have shaken the founded belief of that jury, as you did not do.” "I know it, father, and but for Sellars 1 would have done so. He protested against such a course, as you know, and Robert Campbell has such implicit confidence in him that he directed me to be guided by him in relation to all matters pertaining to his defense.” “Robert Campbell will soon be under sentence of death, and for a crime that he did not commit. As for Sellars, he has not been frank enough with us. If he has a hope of material evidence—anything aside from suspicions—he should have made it apparent.” "Remember, father, Lang Sellars is a man of action, not of words. At the proper time he will speak in thunder tones! Have patience, and wait!” "In the meantime Robert Campbell approaches the gallows.” (To be continued.)

BATTLE WITH WILDCAT.

A Hunter’Uses Red Pepper to Good Advantage on a Wild Beast. For the first winter in many years wildcats have been numerous along the Fulton Chain. “Bill” Harwood, an oldtime Adirondack guide, arrived in town last week with his head and arms done up in bandages, as evidence of the wHlingness of a wildcat to fight when in close quarters. Harwood and his big deerhound, Spot, had been making a tour of the lakes for winter game, when they were caught In a snow storm on Black River mountain, near Rocky Point. They camped for the night in a shack left by a party of surveyors. Along in the morning Harwood was awakened by the barking of the hound. Turning over in his blankets he saw two shining eyes in a corner of the shack. Harwood knew that it was a wildcat. The ent had crawled to the entrance, when the hound leaped ahead and blocked the way out A terrific battle followed. The cat leaped for the hound and literally tore the dog info shreds. Then the decayed trees holding the shack fell over the entrance and the cat and Harwood were literally penned in to fight a duel to the death. The odds were plainly with the cat, for Harwood’s gun had fallen with the brush, outside the shack. He was crawling to reach the weapon when the cat came down upon him, tearing its claws through his face and down his right arm. If the cat had followed the attack Immediately the battle would have been over then and there. Harwood’s life was saved by liyik and a clever Idea. As the cat leaped back for a second attack, Harwood feU forward. His hand struck a box of red pepper, which he had brought with his provisions. Quick as thought he snatched a handful of pepper, and arising threw it at the head of the cat. The aim Whs good. The cat was blinded until Htowood could crawl outside and reach his rifle. Then he dropped under the edge of the shack, and, Iqcating the cat by the noise, fired until the animal was dead—New York World.

British Police Force Statistics.

The total police force of the United Kingdom to nearly 60,000. Of these England has 41,332, including 15,468 |n the London Metropolitan Police Force and 985 In the city police; Scotland, 4,744; Ireland, 12,165; Wales, 1,288; Isle of Man, 52. Of the large towns, Ltrerpool has a full strength of 1,895 men; Glasgow, 1,820; Dublin, 1,265; Manchester, 1,038. Married couples in Norway are privileged to travel cn railways at a tare and a half. 0 .

BRYAN'S VIEWS ON THE ISSUES OF THE DAY

William J. Bryan recently wrote an article in which he treated various questions of the day—trusts, annexation of the Philippines, the Income tax, the currency, etc. In this article he says: “Standard Oil and the water of life do not mix. “ ’lf a man says love God and hateth his brother he is a liar, for he that lovetb not hjs brother, who me hath seen, how can he love God, whom he hath not seen.’ “Thus does John In his first epistle denounce those who' pretend to love the Heavenly Father while they hate the earthly brother. “Christ condensed the ten commandments into two when he said: “ ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and with all thy mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’ “The first defines man’s duty toward the Almighty; the second his duty toward his fellow men. The fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man are parts of the same gospel and cannot be separated. “There is a wide zone between the affirmative benevolence which religion commands and the rectitude which Government compels.

The ‘ object of Taxation. “The object of this article, however, is not to point out ways in which the Christian may aid his brother,, but

“The overthrow of the present administration is hoped for by the insurgent leaders.”—Gen. Otis’ dispatch. —Denver News.

rather to Indicate a few of the ways in which he may be doing injustice to him. The subject of taxation is an everpresent one. It is an admitted proposition that each citizen should contribute to the support of his Government in proportion to the protection enjoyed by him and the benefits received. “If, because a bad system of taxation or because of faulty administration of a good system, taxes are collected in such a way that some pay more than their share and others less, injustice is done to those overburdened and partiality shown to those too lightly taxed. “If the unjust law is the handiwork of those who profit by it and is enacted because of the advantage which it brings to its authors, how shall we describe the moral character of the act? The wrong consists In the fact that money is taken from one person without an equivalent being returned by the Government and given to another without a consideration being demanded, the method being immaterial. “The person who robs by force or fraud is no more guilty from a moral standpoint than the man who purposely secures legislation which transfers to the shoulders of others the public burden which he himself ought to bear. “The advocates of an income tax believe’"that taxation involves a moral as well as a political question, and, believing in equality before the law, they favor an amendment to the Constitution specifically authorizing an Income tax. Can the opponents of such an amendment place their opposition upon moral grounds? “Honest differences of opinion as to the merits of any proposed financial policy are to be expected, but there ought Io be no differences of opinion as to the ideal policy, toward the securing of which every effort should be directed.

“The questions, What money Is sound? and What dollar makes the nearest approach to honesty? may afford ground for dispute, but there should be no dissent from the proposition that the best dollar, no matter what system secures it, is the dollar which Is most stable In Its purchasing power. Absolute stability, if attainable, would give us an absolutely honest dollar, but such a dollar has never yet been devised. “In money, as In other matters, we strive for perfection, knowing that It cannot be fully attained. Every fluctuation in the purchasing power of tbe dollar injures someone. If a dollar rises in purchasing power It benefits those who own money and those who hold contracts payable in dollars, but It injures those who owe money and those who produce wealth.

“A dollar which falls in purchasing power produces the opposite effect. To Increase‘the number of dollars called for in a contract would not be tolerated for a moment; to increase the purchasing power of the dollar, however, has exactly the same effect. The purchasing power of a dollar may be changed by legislation. For instance, other things being equal, legislation which lessens the volume of standard money increases the value of each dollar. Preaident McKinley Quoted. “This Idea was forcibly set forth by Mr? McKinley |n* a speech made in Toledo, Ohio, in 1891. Speaking of Mr. Cleveland’s hostility to silver he said: ’He was determined to contract the circulating medium and demonetize one of the coins of commerce, limit the volume of money among the people,'make money scarce, and, therefore, dear. He would have Increased the value of money and diminished the value of everything else, money the master, everything else the servant.’ “If legislation intended to make money scarce and therefore dear makes money the master, and everything else the servant, can Christians ignore the moral question Involved? “What is the attitude of the Christian toward the trust? “Can he be a monopolist? Can he run a corner In loaves and fishes without breaking the golden rule? “Will Standard OH and the water of life mix? If a trust magnate can purchase religious respectability by liberal contributions to church expenditures, what proportion of his ill-gotten gains should be surrendered in order to atone for the violation of laws, human and divine? No church would extend the hand of fellowship to a physical giant who occupied a mountain pass and enforced tribute fromT all who fell into his hands. “A monopoly does not differ greatly from the giant in method and may be Infinitely more potent for evil. Monopoly is bondage; it unbridles greed and furnishes to avarice a destructive weapon. Human nature has not changed much since the days of Pharaoh; the

A RATHER CRUDE GAME.

industrial monarch is as tyrannical as the political monarch. Can the spirit of the meek and lowly Nazarene be discerned in those who water stock, issue bonds in excess of the value of the plant, drive rivals into bankruptcy by trust methods and then prey upon society at large? “Conditions have become so alarming that church organizations are beginning to sound a note of warning. “The forcible annexation of the Philippine Islands is defended by some on the ground that our nation is performing a religious duty. Without stopping to elaborate the fact that a large number of the Filipinos are already members of one branch of the Christian church, it is worth while to inquire whether wars of conquest are In line with Christian precepts. “Rev. James L. Barton, Secretary of the American Board of Foreign Missions, denies that an American protectorate over non-Cbristian countries will aid our missionaries. "There are some who think that destiny leads us away from the declaration of independence, away from the Constitution and away from the traditions of the past. There are some who even think that our nation is commanded to go forth wltli the Bible In one hand and the musket in the other, prepared to read the former to those who escape the latter. “When we are told that religious duty requires us to deprive remote races of the opportunity for self-gov-ernment we have a right to inquire whether our Instructors have been careful to observe their religious duties at home. “We cannot expect philanthropy and benevolence to inspire imperialists in their foreign policy If wrong, injustice and special privileges have been the fruits of their domestic policies. “If they have sacrificed others for their own benefit here, are they likely to make sacrifices for the benefit of others abroad? “Lincoln was once asked whether he thought the Lord was on his side, and he replied that he was anxious to be on the Lord’s side. We cannot change eternal principles to suit our own convenience or to advance our own plans, but we can strive with singleness of purpose to know the truth, and when we find that which we believe to be the truth we can adhere to it. “Let us not mistake temptation for opportunity. The sight of new territory mar be alluring, the glory of an may bifloating, but the price demanded Is too great.

“W. J. BRYAN.”

THE PEOPLE'S MONEY

What was the English pound worth previous to 1873, and has it remained stable in its rate of exchange since?—O. R. Washburne. The question Is not quite dear. If the English pound is compared with Itself its value is just the same as it was previous to 1873, and so it will always be, because everything Is at all times equal to itself. If the pound sterling is compared with gold bullion, its value baa remained practically unchanged, because the English law provides that a pound sterling (that is a sovereign) shall contain juet so many grains of gold, and any one possessing the gold may have it coined at that rate. Moreover, to guard against loss by delay in coinage, the law requires the Bank of England to take all the gold that may be offered at £3l7s. 9d. an ounce, which is within one and a half pence of the mint value. So, it is Impossible for there to be any substantial difference between the value of an ounce of gold bullion and an ounce of gold in the form of coin. If the pound sterling be compared with the money of other countries, it varies Just as such other money varies. In the course of exchange between England and America sometimes the pound sterUng calls for $4.90, and sometimes several cents less. If gold is scarce In England and an American wants to send a bill of exchange to London for a certain number of pounds sterling, he must pay more for it. That is, he pays a high rate. If gold in that country is abundant he can get his bill more cheaply—the exchange is low. The gold In the pdhnd sterling is just equal to $4.86% at the American mint; but in commercial exchanges ft Is sometimes worth a little more and sometimes a little less, depending upon the conditloh of the money market in both countries. But in all such cases the variation is in both moneys, because it Is simply an exchange of .one for the other. In one case it takes more dollars to equal a pound sterling, 01 fewer pounds to equal a given number of dollars. In. the other, it takes fewer dollar: to equal a pound, or more pounds to equal a certain number of dollars. But all this Is simply a matter of commercial exchange. If English sovereigns are delivered at the American mint the gold which they contain is worth just the same as the same weight of any other gold. If American eagles are delivered at the English mint, the gold which they contain is worth the same as the same weight of any other gold, because gold is equal to gold, and that is all there is of it! If the pound sterling is compared with commodities and property, then it is just about twice as valuable as it was In 1873. That is to say, it will buy about twice as much, or, in other words, prices have fallen, roughly speaking, one-half.—Exchange.

True None* Basis. No discussion of the bottom facts and principles of the money question can be thorough and complete without a reference to the Bank of Venice. This was the longest and most severely tried, and also the most successful and satisfactory financial system known in history. Colwell discusses the Bank of Venice very fully. I ask attention to the following statements from that able author: “All historians agree that the Bank of Venice was the first national or slate institution of its kind in modern ages. The causes of'its creation are to be found in the history of the republic, Its situation, the character of Its people. Its industries and its commercial relations with other nations. In these turbulent times, and heralded by such god-mothers as war, pestilence and revolution, the first banking institution of the modern world found existence. The finances of the republic were exhausted by this series of calamities—the doge, in 1171, according to some authors. and in 1157, according |o others —probably at both dates—was obliged to have recourse to a forced loan, exacted from the most opulent citizens, each being required to contribute according to his ability. The reimbursement of these loans to the government In all probability soon ceased to be thought desirable. Every creditor was reimbursed when he transferred his claim on the books of the banks. The Bank of Venice performed in functions for over five hundred years, with a uniformity of success and Immunity from censure or complaint which no other currency has enjoyed for a tithe of that period’. During that time of vast commerce and immense public expenditure the republic had Incessant trouble with their own and foreign coinage, and very many stringent regulations were made and enforced to evils and prevent abuses, but we have’ no record of abuses on the part of the bank, or of injuries inflicted updh it by the people.” , As Americans, we may learh a lesson from the Bank of Venice, and linprove upon the system. We may admit the deposit of gold and silver in the treasury, as Venice did, and instead of placing St to the credit of the depositor we can issue him a legal tender Government note. That note should read: “Receivable in the revenues oFthe Government, and lawful money in all payments.” The deposits and the issuing of the notes in the proper denominations and amounts should end the transaction. There need be no money held in the vaults of the Government for redemption purposes, and the old style of transfers on the books of thq bank may be omitted.—The Noncom*