The Story of a Dark Plot Part 2

"The preliminary enquiry into the Sutton Junction attempted murder case was resumed this morning before Messrs. C. H. Boright and G. F. Shufelt, J. P.'s. The court room was crowded, and much interest was evinced in the progress of the case. Mr. W. W.

Smith, continuing his evidence, described his struggle with Kelly. The first blow rendered him partially unconscious, and apparently was not repeated for two or three minutes. A second and third blow was given with the lead pipe, but, owing to his having clinched with Kelly, they did not have the effect of the first. During the struggle, both men got out on the station platform, and eventually rolled from the upper to the lower one, Smith all the time calling out 'murder,' and Kelly breaking loose ran away. He was positive that it was Kelly's intention to kill him, not merely to give him a beating.

"He recognized the lead pipe as the weapon Kelly used, and also the hat was the one he left behind in the station.

"He went to Marlboro on August 25th, and identified Kelly, whom he saw drinking with three other men at the bar of the Central House.

"He travelled from Fitchburg to Montreal with Mr. Carpenter, and was present in the former's office, when Kelly acknowledged to having committed the a.s.sault.

"Two other witnesses testified to having seen Howarth and Kelly together at Sutton, on May 24th, where it was given out that the latter was from the United States, and was buying horses. It was also in evidence that Kelly was seen at Curley's hotel, Sutton, on the evening that the a.s.sault was committed."

After these witnesses were heard, the case was put over until Spring, to be considered and decided by the Court of Queen's Bench, which was to be held at Sweetsburg, in March, 1895. Kelly, Howarth and Jenne were committed for trial at that time. Jenne was released on bail, and application was made for bail to be granted for Howarth also. This was refused by the magistrates, and Mr. Racicot then applied to the Judge, being opposed in his application by Mr. Duffy, the lawyer for the Alliance.

Judge Lynch carefully considered the matter in its social and legal aspects.

He brought up several cases in the history of the country in which application for bail had been refused, recited the general principles which had governed the various judges in making these decisions, and concluded his remarks thus:

"It only remains for me now to apply these general principles, which have received the sanction of our highest courts, to the present case, and cannot better do so than by asking myself the questions which were submitted by Judge Power, as being the basis of his conclusions in the Maguire case.

"What is the nature of the crime charged against Howarth? Is it grave or trifling? It certainly is not trifling, it is one of the most serious known to our law, being nothing less than an accusation of an attempt to commit murder. 2d. What is the nature of the evidence offered by the prosecution, and the probability of a conviction? I prefer not to discuss or consider now the strength of the evidence which was adduced before the magistrates, to which alone I can look. It apparently presents a strong case, and if it is believed by the jury, and not reb.u.t.ted by other evidence, it would, in all human probability, lead to a conviction. 3d. Is he liable to a severe punishment? Yes--to imprisonment for life. In face, therefore, of the answers which I am obliged to give to the foregoing questions, I cannot hesitate as to my duty in this matter. It is important in the public interest that Howarth should be present in court, and stand his trial on the charge preferred against him, and nothing can or should be allowed to interfere to prevent this from taking place.

"It might possibly be otherwise were bail allowed, and I cannot take the responsibility of such an occurrence. The application is refused."

From these words of Judge Lynch we see clearly how very serious a matter this a.s.sault case must have seemed to him at that time. After this decision Kelly was again placed in custody of Mr. Carpenter, and returned to Montreal, where he was kept in prison, while Howarth pa.s.sed the winter in Sweetsburg jail.

Meantime, some of the members of the liquor party took advantage of the excitement which this a.s.sault had caused by trying to frighten other temperance people. One man, Allen C. Armstrong, living in the neighborhood of Sutton Junction, who had been an aid in the work of locating Kelly, awoke one morning to find upon his doorsteps a miniature coffin, which bore an ominous inscription, giving his name and the record of his death (without date), and calling him a "Sutton Junction detective." Also, anonymous letters were reported to have been received by two men in the same vicinity, viz.: N. P. Emerson, Vice-President of the Alliance for the township of Sutton, and J. C.

Draper, President of Brome County Agricultural Society, who was also a member of the Alliance, bidding them beware lest they also suffer in the same manner as Mr. Smith.

It may have afforded a degree of satisfaction to a certain cla.s.s of people to thus add fuel to the fire already kindled by the liquor men, but their cause will certainly never triumph through any such acts as these, for there will always be some in the ranks of the temperance party who will be willing to work the harder the fiercer roll the flames of opposition.

CHAPTER IV.

PROS AND CONS OF PUBLIC OPINION.

As may be supposed this a.s.sault case became the subject of a great deal of discussion and controversy, not only in the vicinity of its occurrence, but also in places far distant, and among people who had no personal knowledge of any of the parties especially concerned in it. If the a.s.sault upon Mr. Smith had been committed for almost any other reason than the one which really led to it, it would probably have caused less intense feeling than it did. But an a.s.sault of such a serious nature, made on account of a man's temperance principles and practices, appealed to the public sense of right, and seemed the signal for a war of pens and tongues between the opposing parties of temperance and inebriety. Very few of the latter party proved brave enough to have their opinions submitted to the press (or else the press would not accept them), but doubtless those opinions were freely expressed in private.

We purpose devoting this chapter to a few of the views of societies and individuals respecting this affair, as they were published in the columns of certain newspapers. The following from _The Templar_ shows the feeling of the Alliance in a border county to that in which the deed was committed, as expressed just before the opening of court:

"The Missisquoi County Alliance, at a meeting held August 28th, pa.s.sed the following resolution, which was unanimously adopted amid applause: '_Resolved_, That this County Alliance now a.s.sembled desires to record its deepest sympathy with Mr. W. W.

Smith, President of the Brome County Alliance, in the recent outrage perpetrated upon him by the emissaries of the liquor traffic. We rejoice to know that there is a prospect of the speedy bringing to justice of the perpetrators of that a.s.sault.

We also desire to record our high appreciation of the valued services to the cause of prohibition in this section by Mr.

Smith, and trust that he may long be spared to continue his heroic efforts to free our country from the ravages of strong drink.'"

The following resolution was adopted by the executive of the Quebec provincial branch of the Dominion Alliance, at a meeting held in the parlors of the Y. M. C. A., in Montreal:

"That this Alliance records its profound sympathy with Mr. W. W.

Smith, President of the Brome County Alliance, in the recent murderous a.s.sault made upon him, resulting from his earnest and successful efforts in the cause of law and order in the County of Brome, and this Alliance trusts that full justice will be meted out to the perpetrators of this atrocious crime."

The letter given below appeared in _The Knowlton News_ of Oct. 12th, 1894, under the heading "A Few Words on the Other Side:"

"To the Editor of _The News_:

"SIR,--In the discussion of a case which has and is now agitating this good County of Brome, that spirit of British fair play which has attained to the dignity of a proverb has been lost sight of to a marked degree. I refer to the alleged a.s.sault on Mr. W. W.

Smith, at Sutton Junction, in July last. The Dominion Temperance Alliance and its friends are doing their best, by means of the press and otherwise, to poison the public mind in advance of the trial against the party who is charged with procuring the a.s.sault on Mr. Smith, and also against divers other persons in the county who are said to be his accessories, charging them with the commission of a grave crime without a scintilla of reputable evidence on which to base such a charge. This, I say, is not fair play, and those guilty of the unfairness need not find fault if lovers of justice refuse to follow them in their raid on men and characters, or by silence lend strength to the unwarranted a.s.sumption that each and every one of those so flippantly accused are guilty from the word 'go,' and must be pilloried in public and private, and subjected to the shame and embarra.s.sment arising from these attacks on their character, as law-abiding citizens and legal subjects of Her Majesty.

"There is a limit beyond which self-const.i.tuted conservers of public morals must not go; and good men should not be brutally attacked in public by agents of the Alliance on the strength of the admissions of a fellow, who, if he tells the truth, is one of the meanest rascals that ever c.u.mbered the earth. I refer to the fellow Kelly, Mr. Smith's self-confessed a.s.sailant.

"I offer nothing in defence of lawbreakers, nor would I, if I could, do aught to mitigate in the least degree the punishment that may be meted out to the person who wantonly a.s.saults a peaceable citizen, but candor and strict impartiality force me to refuse to accept as truth all the rubbish of tergiversation with which this agitated Smith case has been surrounded by the intemperate zeal of professed temperance men. I believe in temperance, and if those who knowingly violate the law against the sale of intoxicants are brought to judgment and punishment, they get but what they deserve, and all good men will applaud the vindication of the majesty of the law. But we are scripturally enjoined to be 'temperate in all things.' This applies as well to words as to the use of stimulants, and the grossly unfair attacks on men's characters by certain of the Alliance emphasize the necessity for a strong curb on that unruly member, the tongue, which has brought many a good man and worthy cause into grave disrepute, and made them enemies where otherwise they might have had friends.

"This whole Smith business has a 'cheap John' flavor, which makes careful men view it askance. Who witnessed the a.s.sault on Smith?

n.o.body. He tells of being struck three times on the head with a piece of lead pipe, weighing some four pounds, and has in evidence the terrible weapon. Did his person bear evidence of the murderous a.s.sault? No. All who saw him in the early morning following the alleged a.s.sault were surprised that he bore no marks of the terrible struggle for life through which he claimed to have pa.s.sed. Why, one blow from such a weapon as he exhibits would have crushed his head as if it were an egg sh.e.l.l, yet he claims to have sustained three blows, and is alive to tell of it!

Shades of Ananias and of Munchausen!

"But it were useless to pursue the subject further.

"It is to that spirit of fair play so characteristically British, and to which we are proud heirs, that I would appeal. Everything is being said and done to prejudice the public against those who are accused of instigating Kelly to the a.s.sault on Smith; but, singular as it may seem, Kelly is patted on the back and called a good fellow. Why? Admitting the truth of Kelly's story, is he less guilty because he had confederates? A strange feature of the case is that Kelly willingly came back to Canada, when extradition would have been about impossible.

"He was taken to Montreal instead of to Sweetsburg, and was there royally entertained instead of being put in close jail. While in Montreal he was interviewed,--and by whom?--the Crown prosecutor?

No; but by Smith and his counsel, Mr. Duffy. Meantime, several so-called 'detectives' were scouring the country for evidence. Of what? They had Smith's a.s.sailant, and he had told his story.

Those whom he charged as being instigators of his crime were attending to their business, and might have been apprehended within twenty-four hours after Kelly's arrest in the States. Then what were the detectives seeking?--what were they after? That $1000 reward was in sight, and this may have been the inducing cause of this prowling.

"It would seem to 'A man up a tree' that there are certain revenges to be completed--sundry old grudges to be satisfied, and the Crown is asked to a.s.sist in this questionable work. Those familiar with the matter say that in our broad Dominion there are no better conducted hotels than those to be found in the Eastern townships. They are well kept, and the travelling public is most hospitably entertained, well fed and comfortably lodged. A well-conducted hotel adds to the strength and business character of a village, and a faithful landlord is expected to furnish guests certain necessities, one of which may be liquor.

"And because he does this should he be reviled, and persecuted, and driven out of business? That liquor is a great evil, no one can honestly deny, and being such, and being beyond the power of man to destroy, let us do the next best thing--curb and control the evil in the best manner possible.

"A dozen wrongs will never make a single right, and the wrongs that are being committed in this Smith case have appealed to one who believes in

"_Brome, Oct. 8th, '94._ FAIR PLAY."

The following comments appeared in an editorial in the same paper:

"It is impossible to shut one's eyes to the ill-feeling that is growing throughout the County of Brome, and spreading itself over the district, as a result of what is known as the Smith a.s.sault case. Hitherto, only one side of the case has found an echo in the public press, but to-day we open our columns to a correspondent who expresses in moderate language the sentiments of those who think there is something to be said on the other side. We commend his letter to the attention of our readers without in any sense committing ourselves to the writer's conclusions. Everybody must feel sorry for the misfortunes of Mr.

Smith, and if, as it is alleged by some, he has allowed his zeal to get the better of his discretion, he is not the first man who has been carried away by a superabundance of enthusiasm, or who has suffered therefor. Mr. Smith's friends will try to make a martyr of him. We doubt that they will succeed."

If, as the Editor of _The News_ seems to consider, "the sentiments of those who think there is something to be said on the other side" are expressed in the above letter in "moderate language," how must those views sound when expressed in the most forcible terms of angry barroom parlance? Let us thank G.o.d that we are not compelled to hear these opinions when thus declared, nor even to see them made known through the press.

It is said in the above note that Mr. Smith's _friends_ would try to make a martyr of him, but it was doubtful if they would succeed. We think the Editor of _The News_ is mistaken in this, it was Mr. Smith's _enemies_ who appeared desirous of making a martyr of him, and they very nearly succeeded; but, through the providence of G.o.d, he is still in the ranks of temperance workers. We are told that "one with G.o.d, is a majority," and more than one in Brome County are true to the right, therefore, the liquor party with all their efforts are still in the minority there. In the next issue of _The News_, dated Oct. 19th, appeared the following replies to the above epistle from "the other side:"

"To the Editor of _The Knowlton News_:

"SIR,--In regard to the communication in your issue of October 12th, over the signature of Fair Play, your correspondent says:

"'This whole Smith business has a "cheap John" flavor, which makes careful men view it askance. Who witnessed the a.s.sault on Smith? n.o.body. Did his person bear evidence of murderous a.s.sault?

No. All who saw him in the early morning following the alleged a.s.sault were surprised that he bore no marks of the terrible struggle for life through which he claims to have pa.s.sed. Shades of Ananias and Munchausen!'