Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

August 29th, 1857, when the assault was committed. In reply he wrote me as follows:

MR. J. N. GRIDLEY,

Virginia, Illinois;

DEAR SIR:

"URBANA, ILL., March 2, 1909.

Answering yours of Febr. 24, the moon was at first quarter Aug. 27, 1857, at 9 A. M. On the night of August 29 the moon was two days and a half past first quarter, and crossed the meridian at 7:44 P. M. local time. The time of moonset, was within 15 minutes of midnight, but to give this closer, I would have to know the exact locality for which to compute.

Trusting that this information is what you want, I Very truly yours,

am,

JOEL STEBBINS,

Director Observatory."

To a second letter I received the following reply:

MR. J. N. GRIDLEY,

Virginia, Illinois;

DEAR SIR:

"URBANA, ILL., March 29, 1909.

I have been rather busy of late and have neglected answering your last letter.

I computed the time of moonset for Longitude 90 degrees west of Greenwich, and Latitude 40 degrees.

For August 29, 1857, I find the moonset at 12 h 05 m., i. e. five minutes after midnight of August 29.

You understand this refers to the disappearance of the moon's upper edge below the true horizon.

I am sorry that I cannot inform you about the period called the 'dark of the moon.' It may have an exact meaning but I cannot find the term used in any of the text-books, or in any standard work. I am under the impression that the period extends from last quarter until new moon, but that is only a guess. In 1857 there was new moon on August 19, 10 A. M.; first quarter

you have, full moon on Sept. 3d, 11 P. M. and last quarter on Sept. 10, 5 P. M.

Hoping that this is suitable for your purpose, I am,

Very truly yours,

JOEL STEBBINS,

Director Observatory."

The reader can now see that if an almanac was introduced at the Armstrong trial that showed there was no moon to be seen at 10 P. M., the hour all the witnesses agreed the assault took place, that the Court and the jury were deceived.

Having proceeded thus far, I examined the record to learn whether any of the jurors were living, who might be able to remember the details of the trial. I found the names of the jurors were as follows: Horace Hill, Milton Logan, Nelson Graves, Charles D. Marcy, John T. Brady, Thornton M. Cole, George F. Sielschott, Samuel W. Neely, Matthew Armstrong, Benjamin Eyre, John M. Johnson, and Augustus Hoyer.

I knew two of these jurors, Milton Logan and John T. Brady, both of whom were then living, and to them I addressed letters of inquiry. I received no answer from Mr. Logan, and learned that his memory had wholly failed him;; he died in Feb. 1910 at his home in Boone, Iowa, at the advanced age of 90 years.

I became acquainted with Mr. John T. Brady in 1864, when he was visiting his friends in this county on a furlough from his regiment in the Union Army. He was then a citizen of Kansas; I have met him frequently since that date, and last summer had the pleasure of visiting him and his family at their home in Pomona, California. He is a retired capitalist, in the enjoyment of excellent physical health, and his mental powers unimpaired. He is a man of much more than ordinary intelligence, and he has written me at length, of his recollections of the Armstrong trial, and I have every confidence in the reliability of his information. I have care

[graphic]

John T. Brady, the sole survivor of the jury that tried Duff Armstrong at Beardstown, Ill., May 7, 1858.

fully examined the record of the trial, have written to Judge Lyman Lacey, of Havana, Ill., who, with his former partner, William Walker, also represented Duff Armstrong in this trial; I also have interviewed Mr. A. P. Armstrong, the brother before mentioned, and believe that I have learned the truth in the matter of this trial.

There is nothing remarkable in the history of this trial; but in order to state the facts, and to correct the wrong impressions that have been made with the various accounts of the trial, this paper has been prepared.

In August 1857, a religious camp-meeting was held in Mason county, Illinois, at a grove about six miles northeast of the junction of Salt Creek with Sangamon River, and about seven miles southwest of Mason City. Camp meetings were common in those days, as country churches were then few and far between. They usually continued for ten days or two weeks; the tents of canvass, or rough sheds of lumber were built on the circumference of a circle; stands four feet square and four feet high were erected within the circle, constructed of posts and covered with earth, upon which bright fires were kept burning through the night, attended by watchers, who guarded the sleepers from the attacks of outlaws, who infested this country, who delighted to annoy quiet people whenever they had the slightest opportunity. These tough characters amused themselves by running horses, drinking whiskey, and fighting. This camp meeting was due to close on Sunday, August 30, 1857. On the afternoon of Saturday, August 29th quite a number of men had gathered about the huckster's wagons that were encamped a short distance (perhaps a quarter of a mile) south of the tents. Among these men was Duff Armstrong, then a young man of 24 years, who owned a race horse and who was very fond of running it. He was not a vicious man, was kind hearted, and friendly, but fond of whiskey, as most young men of those days in that section were. He had been indulging in drinking on that Saturday afternoon, and had also been engaged in horse

« AnteriorContinuar »