THE TIMES NEW BLOOMFIELD, PA.. NOVEMBER 25, 1879.
movement In the crowd, and a strange
looking figure Approached.
" There he la," tald a voice which
Bounded more like the growl of some
wild animal than like anything human.
"Black 1IIII did It," and the upeaker
laid the apparently llfeleas body of El
liot Burnett on the ground.
A murmur of consternation ran
through the crowd.
"Is he alive t" hurst In chorus from
the lips of the spectators.
" Yes, he Is alive; give him whiskey
aud you will see," said the new comer.
The suggestion was followed, and the
stimulant hnd the desired e fleet. Elliot
opened his eyes, uttered a faint groan,
and closed them again.
The men gathered around the crea
ture who had drought Elliot there. lie
related In his half idiotic way how Black
Hill had shot Burnett and left htm for
dead.
" lie was good to me once," said the
idiot. " I took htm home, fed him and
put him to sleep. When he awoke
told him the men thought he wes dead,
and were going to hang Joe Knight.
He asked me to bring him here. That
is all."
Instantly the fury of the crowd was
turned toward Black Bill, who was
caught as he wub trying to escape.
" Hung him I hang lilm I" yelled the
mob. They did not hang him, how
ever, but gave him a severe thrashing
nd ordered him to leave the place,
-which order he lost no time in obeying.
The strain upon Mary's nerves pro
duced a severe lit of illness,' and for
many days the lives of the two young
veoile hung in the balance; but good
nursing and the recuperative powers of
youth prevailed at lust.
During their illness Knight settled up
his alliilrs and as soon as they were
strong enough the three started East, Joe
assuring them that nothing but the
mountain air of his old home would
complete their recovery.
Elliot and Mary were married shortly
afterward, and It was from hlB Hps I
heard I he story of Mary's heroism and
Knight s miraculous escape from an
ignominious death.
A WOMAN IN BREECHES.
ON SATURDAY LAST, Bays the
Chicago Times, a gentleman and
lady took a room at the United States
Hotel, uear the Rock Island depot, and
were registered as " Manley Willis and
lady, Auburn, New York." They at
tracted no particular attention, although,
it was apparent that Mr. Willis was at
least ten years younger than his wife.
A few remarks of a sympathizing kind
were passed, but no suspicion that the
pair were not perfectly " straight," ever
entered the minds of the boarders until
yesterday morning, when Lieutenant
Hayes and Officer Burton went to their
room and placed them under arrest.
Upon being confronted by the officers,
"Mr." Manley Willis acknowledged
ed that " he" was masquerading in male
attire when petticoats and bustles were
" his" proper dress. In other words,
" he" confessed that "he" was a woman.
The female gentleman was taken over
to Harrison street station, as was also
the other party, who was a " really and.
truly" woman, and both were locked
up. A rather amusing episode occurred
when the lady who was doing the male
part was being locked up. In the cell
in which she was to be locked up was a
young woman charged with robbery,
and when Lieut. Hayes ordered the door
uulocked aud pushed "Mr." Willis In
to the cell the girl set up a most energet
ic "kick." She "didn't want no man
in the cell" with her, and she wasn't
going to have it. When she saw that
her companion was in for good she
changed her tactics and began to cry.
It took a good deal of persuasion to
make her believe that the being before
her was one of the gentle sex.
Shortly after the Incarceration of the
parties a Times, reporter interviewed
them. He found the younger one in
one of the witness cells. She was tall,
good looking and well formed, and was
dressed in a dark suit of clothes. She
had nicely polished boots, and wore a
heavy watch chain, A soft dark color
ed hat, tipped rakishly over her left ear,
completed the outfit. She deported her
self a good deal like a man and while
talking with the reporter kept jingling
some keys and money in an outside coat
' pocket.
Her story, If given in detail and touch
ed up here and there would make the
- fortune of some cheap novel publisher.
. ' She said in the first place that her name
-' was Elleu Duglee. She came from Har
risburg, Pa., where her father kept a
store. Some six years ago her father
died leaving her $5,000, and appointed
her uncle guardian. This uncle she could
not agree with because he desired her
to marry her cousin. Therefore in or
der to escape this she assumed a male
attire and began to travel about looking
for work. She took an agenoy for sev
eral small household articles and man
aged to earn enough to keei her alive.
Part of the time she assumed her own
dress and then sold corsets. She had
clerked In Utica and Albany, New
York. Two years ago she returned to
her old home but her uncle again urged
her marriage with her cousin. She
again refused and went away.
At Utlca she met a man named Tripp,
to whom she was married. The match
proving unhappy, they separated, and
she went to Aurellus, N. Y where she
met the party wltu ber, Mrs. Eliza
White. They were on their way to San
Francisco when arrested. She says she
did not register herself as Mr. Manley
Willis and lady, but that some one else
must have done It.
The other woman told a somewhat
different story. She was from Ban Fran
cisco and had gone East to visit her folks
at Aurellus. Here she met Ellen whose
first name Is Florence who asked her If
she might return with her to San Fran
cisco, because she wished to escape her
husband. Mrs. Duglce,she said, bad only
worn men's clothes for a short time,
having put them on that she might bet
ter attend to the baggage and like duties.
In the trunks of the women were
found a miscellaneous collection of arti
cles, among which were ft diary, a mar
riage certificate, with the name of Flor
ence E. Bohall upou It, and numberless
letters. Mrs. Tripp denied all knowl
edge of the tuarriuge certificate, and said
there were'a number of things in her
trunk which she was taking to a friend
in Davenport, Iowa. In the possession
of the lucjy was found a small-sized 22
calibre revolver, which she said she slip
ped Into her pistol-pocket because there
was no room for It in her satchel. She
had two tickets for Omaha in her pock-et-book.
Among the letters found In her trunk
was one in which occurred the sentence,
" I am glad you are out of prison
again." When asked as to the mean
ing of this she said it referred to her es
cape from the persecution of her uncle.
The letter winds up by stating that
"your daughter and eon join in with
me in sending their love to you." Mrs.
Tripp is apparently not over 20, but
claims to be 23 years of age. Such a re
mark to one of her youthfulness, theu,
is peculiar to say the least. The letter 1b
dated at Aurellus, N. Y., Oct. 14, 1879,
aud commences " Dear Flo." It Is sub
scribed " Your true friend, Lib." The
difference in the statements and the
strangeness of the surrounding circum
stances indicate something beyond what
is already known.
Mrs. Tripp will be brought before Jus
tice Wallace this morning, and will be
charged with wearing male attire and
carrying concealed weapons. The latter
charge will probably be dismissed.
A Woman's Romance.
AN ELMIRA, N. Y"., despatch to the
N. Y., Times furnishes the follow
ing: A curious story comes from Alleghany
county In a private letter from a well-
known resident of that county to a
gentleman of this city. In 1870 a young
man named William Freeman rented a
farm near Wellsville, Alleghany county.
He had worked on different farms in
that part of the State, enjoyed an excel
lent reputation, and was known as
'Handsome Billy." Being unmarried
he hired a widow of middle age who
lived in the neighborhood to superin
tend his household affairs. A nephew
of this woman assisted Freeman with
the farm-work. In the summer of 1877
several burglaries were committed in
the county. Among others a store was
robbed, and the goods were traced to
Freeman's barn and found hidden theie.
Freeman was arrested, and charged with
being concerned in the burglary. He
declared that he was innocent, and few
people who knew him believed him
guilty. By the time his case was ready
for trial, in October, a speedy acquittal
of Freeman was expected, as circumstan
ces pointed strongly to other persons as
the criminals. But, to the surprise of
the community, when Freeman was
arraigned for trial he pleaded guilty to
.both counts of the lndlctmeut burglary
and larceny. He broke down entirely
in making the plea, and begged the
court td be lenient with him. He was
sentenced to eighteen months' impris
onment in the Erie County Penitentiary
and was put to work polishing buckles
among a lot of hardened criminals.
The Warden of the prison was given
notice by Governor Robinson in March,
1878, that a petition had been made for
the pardon of the prisoner, William
Freeman, and requested a report on the
physical condition of the convict, as Is
customary when a pardon is to be con
sidered. Dr. Sinnock, the prison physi
cian, proceeded to make the necessary
examination of Freeman, and in a few
minutes, reported to the Warden with
the astonishing intelligence that the
convict was a woman. The prisoner
was removed at once to the woman's
quarters. She begged that her case
should not be made public, and told the
following story : Her name, she said,
was Mary Ann Shafer, and she was
twenty-three years old. Her parents
were German emigrants, and slio was
born on the ocean. Her father died soon
after arriving In America, and her
mother married again and moved to
Allegany county. When she was eleven
years old her step-father told her he
could support her no longer, aud that
she must go away and earn Jier own
living. She worked as a servant in
farm-houses for a few months, when she
determined to disguise herself as a boy,
in order that she could And more remu
nerative employment. No one but her
mother knew of her intentions. She
went to a distant part of the country for
about two years, did farm-work, and
worked one season on the Erie Canal.
She then returned to the vicinity of her
home, where no one recognized her.
Under the name of William Freeman
she worked in the vicinity for ten years
without awakening any suspicion that
she was not a man. She Joined the
Methodist church In 1875, and had
for several years longed to assume
her true character, but the wearing of
men's clothing had become second na
ture to her, and she was ashamed to
make the change. In regard to the
crime for which she was arrested and to
which she pleaded guilty, she declared
that she was entirely innocent. The
nephew of the womun who was her
housekeeper, had committed the burgla
ry and secreted the goods in the barn,
and had declared to her while she was
In jail that unless she entered a plea of
guilty she would never reach home
alive. She believed that the nephew
was a man who would not pause at any
crime, and to save her life she pleaded
guilty.
When dressed in woman's clothing,
Mary, Schafer became a fine-looking
woman, but awkward from long use of
male attire and muscullne lubor. She
was pardoned In the fall of 1878, and
returned at once to her mother. Last
winter she went to Bradford, Pennsyl
vania, and obtained employment in a
shoe store under her real name, in
proper attire. The nephew whose threats
made her a convict, and led to the
discovery of her secret, escaped punish
ment by leaving the State. In the
spring of 1878 the merchant in whose
store the burglary was committed dis
posed of his business aud went to
Limestone, Cattaraugus county, N. Y.
His business called him frequently to
Bradford. He was a German, and a
friend of the man for whom Mary Ann
Schafer worked. He met the young
woman at the store, liked her, and asked
her to marry him. She accepted him,
aud last week they became man and
wife.
A Remarkable Case.
TWENTY YEARS ago Dr. David
Crawford, of Prince George county,
Md., died. He waB a man of great
wealth and was unmarried, his nearest
relative having been a first cousin, Mr.
R. S. Blackburn, of Clark county, Va.,
and two second cousins, Mrs. Kearney
and Miss Forest, of Washington, D. C.
Dr. Crawford's brother, who died some
years before him, bad cohabited with
Miss Elizabeth Taylor, his housekeeper,
by whom he had one child. On the
baptism of this child, the clergyman, a
Catholic priest of Washington Clty.who
performed the ceremony, Informed the
mother that she ought not to return to
Crawford's house unless she went as his
wife. She acted on the counsel of the
clergyman and refused to return. Craw
ford thereupon consented to marry her,
stipulating With ber that the marriage
should be kept a secret, and the priest
united them in wedlock. Three other
children were born after the marriage.
Dr. David Crawford belonged to an
aristocratic family, and keenly felt the
disgrace which the brother had entailed
on the family name. Regarding all the
children as bastards, and the cohabita
tion of their mother with his brother as
criminal, the doctor broke off all rela
tions with them and ignored their ex
istence. He was known to be much attached
to his Virginia and Washington cousins
and his neighbors were satisfied that he
would leave his princely estate to them.
He died after a short illness, in the win
ter of 1859. Mr. Blackburn attended
the funeral. After the burial a diligent
search for the will was made, but with
out success. Mr. .William Duvall, a
neighbor, informed Mr. Blackburn that
the deceased had made a will, and that
he and two others were witnesses to It,
one a Mr. Bayne, of Prince George coun
ty, and the other a stranger whose name
Duvall had forgotten.
The children of Thomas Crawford
and Elizabeth Taylor (the name she al
ways went by) now set up their claim
to the estate as the next kin. Then fol
lowed the bitterest, the longest, the
most celebrated coutest which ever took
place in the Courts of Maryland.
Mr. Blackburn was aided in the fight
by John Augustln Washington, of Mt.
Vernon, who was his cousin, aud by oth
er Virginia relatives. They went over
to Upper Marlboro, the county town of
rrlnce George county, Maryland, stop
ped with Dr. Edward L. Sheehy, who
had long been the physician and inti
mate friend of the deceasad Dr. Craw
ford, and who was quite sure that a will
had been made by him.
The contest began in 1869. Whole
battalllons of lawyers were marshalled
on either side. The claimants as next
of kin were represented by Gen. Thos.
F. Bowie and other able counsel ; Black
burn by Thomas S. Alexander, William
Schley and Governor Pratt. It was a
bitter fight, and before It wasover,many
more of the most prominent lawyers In
the State of Maryland were called into
the contest. The priest was finally dis
covered in Rome, who testified to the
marriage of Thomas Crawford and Betsy
Taylor. The Virginia contestants were
thus beaten.
Meantime the Crawford children of
Betsy Taylor got their property .spent the
personal and sold the real estate and
squandered their Inheritance.
Now comes the strangest part of the
story. The statement of Duvall that
David Crawford had made a will was
true. A Washington lawyer named
Miller had drawn It for Crawford, and
after It was signed and witnessed Miller,
who was one of the witnesses, kept the
instrument at the doctor's request. He
placed It in a box directed to Dr. David
Crawford. The war coining on, he
soon went South. Before leaving he
told his office boy that, in the event of
his not coining back to Washington, he
(the boy) should send the box and other
papers to the parties to whom they were
addressed.
Miller never returned, having been
killed in battle. The boy went away to
the country, taking the box and the
other papers with him. He put them
away and thought no more about them.
After nearly twenty years had elapsed,
the boy, now a settled man, bethought
him of the Crawford box, and sent it to
one of the lawyers in the case last
March.
Blackburn, since dead, and the two
Washington cousins, were the devisees
of the will. Thus, after having been
beaten in all the Maryland Courts aud
in the Supreme Court of the United
States, the discovery of the long-lost
will placed the Virginia and Washing
ton cousins, or such of them as survive,
in the way of getting their estate, or,
rather the land which third parties had
purchased from the Crawford-Taylor
heirs, aud the innocent third parties
will now be apt to lose their money, as
well as the title and all.
The strange part of the story is that
nearly all the lawyers and principal con
testants at the beginning of the lawsuit
are now dead. It is a veritable Jam
dyce vs. Jarudyce chancery case, stran
ger in many of its features than the
wildest fiction.
A Mistake that Pleased Some Person.
Some years ago the daughter of a well
known citizen of central New York,
named Jennie, had unfortunately as the
father then thought, formed an attach
ment for a young man named John.
To separate them the father sent her to
spend the winter with a married sister,
Mary who resided in New York. Spring
approached, and Jennie was expected
home on a certain day, but, instead the
father received a letter from his son-in-law
desiring that she might remain a
while longer, so that his wife could ac
company him on a short southern trip,
and requesting an answer by telegraph ;
where-upon the father sent the following
dispatch :
"Jennie may stay and Mary may go,
if she wishes to very much."
The message as delivered in New
York read : "Jennie may stay and mar
ry Geo. if she wishes to very much."
The father immediately received this
from Jennie: "A thousand thanks
for your permission : John and I mar
ry at once. The telegraph stupidly
made his name George, but of course
you meant John."
O" It is wiser to prevent a quarrel be
fore band, 'than to revenge it after
wards. Cause and Effect
The main cause of nervousness is in
digestion, and that is caused by weak
ness of the stomach. No one can have
sound nerves and good health without
using Hop Bitters to strengthen the
stomach, purify the blood, and keep the
liver and kidneys active, to carry off
all the poisonous and waste matter of
the system. See another column. 48 2t
Of Lot your first attack of indigestion
be the last. Rouse the dormant euergles
of tbe stomach with tbo Bitters. The
tone thus imparted will remaiu. This is a
fact established by thousauds of wituesses
whose testimony is simply a statement of
their own experieuooa. Those afflicted
with geueral debility of every phase will
find this medioiue an unfailing agent in
building up aud renewing their strength.
For aale by all Druggist aud respectable
Dealers generally. 4S4t
COUGH
SYltUPt
50 Years Before the Public !
VrnnnnnnnA t 1 1 . n K V. ... .
. v..-'u....Uu j ma v w .ud muni r leaBitni
and efllcacloos remedy now In one, for the
i II f nf flnnwha 'UIJ. ' I .. 1 1
Tickling sensation of the Throat, Whooping
Cough, etc. Over a million bottles sold
within the last few years. It gives relief
wherever used, and has the power to Impart
benefit that cannot be bad from the cough
mixtures now In use. Bold by all Druggists at
25 cent per bottle.
SELLERS' LIVER FILLS
are also highly recommended for coring liver
complaint, constipation, eirk-hcadacbes, fever
and ague, and all diseases of the stomach and
liver. Boldjby all by all Druggist at 25 cents
per box. 40 ij
R. E. SELLERS A CO., Pittsburg, Pa.
J. M. OlIIVIN.
J. H. GlRVIN
J. M. GIRVIN & SON.,
FLOUR, GRAIN, SEED Sl PRODUCE
Commission Merchants,
No. 64 South O'ay, HU,
BALTIMORE, MD.
We will pay strict attention to the sale of all
kinds of Country Produce aud remit the amounts
promptly. 45 iVr.
J. M. GIRVIN & BON.
JOSSER & ALLEN
CENTRAL STORE
NEWPORT, PENN'A.
Mow offer the publlo
A HARK AND ELEGANT ASSORTMENT OF
DRESS GOODS
Consisting sf all shades suitable for the seasou
BLACK ALP AC CAS
AND
Mourning Goods
A SPECIALITY.
BLEACHED AND UNBLEACHED
MusLinsrs,
AT VARIOUS PRICES.
AN ENOLEiS SELECTION OF PRINTS!
We sell and do keep a good quality of
SUGARS, COFFEES & SYRUPS
And everything under the head of
GROCERIES!
Machine needles and oil for all makes ot
Machines.
To be convinced that our goods are
CHEAP AS THE CHEAPEST,
IS TO CALL AND EXAMINR STOCK.
- No trouble to show goods.
Don't forget the
CENTRAL STORE,
Newport, Perry County, Pa.
DRUGS.
DRUGS.
JACOB STRICKLER,
(Successor to Dr. M. B. Strlckler)
PHARMACIST,
NEW BLOOMFIELD, rEXN'A.
HAVING tneceeded the late firm of Dr. M. B.
Stneklcr In the Drug Business at his Store-room,
ou MAIN HTKKKT. two doors East of the Big
Spring, I will endeavor to make It In every way
worthy tbe patronage of the public.
Personal and strict attention AT ALL TIMES
given to the compounding and dispensing Physi
cians' preoptions, so as to insure accuracy and
guard against accidents.
BEAR IN 3IIND
that my stock has been recently selected and care
taken to have everything U the BK.ST QUALI
TY. The public may rest assured that ALL med
icines that leave my store shall be as represented
PURE and UNADULTERATED.
I BITE C0XSTA5TLY OX 1UXD
HAIR OIL and POM4DE8
HAIR. TOOTH and N A1L-BRCSHES.
bUKGEONS. TOILET, and
CARKIAGE SPONGES.
PUPK BOXKS. TOILET POWDERS.
CASTILE and PANCX SOAPS.
PERFUMERY OF ALL KINDS,
Together witb Fresh and Genuine Patent Medi
cines of every description.
ALSO,
Segars, Tobacco, School Books, &c.
ORANGES, LEMONS & BANANA?,
In season.
Pure Wines and Llqnors for Medicinal
Purposes.
Terms, Strictly Cash.
By strict attention to business. I hope to merit
the eonndenoe aud tavor ol the public.
JACOB 8TRICKLZR, Ph. 6.
April 29, 1379.