METHOD IN HIS MADNESS

Oliver Curtis Perry.

The Cortland Democrat, Friday, April 12, 1895.

METHOD IN HIS MADNESS.

OLIVER CURTIS PERRY AT LIBERTY AGAIN.

Escaped with Four Other Inmates from the Asylum—Robbed an Express Car Near Weedsport Three Years Ago.

   POUGHKEEPSIE, April 10.—Perry, the noted train robber, whose exploits a few years ago while trying to rob the car of the American Express company on the New York Central railroad, caused great excitement at the time, with four other inmates of the Matteawan state asylum, escaped from that institution at a late hour to-night. They assaulted a keeper and escaped through the scuttle. The names of the men are McGuire, O'Donnell, Quigley and Davis. All were dressed alike.

   The escape was made about 11 o'clock. The men were all confined in separate cells with double locks, and how they succeeded in getting out is so far unknown to the authorities, an investigation not having yet been fully made. They first passed into the chapel and thence to the attic, where the windows are unguarded but fastened. The men were heard to break the sash and two of them were seen to drop to the ground. Two of the men were seen on the roof and may be there yet. Officers are patrolling the grounds and will continue to do so until daylight. A general alarm has been sent out and men are searching the country in all directions.

   The bold robbery for which Perry is best remembered took place on the American Express special between Syracuse and Lyons, February 21, 1892. On September 30 previous, Expressman B. A. Moore was held up with a pistol at his head between Little Falls and Utica, and compelled to open the safe. Pinkerton's men failed to find the robber, known at the time to be Oliver Curtis Perry, son of Oliver H. Perry, contractor, of Lake View avenue, Syracuse.

    Perry got aboard the express train at 5 A. M. Sunday, February 21, as it pulled out of Syracuse, westward.

   When near Weedsport, Perry put a revolver to the head of D. T. Mclnerney of Syracuse, who had charge of the express car, and as he refused to give up he shot him. The engineer and fireman heard the slight noise as Mclnerney attempted to pull the whistle, and slowed up the train, while one man telegraphed from Jordan of the attempted robbery, and then the train went full speed to Port Byron.

   Perry, who had stayed on the train, was recognized in Port Byron by a trainman as a man he had seen in Syracuse. An attempt was made to seize him. He held back the crowd with a brace of revolvers, drove the engineer and fireman from the engine, which he uncoupled and then took to himself, started off down the track until the steam gave out. Then he terrorized a farmer and stole his horse, which he rode until it was ready to drop. Then he fired on a German and stole his horse.

   Deputy Sheriff Collins captured him in Benton's swamp, near Lyons the same day. He gave his name as William Cross.

   Perry was tried in the Circuit court at Lyons and sentenced on May 19 to Auburn for forty-nine years, three months, by Justice Rumsey. The indictments were for burglary and robbery, assault and for stealing a locomotive, four indictments in all.

   While in Auburn he attempted to kill his keeper once, and once attempted to escape by terrorizing his keeper.

   Last fall he was transferred to Matteawan. having been adjudged insane by prison physicians.

COURT PROCEEDINGS.

Several Important Cases Tried at the Circuit Court and Court of Oyer and Terminer.

   The April term of the Circuit Court and Court of Oyer and Terminer opened at the Court House in this village last Monday morning with Hon. Walter Lloyd Smith of Elmira presiding. Harrison Wells of Cortland was appointed foreman of the grand jury and George J. Maycumber of this village was elected clerk. There are forty-one cases on the calendar. The following have been disposed of.

   The People of the State of New York agst. Frank Henry. Defendant resides in East Hormer. The action was brought to recover damages for alleged illegal fishing. The case was submitted to the court on a statement of facts which was agreed to by the parties. Decision reserved. E. D. Crosley [game warden, lawyer and resident of Scott] for plaintiff. Smith & Dickinson for defendant.

   Howard R. Meacham agst. Cortland Standard Printing Co. Plaintiff sues to recover $5,000 for an alleged libel published in the Cortland Daily Standard some two or three months since. Plaintiff was arrested on the charge of cruelly beating his horse on Church-st. On the trial before Justice Bull and a jury, plaintiff was acquitted of the charge. The Standard published an account of the transaction both before and after the trial before the justice, and plaintiff alleges that some of the statements published were libelous. The trial of the suit for libel was commenced on Tuesday afternoon and plaintiff's evidence was all in when court adjourned. The defence put in some evidence Wednesday morning and attempted to prove justification. The court ruled that under defendant's answer the evidence was inadmissible. Defendant's counsel then asked for leave to amend the answer. Plaintiff's counsel stated to the court that if the new matter was admitted under an amended answer, he would be taken by surprise and would not be prepared to try the case. The court allowed the defendant to withdraw a juror and serve an amended answer within twenty days on payment of plaintiff's witnesses, fees, a term fee of $10 and $3 for the jury. N. L. Miller and James Dougherty for plaintiff. W. J. Mantanye and T. E. Courtney for defendant.

WASHINGTON LETTER.

(From Our Regular Correspondent.)

   WASHINGTON, April 8, 1895.—It looks now as though the administration had won a very creditable diplomatic victory from Great Britain in that little affair of Nicaragua, and that Great Britain had greatly modified that bluff about bombarding Nicaragua's seaports. Nothing official has been given out about the diplomatic correspondence on this matter within the last few days, but there are good reasons for stating that Ambassador Bayard has been most positively assured by the British government that nothing will be done in its dealings with Nicaragua that can be properly construed into a violation of the Monroe doctrine. This assurance was naturally very gratifying to President Cleveland and the other members of the administration. It was saying in a round about way that Great Britain never really meant to carry out that bombarding threat, and it was also in a way a recognition of the Monroe doctrine. That this assurance from Great Britain was the result of the courageous position taken by the administration as to the maintenance of the Monroe doctrine is certain. And nothing was lost by the knowledge on the part of Great Britain, that the United States had a sufficient naval force in the South Atlantic to back up the position assumed.

   The arrival of the new Spanish minister is anxiously awaited in Washington, as it is believed that he will have several important communications to make to this government. The Allianca incident is still open and the belief is growing that Spain is trying to play a double game in connection therewith, notwithstanding its promise to make it satisfactory as soon as it was in possession of the necessary information. As the new Spanish minister is to spend a week or ten days in Cuba before coming to Washington he will be expected to acquire all the needed information and if his government then still delays making a satisfactory settlement he may find himself very disagreeably surprised soon after his arrival. And his surprise is not likely to be displeasing to the Cuban revoluntionists.

   The projectors of the new silver party profess to have encouraging reports from a number of States, but their professions are largely discounted by their claims as to the States of Pennsylvania and Connecticut. The only claim that these people make that is backed by common sense and hard facts, is that a large majority of the voters of the country are bimetalists. That claim is unneccessary because it is known by everybody, but that doesn't mean that all the bimetalists are ready to drop their party affiliations and unite in an assistant republican party, which is about all the new silver party is.

   The decision of the Supreme Court in the income tax cases is disappointing to everybody, and probably to nobody more than to the members of the court. The constitutionality of the law stands, not by an affirmative decision, but because the eight justices sitting were evenly divided. Incomes for rents, municipal and State bonds are exempted from the tax. But what most disappointed the members of the court was the stealing of a copy of the decision in advance of its being officially made. It was sold to the correspondent of a Chicago paper and telegraphed to that city. The decision will make lots of worry and litigation for the government, but Secretary Carlisle is very positive that it will not make necessary the calling of an extra session of Congress, although the exceptions will probably reduce the receipts from the income tax at least one half. But even if not a nickel was received from that source by the Treasury, Secretary Carlisle says there will be money enough and to spare to carry the government until the regular session of Congress without any embarrassment.

  

NEIGHBORING COUNTIES.

   CHENANGO.—An otter was recently seen at the McDonough creek near the grist mill.

   Sherburne liquor dealers hare a license for the first time in about two years.

   MADISON—Albany parties are trying to buy the famous Remington farm near Cazenovia.

   F. A. Crandall, a native of Cazenovia, has been appointed superintendent of public documents at Washington. His salary will be $3,000 per year. Mr. Crandall is a printer and journalist and for the past year has been the editor of the Buffalo Times.

   The coroner's jury in the case of Mrs. Etta Ralfe, a colored woman, who died in Oneida the 25th, of injuries inflicted by her husband, Vernando Ralfe, found him guilty of manslaughter in the first degree. He broke a chair over her head, hit her once or twice with a poker and kicked or otherwise misused her.

   TOMPKINS—Ithaca's city budget has been increased from thirty to forty- five thousand dollars.

   By a change in the laws, Cornell University will increase its number of trustees from twenty-three to thirty-eight.

   The Gregg Iron Works of Trumansburg are filling orders for quite a quantity of mowers and reapers to go to Russia.

  

Levi Morton.

Thomas Platt.

PAGE FOUR—EDITORIALS.

   Notwithstanding the fact that those republican papers that oppose Platt say that Gov. Morton and Platt are out, they seem to be on decidedly too chummy terms to be enemies.

   W. Jennings Demorest, editor of Demorest popular magazine, died at his home in New York last Tuesday evening. He had been prominently identified with the prohibition party for many years.

   Bob Ingersoll advises Democrats to support the Republican candidate for president, but Bob, it must be recalled, holds loose views on future punishment for sins committed in this life.—Albany Argus.

   Mrs. Francis M. Scott of New York city made an admirable argument before the judiciary committee of the Assembly on Wednesday in opposition to female suffrage. The arguments advanced were all new and convincing and were couched in strong and forcible language. She was easily too much for the chronic female suffrage advocate.

   Oscar Wilde, the English dude and writer, recently brought an action against the Marquis of Queensbury for libel, claiming heavy damages. Lord Alfred Douglas, a son of the Marquis, had become intimate with the dude and the father sought to break up the intimacy because he believed it would prove disastrous to his son. He resorted to a peculiar method of bringing about the result. He visited a club of which Wilde was a member and left a card on the table addressed to that person, on which were some strong and undoubtedly libelous statements, unless the truth of the charges could be proved. Wilde brought suit against the marquis for libel and the case was tried last week. The defendant had no trouble in proving that Wilde was guilty of the very questionable practices charged and before the trial was finished the plaintiff withdrew the action. A few hours later he was arrested for the crimes charged and now languishes in jail, the magistrate who committed him refusing to accept bail. He will be tried next month on these serious charges. Wilde was until recently quite popular in the higher circles of society, and when he was in this country a few years since, he created quite a sensation and was the hero of the day. It is safe to say, that few American ladies, will now care to remember, that they ever knew the asthetic Oscar.

HERE AND THERE.

   The shoe stores are now open evenings.

   I. H. Palmer, Esq. [Democrat and a former two-term mayor], has been appointed city attorney.

   The floral display in the window of the County Clerk's office is worth looking at.

   The water in the Tioughnioga river overflowed its banks in many places last Tuesday.

   Very little maple sugar will be made in the county this spring. The season is not a good one.

   Prof. C. V. Coon broke the great toe on his right foot while riding a bicycle last Thursday.

   Burgess, the clothier, advertises Easter hats for gentlemen. Get in the swim and have a new hat for Sunday.

   The Keyes sisters will appear at Mahan's music festival In June. They are great favorites with Cortland people.

   Mr. C. N. Tyler has sold his Elm-st. grocery store to Mr. W. J. Perkins. Mr. Tyler will have charge of the business for Mr. Perkins.

   After June 1st next, the barber shops in very town in this state will have to be closed on Sunday except in New York city, where they must be closed at 1 P. M.

   Nothing has yet been heard from Harry Beers and Fred Terpenning, two 17 year old lads who left good homes in this place about two weeks since, bound for Florida.

   Charles D. Burt of Texas Valley writes us that on April 2nd. his registered Todd's improved Chester White sow gave birth to twenty-one pigs, nineteen of which are alive and sprightly.

   Warner Rood, manager, and Mr. Brayton, one of the owners of the Cortland Opera House, were in town Friday, with a view of having Messrs. Tenney & Bennett refit the scenery at that house.—Marathon Independent.

   Mr. James A. Barry, formerly of the Messenger House in this village, has sold the Vanderbilt hotel in Syracuse which he has conducted for the past two or three years to Mr. George W. Ziegler of Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Possession given May 1st.

   G. J. Mager & Co.'s show window is attracting much attention. Sacks filled with live geese feathers furnish the background and a dummy goose that looks very much alive, occupies the front and keeps continually moving its head to avoid the blue stocking leg that invariably denotes that plucking time has come.

   Chief of Police James E. Sager tendered his resignation which took effect on last Tuesday morning. The chief says the president of the village requires him to do detective work which he does not think is one of the duties of the chief. He has been a member of the force for six years and has been chief for the past five years. Mr. W. T. Linderman has been appointed to succeed him.

   The Tioughnioga [river] has distinguished itself the present week by getting very full and disorderly. Yesterday while in this condition it committed an assault upon the basement wall of Mayor Trafford's barn, tearing it out and taking it away. Incidentally also it dropped in at the school house basement and tried to put out the fires. Up to yesterday noon it had not been able to do so, but there is no knowing what may happen. And the worst of it is it got full on water, too.—Marathon Independent.

   There was quite a large attendance before Highway Commissioner Rindge yesterday, which was the day set for hearing the application of the Traction Co., for a franchise to use the new highway around McGrawville hill. The question was discussed by Mr. A. P. McGraw, J. H. Kelly and H. L. Bronson in favor of granting the application and by Messrs. I. H. Palmer and R. Champlin in opposition. The latter gentlemen favored the town's joining the Traction Co., as suggested by the DEMOCRAT last week, in building a new bridge at Elm-st. Good feeling seemed to prevail all around. The hearing was finally adjourned to Monday, April 22, at H. L. Bronson's office at 10 A. M.

FROM EVERYWHERE.

   Cayuga Lake raised one foot during the month of March.

   A telephone line is to be built from Bath through Avoca, Cohocton and Wayland to Dansville.

   Wild ducks are being killed in large quantities on Cayuga Lake and in the surrounding marshes.

   The new dam across the Seneca River at Baldwinsville was completed last week. It has been eighteen months building and cost $63,000.

   The old cheese factory in Pompey Hollow is claimed to be haunted, and the neighbors witness weird and uncanny things there after nightfall.

   "Scratch a reformer and you find a thief" was a maxim with the late Roscoe Conkling, and he knew something about politics and politicians.

   The cost of the city of Brooklyn for the trolley strike will be over $200,000. The employes lost over $750,000 in wages. The loss to the car company cannot be estimated.

   William H. Brown of Tully has brought suit against Devillo Norton of Spafford, claiming Norton assaulted him and caused a permanent disability. Norton says he was only "fooling."

   A very strange medical case is interesting the scientific world. Lewis Wentworth, aged thirty-four, who was formerly an employe of Offenheiser's fruit store of Binghamton, has undergone an operation at Seney Hospital, Brooklyn, for what was thought to be appendicitis, but was not. He was delivered of a child. The case is explained in this way. Had this form developed when it should, it would have been his twin, but nature was balked somehow and the germ, clinging to the side of the developing child, slowly grew until this man reached the age of thirty-four, when it caused so much pain that the operation had to be performed. Medical history shows many instances of this sort. Two operations were necessary before the cause of his suffering was found out, but now the patient is recovering and will doubtless be soon fully recovered. [Hmmm…could this be an example of "fake news" published in 1895?]

SCOTT.

   The premises occupied for so many years by the late Hiram Babcock have been sold by the heirs to Archie Gould of Homer. Consideration $450.

   A Miss Rigby of DeRuyter has been engaged to teach the north village school at $6.50 per week. School commenced last Monday.

   Rev. Mr. Armingdale is now located here as pastor of the M. E. Church in this town. He appears to be a man of energy and ability. May success attend his labors.

   Riley K. Smith has hired to George Springer on Scott road, and Frank Winchester to George Vincent, Mr. Morehouse having left said Vincent.

   The sick people seem to be about the same. Dr. Potter of Homer was called to see Henry Hazard on Monday.

   The snow has been vanishing for a few days past at a rapid rate, but the sugar weather don't get here yet.

   Nearly 100 invited guests assembled last Saturday night, the 6th instant, to celebrate the golden wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Dolphin Burdick of this town. The celebration took place at the same house in which they were joined in marriage by Russell Burdick, father of the groom, 50 years ago, and where they now reside. Among the presents were gold spectacles for each and gold and silver coin. Mr. and Mrs. Burdick are held in high esteem in this community and the large assemblage only showed how they are appreciated by their neighbors They are still quite young looking, and possibly another 50 years may roll around before they go hence, but not probable. Only a few comparatively live together half a century. Of course we all had something to eat up on the occasion and a presentation speech by Rev. B. F. Rogers and a response by Mr. Burdick.

   Word comes to us that Henry Clinton Babcock, living in Cortland for two years past, has committed suicide by shooting. He has always up to within two years resided in Scott. He was a soldier and 59 years of age. He leaves a wife and one daughter, Mrs. M. H. Crosley of Truxton, also four brothers, Wm. N. and Albert W. of Scott, Myron H. of Homer, and Edgar of Minnesota. Also two sisters, Mrs. J. C. Atwater and Mrs. Frank Hammond of Homer.

  

LITTLE YORK.

   This is a poor year for maple sugar

   J. R. Hathway went to Ithaca Wednesday.

   Joseph Palmer is working for J. R. Hathway.

   Plenty of water, plenty of mud and plenty of swearing over bad roads.

   Little York, although small, is a hustling little body, and sends many of her products to the outside world, as the shipments of merchandise [mostly ice] from this station during the past three months will testify. They are as follows:

   January, 3,710,455 lbs.

   February, 6,450,970 lbs.

   March, 1,241,710 lbs.

   Total: 11,403,135 lbs.

   I doubt there is a station between Syracuse and Binghamton that can equal this showing.

Veterinary Surgeon.

   Dr. J. C. Stevens of DeRuyter, formerly of this place and a graduate of the Toronto veterinary and dental colleges, has moved to Cortland and established headquarters at the Cortland House stables where he may be found ready to attend all calls in the line of his profession. Dr. Stevens has an enviable reputation as a surgeon and has performed many difficult operations seldom attempted by other veterinary surgeons and all with marked success. He respectfully solicits the patronage of the public.