The trial of William Freeman : for the murder of John G. Van Nest, including the evidence and the arguments of counsel, with the decision of the Supreme Court granting a new trial, and an account of the death of the prisoner, and of the post-mortem examination of his body by Amariah Brigham, M.D., and others / reported by Benjamin F. Hall.

Freeman, William, 1824-1847

Date:: 1848

Credit: The trial of William Freeman : for the murder of John G. Van Nest, including the evidence and the arguments of counsel, with the decision of the Supreme Court granting a new trial, and an account of the death of the prisoner, and of the post-mortem examination of his body by Amariah Brigham, M.D., and others / reported by Benjamin F. Hall. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

Title Page

50/502

Aaron Demun, called and sworn, testified : I reside in Auburn ; have resided here twenty-three or four years. I know the prisoner. I am an uncle to him, by marriage. He used to make his home with me, before he went to prison, off and on for a year or so. He was rather a wild boy; would not stay long in a place. Cross Examination.—I am forty-five, 6th day of December. Prisoner must be a very little over twenty-two years old. He was an active, lively, wild boy; loved play. He was quick to understand as other boys. When he went to prison he was only about sixteen or seventeen years of age. When he came out of State Prison he was very hard of hearing, and did not want to talk. [Witness further testified, in substance, as upon the tra- verse. See post] Israel G. Wood, called and sworn, testified: I live in Auburn. Re- collect the time when Freeman was convicted for larceny, and sent to State Prison. I kept the jail. I have known him from a child. He was not very smart; about as he is now, with the exception of his being deaf. Be- fore he was convicted, he was in jail four or five months. He never was a great talker, or I never heard him talk a great deal; would answer questions. He broke a lock, and let himself and another prisoner out. The other one was caught. Freeman got away; was gone two or three days. I found him. at Lyons, in jail, and brought him back. Coming home, I asked him how he got away. He told me he kept to the woods ; came to Cayuga lake ; said he got a boat. Asked him how he come to cut up such a caper. He feigned himself sick that morning, so that he didn't go out. Cried, and said he was sick. I supposed he was. He afterwards said he was not sick. I said I didn't knoAv but he would have to go to State Prison. He said he didn't know but the d—d nigger, John Furman, would swear him into prison. Said John or Jack was the guilty one. I have known him since he came out of prison. I have been a good many times out and in jail. About a week ago Bostwick was in the jail when I went there. I asked him how long he was in prison. He said five years. Asked him how long he was in jail. Said four months. I said I discovered no difference from what he was before in jail, except his deafness. I never thought him insane, till this af- fair ; that was one object in my going to see him. I could see no diiference, only that he was hard of hearing. Cross Examined.—I did all T could, and said all I could, to prevent his being Lynched; I might have said he ought to have been Lynched, in con- nection with some other conversation. I recollect seeing him before he was five years old; saw him before he could walk, in neighborhood of Watson's brewery. I can't tell only as I sec him around, whether he had any more or less intellect, till he came to jail. Talked with him more than at any other time. Can't tell any conversation with him in jail, only to tell him to go work. Since I knew him, before he went to prison, and while he was in jail, he always held his head down; never knew him to hold his head up

Licence and re-use

Contents