told him he could not tell what night it
was. The first thoughts are all that are valuable in such case. They
miss the mark by taking second aim.

Mr. Balch believes, but is not sure, that he was with Frank Knapp on the
evening of the murder. He has given different accounts of the time. He
has no means of making it certain. All he knows is, that it was some
evening before Fast-day. But whether Monday, Tuesday, or Saturday, he
cannot tell.

Mr. Burchmore says, to the best of his belief, it was the evening of the
murder. Afterwards he attempts to speak positively, from recollecting
that he mentioned the circumstance to William Peirce, as he went to the
Mineral Spring on Fast-day. Last Monday morning he told Colonel Putnam
he could not fix the time. This witness stands in a much worse plight
than either of the others. It is difficult to reconcile all he has said
with any belief in the accuracy of his recollections.

Mr. Forrester does not speak with any certainty as to the night; and it
is very certain that he told Mr. Loring and others, that he did not know
what night it was.

Now, what does the testimony of these four young men amount to? The only
circumstance by which they approximate to an identifying of the night
is, that three of them say it was cloudy; they think their walk was
either on Monday or Tuesday evening, and it is admitted that Monday
evening was clear, whence they draw the inference that it must have been
Tuesday.

But, fortunately, there is one _fact_ disclosed in their testimony that
settles the question. Balch says, that on the evening, whenever it was,
he saw the prisoner; the prisoner told him he was going out of town on
horseback, for a distance of about twenty minutes' drive, and that he
was going to get a horse at Osborn's. This was about seven o'clock. At
about nine, Balch says he saw the prisoner again, and was then told by
him that he had had his ride, and had returned. Now it appears by
Osborn's books, that the prisoner had a saddle-horse from his stable,
not on Tuesday evening, the night of the murder, but on the Saturday
evening previous. This fixes the time about which these young men
testify, and is a complete answer and refutation of the attempted
_alibi_ on Tuesday evening.

I come now to speak of the testimony adduced by the defendant to explain
where he was after ten o'clock on the night of the murder. This comes
chiefly from members of the family; from his father and brothers.