The Sham-Robbery, Committed by Elijah Putnam Goodridge [Bound with].

Trial; Jackman, Joseph; Goodridge, Elijah Putnam

Publication Date: 1819

About this Item

Concord, NH: 1819. Daniel Webster for the Defense: A Landmark in His Career as a Lawyer [Trials]. Jackman, Joseph. Goodridge, Elijah Putnam [1787-1851], Defendant. The Sham-Robbery, Committed by Elijah Putnam Goodridge, On His Own Person, In Newbury Near Essex Bridge, Dec. 19, 1816. With a History of His Journey to the Place Where He Robbed Himself. And His Trial with Mr. Ebenezer Pearson, Whom He Maliciously Arrested for Robbery. Also the Trial of Levi & Laban Kenniston. Concord, NH: Printed for the Author, 1819. 151, [1] pp. [Bound with] Powers, Michael [1769-1820], Defendant. The Trial of Michael Powars [sic], For the Murder of Timothy Kennedy, Before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Boston, April 11, 1820. Boston: Published by Thomas G. Bangs, 1820. 35 pp. 12mo (6-1/2" x 4-1/4"; 16.5 x 10.8 cm). Contemporary three-quarter sheep over marbled boards, lettering piece and gilt fillets to spine, early owner label of Albert C. Jenks to front board. Moderate rubbing to boards, heavier rubbing to extremities with wear to spine ends and corners, front board beginning to separate but secure, rear hinge cracked, armorial bookplate of Asa P. French (dated 1913 and pasted over an earlier bookplate) to front pastedown, description of this item clipped from a bookseller catalogue tipped-in to front free endpaper. Light browning and foxing to interior. $500. * Sham-Robbery: only edition; Trial: second and final edition, published in the same year as the first. This volume collects accounts of two trials in which Daniel Webster served as a defense attorney. Jackman's Sham-Robbery is a detailed account, by one of the accused, of one of the trials connected with this Massachusetts case, one of the most famous cases of its day. The respected and well-connected Major Goodridge's accusation of robbery against the witless, low-life Kenniston brothers was supported by popular sentiment, until Webster began his defense, which meticulously unraveled the major's story and led to an acquittal. The trial was a landmark in Webster's legal career, and his final address to the jury, first printed here, is considered a classic example of his oratorical skill. The Powers case involved a fatal encounter in Boston. As McDade notes: "Even the great Daniel Webster could not save Powers, who was condemned for killing Kennedy.

Seller Inventory # 74577

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Sham-Robbery, Committed by Elijah Putnam Goodridge [Bound with].
• Publication Date: 1819
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Concord, NH: 1819
• Seller catalogs:
  • Antiquarian & Scholarly