his own crime, he writes his own confession.  To do away the effect of Palmer’s letter, signed Grant, he writes a letter himself and affixes to it the name of Grant.  He writes in a disguised hand; but could it happen that the same Grant should be in Salem that was at Belfast?  This has brought the whole thing out.  Evidently he did it, because he has adopted the same style.  Evidently he did it, because he speaks of the price of blood, and of other circumstances connected with the murder, that no one but a conspirator could have known.

Palmer says he made a visit to the Crowninshields, on the 9th of April.  George then asked him whether he had heard of the murder.  Richard inquired whether he had heard the music at Salem.  They said that they were suspected, that a committee had been appointed to search houses; and that they had melted up the dagger, the day after the murder, because it would be a suspicious circumstance to have it found in their possession.  Now this committee was not appointed, in fact, until Friday evening.  But this proves nothing against Palmer; it does not prove that George did not tell him so; it only proves that he gave a false reason for a fact.  They had heard that they were suspected; how could they have heard this, unless it were from the whisperings of their own consciences?  Surely this rumor was not then public.

About the 27th of April, another attempt was made by the Knapps to give a direction to public suspicion.  They reported themselves to have been robbed, in passing from Salem to Wenham, near Wenham Pond.  They came to Salem and stated the particulars of the adventure.  They described persons, their dress, size, and appearance, who had been suspected of the murder.  They would have it understood that the community was infested by a band of ruffians, and that they themselves were the particular objects of their vengeance.  Now this turns out to be all fictitious, all false.  Can you conceive of any thing more enormous, any wickedness greater, than the circulation of such reports? than the allegation of crimes, if committed, capital?  If no such crime had been committed, then it reacts with double force upon themselves, and goes very far to show their guilt.  How did they conduct themselves on this occasion?  Did they make hue and cry?  Did they give information that they had been assaulted that night at Wenham?  No such thing.  They rested quietly that night; they waited to be called on for the particulars of their adventure; they made no attempt to arrest the offenders; this was not their object.  They were content to fill the thousand mouths of rumor, to spread abroad false reports, to divert the attention of the public from themselves; for they thought every man suspected them, because they knew they ought to be suspected.