Grand Rapids Herald-Review Newspaper, December 24, 1904, Page 1

© Vo... XIII.—No 19 —— ; Granp Rapips, Irasca County, Minn., SaturDAY, DECEMBER, 24, (904. Two Dotiars a YEAR. will have gone. little have had a merry time. selves This is the time when we and see ali those around us happy too. dp CRED fp > GEM MAEE > > CRS ; ): GAD ft AED SS CITE TE G4 CRETE) D> eco nausea % : 4 MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYBODY | Well—its all over! Christmas Eve has.come, and before this is read by many> We certainly hope that every person in our little city, both big and Let us look about us and see if we cannot make this a time of universal happiness to‘every home in our town ut PRE-INVENTORY SALE NEXT WEEK Watch tor Announcement. jin the ' MURDER IN 2ND DEGREE | ‘| Jury in Gardner Case Returns a Ver- dict of Murder in the Second Degree. MAY APPLY FOR NEW TRIAL After Being Out About Fifteen Hours the Jury Agrees on a Verdict of Murder in the Seeond Degree —Nine to Three Voted For First Degree Murder, At 9:40 yeterday morning the jury Gardner case filed into court and reported that a verdict had been reached. ‘Ihe defendant was brought from his cell in the county jail by Sherriff Hoohhan. As Deputy | Clerk Graffam read the verdict Gard- ner leaned forward in his chair and eagerly listened for the fatal words. At the conclusion of the reading he sat back in his chair and showed no outward sign of the effect the verdict must have had upon him. The verdict pronounced the defendant guilty ‘of murder in the second degree and recommended the merey of the court. The penalty 1s imprisonment for life. Senator McCarthy, who defended Gardner, was seen yesterday afternoon by a Herald-Review representative and in reply to the question as to whether a new trial would be asked, he said he was unable to state, but in- all want to be happy our- Itasca Mercantile Co. j Od> CRED & } GEARS ft GEREN Cf GRATED Co) Some Things one never thinks of for holi- day gifts are just the very things that would be most” highly appreciated. 7 Among all the year-round’ kind of HARDWARE. hére are lots of things that make the best of gifts—Pocket khiyesand Roller Skates for boys. Razors and Shaving Sets for the-men, Dog Collars, Doz Calls, Silver Plated knives, Forks and Spoon’s and hundreds of other useful things for the family in general Allat small prices too, W.J.& H. D. Powers, Grand Rapids Minnesota. 1 SE A EE A EE A EE ae ae ae ee ea a a ae Ea ae a aa ee Grand Rapids G5 a : and $5 Village Lots ce lots all over town and we are sell- per month We have choice reside ing them on such ea terme that anybody can buy. $5 down and $5 per month is certainly easy. Come in and talk the matter over, A house and three lots for sale cheap. We also have some choice business lots on our Jists. They are for salc on easy terms. REISHUS-REMER LAND cOMPANY, TEPRESEESREO THRO OE adh dadadhslidh sesh datedadcadesndadaduae blah SHSteeeoseeHonorseerasoeHseoseeey SEI NE RE Re 8 EAE IE Ee Se abe SIR ae Se A AE AE a Hee a aS TRAINOR’S TOYS FOR GIRLS AND BOYS * For the little folks and the big folks and for allikinds of folks, Trainor : has pre- pared a_ veritable bazar where everything imagin- | able for the holidays in the line of toys and"fancy curiosi- if ties be bought for o very small piece of money. Read the list below and then come in and make selections: may your ee Drums, trunks and horns} pianos, bureaus, desks, wire go-carts and all kinks of friction and mechancica toys, dolls and doll trousseau doll. beds and cradles, fancy china cups and saucers, an vaces, games, books, chairs and rockers, fine stationery and pips rubber dolls, balis rattles and plush dogs, tea sets, both china and’ tin, Christmas tree decorations. checkers and back gamon boards, Plain and fancy candies, fruits mixed nuts aad cigars. f Come in and see them and be convinced about priges and quality. Thos. Leland Ave. Trainor Grand Rapids. }of the timated that such action was not im- probably. Atter the discharge of the } jury it was commonly reported that on the first ballot the vote stood three for aquittal and nine _ fer conviction of ‘| murder tm the first degree as charged in the indictment. ‘The case has been one ef unusual interest not only to people in Grand kapids but to the entire county as well, In fact this interest has ex- tended into other counties of the state and as faras Wisconsin, in the north- erm part of which the defendant. is well and favorable known. A large mass of evidence was introduced on |} both sides, the greater part on the lside of the defendant. A great’ part evidence for the defense was as to the character of the de- fendant and it was established that he has been heid in unusually high es- teem by men of repute both in this and other counties. Men came from other towns and cities at their own expense to testify for and aid in the defense of Gardner and many of the friends of the Cefendent have of- fered to contribute money to assist in clearing him of the charge that was brought against him. The testimony of the prosecution was almost of a purely theoretical character, but it must be said, was well put together and presented to the jory. Sheriff Hoohhan and Coroner Russell were the principal witnesses as teguds the scene ot the shooting, the first story of the defendant and the appearance of the body of Garri- son. ‘They evidently were sincere in the behef that Gardaer had committed a deliberate and unnecessary murder and they did not hesitate to give their evidence as bearing that way. Dr. Russell, who was also medical ex- pert for the prosecution evidently be- lieved from the course tbe bullet took, that Gardner killed Garrison while the latter was in a stooping position and without giving him a chance for his life, On cross-examination the doctor beeame heated and his testimony as a consequence caused admissions to go into evidence that were rather favor able to the defense but in the main he stuck to his story, Sheriff Hooli- han’s story was much the same as that which he told at the preliminary | examination telling of Gardner’s des- cripition of the shooting while the state’s officers and Gardner were on the scene, Considerable capital was smade out of the question as to whether Gardner carned Garrison’s mail to the latter place when he went there the day of the shooting Gardner, it will be remembered, had just returned from Hibbing and he brought the mail with him, he bemg postmaster in the location where he lived. In | this mail were three letters addressed to William Garnson the victim of the shooting. Mrs. Jensen, a neighbor’s wife, who was stopping at Gardner’s house at the ume. testifled for the letters and that she saw them on the desk both before and after Gardner went to Garrison’s. It was sought to prove by this that Gardner did not take the mail Garnson’s with murder in his heart. It was testified vy several witnesses ‘and by Gardner himselr that he did take the mail, to Garrison’s and that + heewould not have gone to Garrison's “Nisbet's stock of jewelry/ts thing worth-seeing. ~- e £ at ail only that Garrison had left word Lat Gardner's during the latters absence, state that Gardner did not take these | because: he went to | up as soon as he got home, and settle for some hay which-Garrisoa declared Gardner had cut on the tormer’s land the year before. According to. the testimony introduced by the defense, Gardner had never heard of this hay- cutting before but thought that he had better settle the matter at once, so took his compass to run a line and find out where the tresspass could have occured and also took his gun and Garrison’s mail, proceeding at once to Garrison’s, some two miles away. It seems that a short time be- fore Gardner had purchased the hay stumpage on some state land next to, Garnson’s and the latter felt very sore about it and told Gardner that he could not haul the hay from that land. As Gardner proceeded. on his way, to Garnson’s on the day of the tragedy he went by way of this: hay land to take a look at it and observed that somebody had been cutting it. He presumed, because of his former con- versation with Garnison, that the latter was the one who did it. Gardner him- self, testified that with this in mind when he came up to where Garrison was working he addressed Garrison with: “Who 1m hell told you to cut that hay, Bill?” At this, Gardner testified, Garrison jumped over the polls on which he was working and with the words as the defendant understood them, he being rather deaf, “I'll show you” made a leap toward the house about thirty-two feet away, to where his gun was standing. Gardner says that he called: “Hold on there, — — — you.” Garrison however did not stop and Gardner, who declares he believed Garnson was making an effort to get his gun to kill the detendant, fired his rifle, a 45—9g0 Winchester, at the other. Garrison thereupon stopped and _be- gan a system of ‘‘ducking” said to be the practice in the west where Garri- son claimed to have learned it, but facing all the time toward his gun. Gardner then fired zgain and it 1s be- lieved that this shot struck Garson, The smoke was thick and Gardner in trying to get out of the way of the; ying y smoke so that he could see, accident- ally discharged the. gun again but as there was only one bullet wound in Garrison, it is believed that only the second shot struck him. Garrfson then dragged himself to a back fence and got over it. Gardner cautiously approa- ched and found Garnson on his hand and kneesand bleeding. ‘Then he wen back and got Garrison’s gun, for the reason, he said on the stand, that he feared that Garrison might be *‘playing possum.” ing the two guns with him, Gardner walked back to his home and sent his man, Joseph Otterman, up to Garrison’s to see how badly the latter was hurt and to attend to him, Gardner then went 57 wiles to Hibb- ing and wired the authorities of this county of the occurrence and on receiving a wire from them that they would drive from this place to the scene of the shooting ‘retraced his steps from Hibbing to his home and there gave himself up to the sheriff, took the officers to the scene of the shooting and described the tragedy to them. Gardner told his story in an absolutely straight-forward and _sin- cere manner. Joseph Ottermen, the man who was with Garrison when he died, was also an important witness. He testified that Garrison told him to see that Jensen, a neighbor, got his crop and that his own neice got the claim. Later on he made this significant remark; “He shot me or I would him. I guess the cur gun.” Otterman declared that he did not ask Garrison how the shooting occur- red preferring to leave that to his own free will as to the telling of it. County Attorney Spear practically accused him of burning a statement made by Garnscn immediately after the shoot- ing, but Otterman steadfastly denied that he saw an such statement, No evidence was introduced by the state to show that any statement was made. A great deal of impressive evidence was introduced to show that Garrison had repeatedly threatened Gardner’s life, among those so testifying being Dan Haley, a prominent logger of Superior, Robert Sutt, of Dulnth, William Schanzlin of Ohio, formerly a homesteader near Garrison’s and other homesteaders. It was also shown that Garrison was a bad man, self-styled at least. During the closing address of the prosecution to the jury, two dramatic incidents occurred. The first one was when County Attorney Spear made the accusation that Gurdner did not tell the officers at first all the things he was. now declanng he had told them. Irs. Gardner, wife of the defendant who has been under great strain ever since the shooting, could bear it no longer and cried out: “That isnot so and you know it. He told you everything he says he did and you know he did.” She then burst into hysterical sob- have shot has got my fone and was led from the court room by triends. ‘The second instance of a dramatic character was much more unpleasant. The county attorney io relating incidents after the shooting quoted what Gardner said to Garrison when the latter was on the ground, The words are of too vile a character to. be handled with impunity in the presence of men alone, but in this case quite a number of the leading women of the town were present. The women recoiled as from a blow and the jury seemed to freeze. It is generally wondered how Mr. Spear could so far have forgotten himself. Senator McCarthy made a remark- ably able speech for the defense, shat- tering-the mythical proposition given by the prosecution and stating his own case clearly and ably. He brought out his points strongly, marshalled his facts well and attacked the prosecution’s methods with force- tul effect. During Senator McCarthy’s speech Mrs, Gardner.suffered the first collapse she. had during the trial and pro- ceedings had to stop for several minutes. until she could he restored. Later when the senator asked the jury if they could conscicutiously send Gardner to the gallows, Mrs. Gardner burst into wild weeping -ctying “no, no!” until a friend soothed»her. Judge Spooner delivered an ex- haustive and comprehensive charge to the jury in which the law was ex- plicitly placed before the jurors. Both the defendent’s attorney and County Attorney Spear submitted instructions which the court also read to the jury. District Court. Immediately following the conclu- sion of the Gardner trial Thursday af- ternon the Reynolds case was called. A jury” was secured ina short time during the evening session. Yesterday morning the state opened its case to the jury and several witnesses were examined, ‘The trial of the case does. not pronuse to last longer, than two or three days. An incident interestins: to- those present in the court room took place yesterday afternoon. Attorney Pnce seemed to think that his client. Reynolds, had not received becoming consideration at the hands of Sheriff Hoolihan durng: his incarceraticn at the county bastile. He protested to the court, claiming that Reynolds had been deprived ot his legal right to communicat: with his wile, and that the latter had been unlawfully deprived of her hberty. Judge Spooner replied that the sheriff had only exereised his. lawiul prerogative in not allowing Reynolds and his wife to communi cate while being “retained in his custody, -Mr. Price protested. The judge cited the law. Mr. Price again protested, ‘he judge said that he would issue an order of the court for- bidding any communication between the parties during the progress of the tral, and intormed the attorney that they could only hold communication with each other through him (Price) as their legal representauve. Mr. Price again protested, saying that he had been threatened with assault for de manding just treatment for his clients at the hands of the sheriff. Judge Spooner rephed in a manner that indicated unmistakably his desire to close the ineident and requested the protesting attorney to be seated, Mr. Price did not heed the court’s request but agam attempted to resume his protestauons. ‘lhe court repeated the request for Mr. Price to be seated, and finally ordered him to silence, when the rotund barrister took a tumble. Court will adjourn at noon today until Monday atternoon. At the con clusion of the Reynolds’ trial an ad journment will be taken util January 16, It will require a week or ten days to dispose of the remaining criminal and civil cases. No Murder at Brookston, The report sent out from Brookston, St. Louis county, giving details of a murder, has been authentically de- nied. A farmer and his hired man engaged in an altercation at a neigh- bor’s house when only the wife of the owver of the place and her children were home. After the battle was over and the combatants were gore the frightened woman wade an iuvestiga- tionof the yard where the fight took place. She found blood marks on tha snow and concluded that theemplorer ha’ killed bis employe with an ax and carried the body into the woods. She took her two children and fled from home toa vacant building some distance away and remained there until late at uight when her husbond came along on his way home from the woods. The blood was caused from # “wallop” received on the end of the probosis by one of the combatants. Fee Odd Fellows will give their jannual ball at Village hall on Monday night, January 2,