The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1880-09-19
CIRCUMSThNTIhL EVIDENCE.
A Remarkable story from tho Lips Of
| u. n. senator DRa voorhees,.


u. n. senator DRsa Voorhees,.
remember once defending, at Crawfords-
vile, Ind, man named Owen, indicted for
| the murder of his wife by poison. II was
| twenty-odd years ago. Owen was a respect
| able farmer, in good circumstances, and n
| consistent church member. He had been
twice married. lie had several children by
his first wife his second was child!ess, a
circumstance which peculiarly affected her
mind and temper. She would not permit
his children to reside with her, and com
PEELED him TO find a home for them else
where. She had a fancy, too, that lle was
criminally intimate with the wife of one of
| his tenants. She had frequently threatened
suicide in consequence of these troubles.
One night owen was awakened from sleep
| to find her dying. He called in assistance
| and sent for physician, hut she was dead
| before any one arrived. Her sudden demise
excited suspicion, and three days after her,
| burial this was communicated to him by n
| friend, who further informed him that ar
rangements had been made TO disintcr the
body and investigate it.
Owen was greatly agitatcd at this intelli-
gence, and, after short pause, replied: " If
this is done, and poison is found in Kezia's
stomach, Ciis deceased wife's Christian
namcO | will be accused of her murder,
convicted, and hanged. But | am rs limo
cent of it as that irce,' pointing to one
near by.
That night he transferred all his property
to Il son, disguised himself, and fled the
country. Tie body of his wife was exhumed
and an autopsy had. Enough strychnine
was found in her stomach to kill mule.
There was universal expression of horror
at the discovery, and large reward was
offered for the arrest of the fugitive. After
some months he was found in Canada, where
he was living under an assumed name. He
was lrought to Charlottesville in irons, and
it was with difficulty that his execution by a
mob could he prevented.
Joe Mcdonald, Onow my colleague in the
Senate,) jim Wilson, once Il Representative
in Congress and subsequently Minister to
Venezuela, and myself defended him. There
was n formidable prosecution, Lew Wallace,
Judge Gregory, and others appearing against
him.
IL was proven that n short time before Mrs.
OVENS death her husband had purchased
stryclnine at drug store in the neghbOr-
hood, telling the druggist that hc wanted it
Tor poisoning rats. But he asked that it
should be charged TO him, n fact upon which
we laid great stress in the argument, insist
ing that had he entertained n criminal de-
sign In buying the drug he would not have
put the damnablc evidence of tho fact upon
record. A daughter who. was visiting her
fathers house when the poison was brought
home testified that he handed il to her step
mother in her presence, cautioning her to be
careful with it. A brother oflis wife, who was
greatly embittercd against him, and was n
witness for the State, admitted upon cross
examination that Ovens treatment of his
sister was invariably considerable and kind.
There was an entire failure to establish the
fact of his having improper relations with
| other women.
This was all we had to base defense on.
The odds were fearful. There was the re-
mark of the marked agitation of Owen when
first informed of tho suspicious existing
against him, his admission that If post
mortcm examination showed that poison was
the cause of his wife's death he would be ac-
) cused of administering it and hanged; his
purchase of tho poison; his transfer of his
property and flight, all combined, nearly
; irresistibly led to the conviction of his guilt
"Mr. Voorhees," he said to me, "howevei
darkly things may appear against me, an
not guilty. and believed him. We fought
the case like tigers upon the reasonable doub
, which We deemed the evidence had not ex
cluded, and won II.
Such an uproar as followed never wit
messed. Owen was taken to Wilson's private
= residence, pursued by crowd crazed with
Y disappointment and thirsting for his blood
t Wilson, Mcdonald, and l stood at the from
r gate with pistols in our hands and checke,
+. the approach of the mob until owen coul,
- escape from the rear Of the house in n con
Y veyanco that had been provided for him. |
is the only time in my life that | ever say
:, Mcdonald with pistol. lie showed an IN
l mstakable purpose to use it if necessary.
owen went to Texas and died there, pre-
i sumo, az have never seen nor heard of hin
= since. His wife had committed suicide. IL
It knew il, but preferred to keep the fact I
d himself tn avoid scandal and exposing her
He was n weak but honest man. For hi
IN safe deliverance he was indebted to n capita
> jury, men who could neither DO bought no
scared. sThc foreman had served tho rouI
d try in the state senate, others had he'll
office, and all were persons of consideration
Is nd iIAlla