Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-10-28
CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVI-
DENCE.
A Remarkable Story Prom the Lips
of United States Senator Dan
VOORHEES,.


81 G VOORHEES,.
/ remember once defending,at
| Crawfordsville, Ind, a man nam
ed Owen, indicted for the muir
der of his wife by poison. 1t
Twas twcnty-odd years ago. Ow-
en- was a respectable farmer in
good circumstances, and a cen
sistent church inember. He had
Ibeen twice married. He had
several children by his FIRST wife;
his secbnd was childless, a cir
/ cumstancc which peculiarly af-
Ifected her mind and temper.
She would not permit his chill
idren to reside with her, and
compelled him to find home
for them elsewhere. She had a
fancy, too, that he was criminal
lly intimate with the wife of one
Iof his tenants. She had fire.
quently threatened suicide i'll
consequence of these troubles.
! One night Owen was awaken
ed from sleep to find her dying
] He called in assistance and sent
1 for physician, but she was
/ dead before any one arrived.
| Her sudden demise excited sus-
picion, and three days after hel
burial it was communicated to
him that arrangements had been
made to disinter the body and
Investigate it.
Owen was greatly agitated at
this intelligence, and after a
short pause, replied: off this is
done, and poison is found in
| KeziIe stomach CHS deceased
wife's Christian name), | will be
accused of her murder, convict
ed and hanged. But | am as in
lnocent Of it as that tree" point
ling at one near by.
That night he transferred all
This property to a son, disguised
himself, and fled the country.
The body of his wife was ex-
humed and an autopsy had. b
nough strychnine was found in
her stomach to kill a mule.
There was a universal expression
of horror at the discovery, and a
J. large reward was offered for the
arrest of the fugitive. After
some months he was found in
Canada, where he was living un-
der an assumed name. He was
brought to Charlottesville in
irons, and it was with difficulty
that his, execution by Il mob
could be prevented.
1 Joe Mcdonald (now my COL
league in the Senate), Jim VIII
son, once a Representative in
Congress and subsequently Min
lister to Venezuela, and myself
defended him. There was a
formidable prosecution, Lew
Wallace, Judge Gregory, and
Others appearing against him.
1t was proven that a short
time before Mrs. Owens death
her husband had purchased
strychnine at a drug store in the
Ineighborhood, telling the drug
.lgist that he wanted it for pois-
Joining rats. But he asked that
lit should be charged to him,
a fact upon which we laid a great
stress in argument, insisting that
had he entertained criminal
design III buying. the drug he
would not have put the damna-
bic evidence Of the fact upon
record. A daughter, who was
Visiting her fathers house when
the poison was brought home,
Testified that he handed it to her
stepmother in her presence, eau
tioning her to be careful with it.
A brother Of bis wife, who was
greatly embittered against him,
and was a witness for the State,
admitted upon cross examination
that Ovens treatment of his
sister was invariably considerate
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 a
defense on. The odds were fear
full. There was the remark of
the marked agitation of Owen
when first informed Of the sus-
Ipicions existing against him, his
admission that if a post-mortem
examination showed that poison
was the cause of his wife's death
he would be accused Of admin
Iisteringit and hanged; his pur-
chase of the poison; his transfer
of his property and flight, all
combined, nearly irresistibly led
to the conviction Of his guilt.
L"Mr. Voorhees, he said to me.