Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-10-12
BY TELEGRAPH.
1 A .sociated Press kilograms to the Daily
! a - Eonnebec Journal
Masy Of de Witnesses 9ecalIed-Judse
Giibert Will Argue the Case
for the State.

RocxLAsD, Oct. IL. In the Cain murder
trial this forenoon, the testimony for the
State in rebattal, was continued
II. l.. Shepherd and T. T. Hill, testified
concerning the hanging Of Gross. After
Freeman had kept the witnesses in Pigeon
Woods two hours, pointing out different
places ~ The spot where the body was left, a
rope vas pct around bis neck, not noted, but
held in the hand, the other end thrown over
q small limb, no higher than Freeman head.
No force was put on the rope, and he was not
drawn OF his feet. He then said that Willie
was thrown over the bluff. He did not appear
frightened; would stop and pick and eat box
berry leaves and toss stones. Oliver Otis
confirmed these witnesses.
Lucious Heal denied the language a;tribu-
ted to him. about dragging Freeman Gross
across the pond; heard no one use such Ian
guage.
The defense On surrebutal called Freeman
Gross, who contradicted Hill and Shepherd
about the hanging, and was sure Heal pro-
posed to drag him across the pond.
Richards recalled denied that he swore at
his mother the night of the 18th, or that he
ever swore at her.
Mrs. Richards testified that she never heard
Bert swear At her, or swear at ali.
Charles Philbrook testified that he was at
Lily Pond the afternoon of July 18th, with
Freeman Gross and the Leavitt boy, about 8
or 1 O'Clock; didn't see Willie Cain or Bert
Richards.
Joseph S. Thondike testified that Shepherd
told him he had hung one of the boys till he
was black in the face, to make him confess.
The state in surrebutal called Shepherd who
sqdarely denied that he had any such con-
versatiOn with Thorndike. Two witnesses
who worked with Thorndike tor Shepherd at
the time, heard no such conversation.
The evidence being all in Mr.. Staples be-
gan the argument for the defence at three
O'Clock. He said the state had nothing in
their case outside of the confessions of the
had been extorted from them by fear and in
timidation. Confessions to ne admissible as
evidence must be voluntary, and the counsel
dwelt very strongly on the intimidations
practiced upon his clients. The confession
at Wiscasset was obtained by Detective Wig
gin who falsely pretended to each
boy that he was his counsel and
that he would clear him if he would
stick to the story Of the drowning at Rock
port, and that he brought the boys in before
the witnesses and had them repeat this story.
If they didn't make the representations to
the boy which they say he did, why did he
60 to the witness stand and contradict it?
Richards whereabouts through the whole
afternoon of the thirteenth. The whole after
noon till he went to bed, of the thirteenth
had been shown, when he found his father,
whom he had been searching for to get medi-
cine for his mother, and is seen talking with
him. The prosecution would have you to
believe he told the dreadful secret of muir
der in the public street, and that the poor
one-armed man went to the pond and got out
and secreted the body before the search be-
gan. Jacob Richards time is also accounted
for from six O'Clock until bed time. There
is no evidence even, tending to show that
either Richards or Gross could have carried
the body away from the pond. When the
the body was found at Goose river, the gov
eminent theory died natural death and had
to resurrect one to fit the case, and to get
the body out of the pond to the river they
fail to produce any evidence to sustain that
theory. If the body had lain twenty-five
days in an old lime kiln or ash heap, and
then brought to the place where found; was
this possible without marks and abrassions
on the body? But yet none were found.
Mr.. Staples spoke two hours and a halt
and will finish in the morning. Judge Gil,
bert will argue the case for the prosecution
and it will be given to the jury some time
tomorrow.