Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-01-23
THE MURDER OR SUICIDE.
The Mysterious Affair In LIE Sueur County
"A Puszling Question for Jury to De-

| "A Pushing Question for q Jury to De.
| eide.
[specisl to the Globe.l
LIE suRuR CENTER, Jan. 20.-I have moi
attempted to send you daily report of the
Patterson trial. The postal facilities are Sc
horribly poor that 1t takes two days for let.
ter to reach st. Paul from here, and 1t Is toe
inconvenient and expensive to send special
messengers to the nearest telegraph station
twelve miles distant.
The testimony closed this forenoon, and 1t
is very voluminous. Sixteen witnesses were
sworn on the part of the prosecution and
fourteen on the part of the demonstrating
the defendant herslf.
Briefly stated, the prosecution proved by
this testimony that the defendant met deceased
in Colorado In 1880, that they returned to this
state together and were married at lexington,
in this county, in November OF that year;
that soon after their marriage they had
troubles and litigation; that in june, 1881, he
left his house and home and parted with her
and went to reside with neighbor, and re-
manned stopping there until September LIST
last, when he went to Michigan to
visit friends; that in the latter
part of September, and while he
was In Michigan, she commenced
notified OF this by friend, and Immediately
returned to defend the suit, arriving here about
the first day of October; that he employed
counsel and up to and on Friday the seventh of
October he was Engaged with counsel In pre-
pairing aff1davits to resist an application of
hers for an allowance of money as alimony,
which was to be heard the following Monday
before Judge Macdonald; that on the after
noon of the next day Saturday, October 8 last)
he was staying that his wife (defendant)
wanted to see him, and soon left and went to
his place to meet her; that when leaving that
afternoon he did not state where he was going,
but shortly before going told young nephew
of his, who returned with him from Michigan,
that if anything happened he would find a sum
of money in certain place, and to take it and
do the best he could with it; that between
the hour of four and four and half, that
afternoon, pistol shot was heard about the
barn upon the farm of the deceased that at
that time defendant and deceased had an In
terview at this place alone; that about $50
that afternoon the neighborhood was aroused
and startled by the screams Of defendant and
her sister, and upon going there the body of
deceased is found in the 'shaymow" with a re-
volver lying beside it, and bullet wound in
his head, out of which the life blood had ceas-
ed to triskle-defendant sitting beside the life
less body, and her sister sitting on the hay
near by, they both waiting for persons to
come who had been sent for.
The theory of the prosecution is that the de-
PENDANT induced her husband to visit her that
afternoon, and foully murdered him by shoot
ing him at 4:29, and that between that and $50
she and her sister removed the body to where
twas found, and arranged the body SO as to
make the deed appear suicide, and then gave
the alarm which was heard. The testimony
is wholly circumstantial, and it would fill the
GLOBE to give full report of all the evidence
given of circumstances bearing on these prin-
cipal facts.
The only eye witnesses to the deed are the
defendant and her sister, and they swear posi-
lively that the act was suicide and that the
deceased shot himself after the interview with
his wife, and the defense, like the prosecution,
offered evidence of many facts and circum-
stances in support of the defendants limo
cence.
The case is a most interesting one, and one
that the lawyers say, is-each side-aoout
equally desirable to the advocate. Either side
certainly presents splendid opportunity for
the eloquent advocate and the case has created
much interest, as the great crowd continually
in attendance attests.
The arguments will probably be concluded
this afternoon, so that Judge Macdonald can
charge the jury and send them out to deliber-
ate this evening A. W. Bangs, of LIE Sueur,
is making the closing argument for the prose
cution and n. j. Peck for the defense.
This is the sixth case of murder in the first
degree that has been tried before Judge Mac
Donald iu this ceunty;in fact the judge has had
more than his proper share of cases of this
character in his district. but in Justice to the
people, it should be stated that most of the
defendants were rowing or transient charac-
tiers. But at the rate criminals have been con-
victed and the fearless manner the Judge has
of sentencing them, I predict that crime will
decrease in the district hereafter. You may
hear the result of the trial before you get this
in print. REPORTER.