The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-01-25
THE TRIAL.
Testimony Of the Prosecute
ing Witnesses.
The Court Held at the City
Council Room.

together, as many circumstances conSplred
to delay the beginning of business The
short hand reporter was the last element of
delay. and finally. about half-past ten. that
tardy individual put IN his appearance and
the court was ready for business. The
proper arrangement of the adopted court
rooms concerned the attentive and massive
intellect of Judge Smith for some time,
but finally the marked ability which that
official has always shown in other minor
and smaller matters, reasserted itself here.
and his gigantic mind proved its power to
arrange benches and provide seats for
jurors, and give the reporters a chance to
know what was going on; it was master
effort
The first witness was
FREDERICK GILMAN,
whose testimony was objected to because
all he was supposed to know was his ex
perience in hunting for the corpse and the
prosecution showed no connection be-
tween his knowledge and the accused
Objection overruled.
Mr.. Gilman had prepared map OF the
locality where the tragedy occurred and
MIR. Parmenter examined him as to dis
distances and measurements. The witness
detailed facts with which the readers of the
ARGUS are already familiar as to the geog
raphy of the place, 1t is worth stating in
this connection that States Attorney Par
menter had recovered enough from his
fatigue" to carry on the examination him
self this morning at least he seemed to
think so, but Mr.. Jackson evidently was
of an opposite opinion, if anything is to be
judged from the frequent corrections and
promptings which he administered to his
principal. It has got to be so that peo-
pie wonder who is States Attorney.
The witness testified that in a certain
part of the the corn field he had smelled
blood, and lively discussion at once came
up as to what constitutes the smell of
blood. The witness knew how hog blood
smelled and professed to have a fair olfac-
tory knowledge of the different kinds of
manure; but he was not exactly certain
whether it was human blood or not There
was an impression of the lower part of
human body in the soil, SO the witness ties
titled, near the place where his nostrils
were affected by blood. The witness dis
covered the impression and the blood smell
ing stencil the Sunday after the murder.
Mary Heilwagon was the next witness
dant. She testified that she had first heard
of the murder of Dora on the Tuesday
after it occurred She had seen her father
that day in the store on the bluff and had
a conversation with him about Dora He
told her that she was missing; the witness
told her father that she already knew it.
A hammer was next introduced in evidence
and the witness identified it as her fathers.
The cross examination of this witness was
very short and nothing was elected. The
court allowed the prosecution to open the
examination in chief, and an exception of
the defense was noted.
Adolph Wicket was next called by the
State. He had seen the prisoner in jail
about two months ago. He talked with
Heilwagon about the crime with which he
was charged. He asked the prisoner
whether he was guilty or not and he SAID
no. He asked him in regard to his actions
on the night of the murder; he stated that
he was cut three quarters of an hour and
had fallen through the cellar stairs
Before cross examination, theoourt took
a recess until afternoon.
AFTERNOONS
This afternoon, the first witness called
was Isaac Conner from Watertown He
knew the locality in which the murder was
committed. He passed the house of Dora
Heilwagon Monday afternoon at o'clock. |
He returned over the road and passed the |
house at about II o'clock that night This |
was on the 9th of September. The wit |
ness carried the mail from Watertown to |
Happy Hollow. He knew the time of the |
night, from the feet that he left Yuma in |
the evening, and did not reach his home
until after midnight. In passing Dora's
house that night, he heard talking in the |
house in some foreign language. He also |
heard some scuffiing on the floor that struck |
him as very peculiar. When he reached /
Mosure bridge he heard pistol shot The |
horse jumped and came near throwing his |
rider to the ground. The road passed /
close to the house, obout twelve feet from
the dwelling He saw no one on the road /
as he passed that neighborhood. Witness
saw light in the prisoners house on the
east side
On the cross examination the witness /
stated that the distance from Watertown
to Happy Hollow was ten miles. He was |
forty rods west of Heilwagons house when
the report of the pistol was heard. The
light in VIM. Heilwagon's house was On
the ground floor.
SHERIFF ANKRUM
was next taken. He visited the locality of |
the murder on the Monday after the crime
was committed. He saw the shock of corn
said to have been shocked over the ground
where the murder was committed. He /
saw the print Of somebody or substance Oh
the ground. Witness saw the prisoner On
the Saturday after the murder at Hampton.
He was afterwards committed to jail The
prisoner claims to be innocent and stated
that he (prisoner) was at home the Mon
day a.ig,it Of the murder.
O. flicker
Of Hampton bluff, was next called. He
kept store, and knew the prisoner. The
after was working at the coal mines. Wit
ness remembered the disappearance of
Dora Heilwagon. It was Tuesday the 9Th
Of September Witness saw the prisoner,
and the latter stated that Dora was mis- s
sing, and later that lie believed she had
killed herself,
FRANK KI.TNAU
testified that he was brother of Dora Hell
wagon, the murdered woman. He first
earned of his sisters disappearance Tues
lay noon. Witness went with the defend
lnr~to Davenport in search of Otto He'll
wagon on Wednesday, On Thursday
returned to Davenport.
YESTERDAY