The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-10-04
SERGEANT KELLY.
On Trial for the Alleged Man
slaughter of Frank A, Smith.
at Fort Popham.
A FULL RESUME OF THE CASE
ANTECEDENT TO THE TRIAL.

A FULL RESUME OF THE CASE
ANTECEDENT TO THE TRIAL.
The Proceedings of the First Day.
More than two years have elapsed since the
well remembered tragedy at Fort Popham,
| by which Frank A. Smith lost bis life He
was shot within Fort Popham by Sergeant
Dennis Kelley, Saturday morning, July 29th,
| and died Sunday, August 18th, 1882. surviving
the wound just two weeks and one day.
RESUME OF TIE CASE.
At this particular time our readers will be inter
ested in recalling the details of the sad AFFAIR On
| the fateful Saturday morning, two young men,
| Frank A. Smith, the victim, and his acquaintance
| House. furtively introduced themselves inside of
Fort Popham-a forbidden place-through the
seventh port hole of the lower tier Of the fort,
| that occupies nearly northerly position and Is
| quite secluded from the shore observation.
The iron doors of the port hole open for the
place when they were completely surprised BY the
appear ance of Ordinance Sergeent Kelley from the
other side of tho fort. He approached them qickly
They replied, "You hold on.'' Kelley took up a
brick, changing the pistol to his left hand and
made motion as # to throw the substance IN his his
pistol was discharged, shooting Smith in the right
thigh bout ak inches above the upper portion of
Kelley to assist him. Kelley said to him. "You see
it was accident. never meant it," and opening
the gate for him, let HIM out. Sevill had fed the
way he came to the Eureka, arriving there in such
breathless state that it was some moments before
he could gasp gu. that Smith was shot. Kelly This
stance the statement made by young Sevill at his
1882.
Kelley was arrested the day after the shooting by
U y. Marshal Bisbee aud brought to Bath
where hearing was held Monday forenoon before
Judge Talman, Washington Gilbert acting as coun-
sci for Kelley. The respondent was charged with
assauting Frank A. Smith, with intent to Kill. and
pleaded met guilty" 9: M; Il. Sevili, J.. H. Haley,
amined, and Kelley made his statement Of the af-
fair. Judge railman placed him under $500 bonds
Tsyor yns snS his
To return to Smith. He endeavored to walk to
the house, the blood flowing down his leg from the
bu let hole completely saturating his uDdercloth-
ing and reddening his canvas shoes. When he had
gone perhaps 200 yards, half way to the hotel, he
to the arms Of j. f. Haley, who had run to meet
him. He was taken to the platform of Mr.. Haley's
house and lay there to await the arrival OF the ply
sicans Dr. Ferguson of Phipsourg and DIR. E. NJ.
Fuller of Bath; the former arriving In half
an hour, and the latter in an hour and half DR..
bullet from the posterior portion of the thigh first
making incison through the skin. After the re-
moyal of the bullet no further hemorrhage was ex-
perenced until that which ended in his death Sun
day morning. After the ARRIVAL of DR.. Fuller the
wound was dressed with antiseptic dressings, and
powerful restorstives given TO rally the patient
For three days there was little improvement, the
shock and loss of blood were so severe, and for
pulse at the wrist After the third day he rallied
very slowly, lowering between life and death at
times. During the second week he improved rapid
y. On Saturday Aug. I2th when the last consul
taton held. he was considered to be improving.
and there was reason to believe that he would re-
cover.
DR.. Ferguson who had spent every night and
portion OF every day with the patient was called at
O'Clock Sunday morning with the message that
Frank was bleeding and for him to come quickly.
q was at the bedside in five minutes and applied
compress to the bleeding blood vessel, but at
that the patients life blood had been ebbing away
in his sleep, the poor fellow awaking from sheer
exhaus ion and having just strength enough left to
late tor anytSins to be- done. lie was extinct in
one hour aud thirty minutes. The sad news was at
once known at the Eureka House and house OF
leasing was turned into one of mourning, every
heart over flowing with sympathy for the attict d
parents whose sad loss touched the hearts OF ALL
generally known. Sergeant Kelley was in turn de-
Tended and sspersed.
About 230 p. m. of the day OF SMITHS death,
steamer Laurena left Bath with Sheriff j. W. Bal
lou County Attorney, e. j. Millay, DR.. Mitchell of
Brunswick, and Doctors Packard, Fuller and
Small of Bath on board. The above physicians with
the addition of DR.. Ferguson held an autopsy upon
the body and the result in the main, shorn of
medical technicaties was that the patient came s
pistol shot, DIR. Fuller said that nature made q
big struggle to. repair the blood vessel but failed
didn't the first week, but the circulation Of
| the blood was too weak to cause 1t. But
soon as nature fev.sea ana s ene g0any ha,sy
| out at the femoral artery and nearly all the
| blood he had flowed out. He was bright as but
ton the night betoro DIR. Fuller had carried every
thing needed for an amputation about with him in
his carriage for the two weeks ready to start az
moments notice. Not drop Of blood was lost after
a uQe nliahh hnf ha Ia1Fatf rol1
from the great loss which he had sustained in his
sleep before it was known that he was bleeding.
he'd an inquest. verdict was rendered, that
Frank Smith came to his death by hemorrhage
caused by pistol wound received July 29, 1852.
Said pistol was discharged while in the hands of
Sergeant Kelley. Death occurred Aug. ID, 1882.
The following men composed the jury: George
William aodgEins. j. N. clark, and Charles 'I5. 6.
Haley. t
The Laurena returned after 10 o'clock with the
party and also Sergeant Kelley with Sheriff Ballou,
the Sergeant passing the night at the sagadahock
House While deeply deplOring the accident and its
science released him from any criminal intent in
the matter, it being wholly accidental. The father
and mother and two sisters of Frank were present
al his bedside when he died. There were 1--we chill
dren in ALL including another boy about seven years
old. The parents were both overwhelmed with
grief over the premature death of their promising
son. The case was brought before the August
term of the Supreme Court, which met in Bath
Tuesday, the 10Th, and the Grand Jury found an
and manslaughter. He was arraigned before Judge
Virgin and bonds fixed at So 900 from day to day.
term when to settle the question OF jurisdiction be-
tween the State and the United States, it refer
red to the full bench and the case withdrawn
temporarily. 1t was not until the last session of
court in Sagadahoc, the August term of 1884,
that the decision announced, when the case was
given to the United States Court.
THE TRIAL.
The case Of the United States by Indictment
VS.. Orderly Sergeant Kelley for
fatally shooting Francis A. Smith
of Charlestown, Mass, at Fort Popham
July 20, 1882, was called in the Circuit Court
yesterday morning before Judges Colt and
Webb District Attorney Lunt appeared for
the government and Judge W. Gilbert of
Bath for the respondent. At 9.45 the jury was
empanelled with James M. Parrot of Cape
Elizabeth as foreman, after which the indict-
ment. for manslaughter found by the grand
jury was read, to which Sergeant Kelley plead
not guilty. After the reading of the indict-
ment District Attorney Lunt addressed the
jury. After defining from the statutes
what consti tutes manslaughtef, Mr.. Lunt
gave an account Of the circumstances under
which Smith was shot by the defendant:
About o'clock on the morning Of July 20,
1882 Francis A. Smith, accompanied by boy
named Sevill, climbed into Fort Popham
through one of the embsrasures. Scearcely
had they entered the fort when the defend
ant, Old rly Sergeant Kel's came through the
gateway and ordered the Jung fellows away,
They not hurrying, the sergeant ran down
| towards them, and drawing pistol from his
| breast pocket, discharged it at Smith. The
| ball struck Smith in the inner portion of the
thigh. His companion Sevill, as soon as
| Smith was shot, cried out to Kelley "See
| what you've done. Come and help me take
| care OF him. But Kelley refused all assis-
tance, and Sevill ran from the fort to the ho-
| tel for aid. Smith staggered along for some
distance, but became faint from the loss Of
blood aud tell fainting in front of Sergeant
| Kelley's quarters. He lay there till people
| came from the hotel and carried him there,
when the bullet was extracted. AT II o'clock
that forenoon feeling that he was about to die
Smith made statement of the particulars of
the shooting, which will be introduced at the
| proper time in this trial. But Smith fingered
along until the 18th Of August when he died.
| At the cluse of his opening Mr.. Lunt called