The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-01-31
BARRows' MURDER.
The Second Days Proceedings at
Saco.
PUBLIC INTEREST IN THE TRIAL
INCREASING.
Horrible Relies Displayed.-The Coils
Tightcning ns lhs Case Preeeeds.-The
Beteetiyss' stOry.-HRcidents.
Especially Reported for The Press.)

~ ~A GoA1J auuE Akalu LQlS morning. 1uc
room was filed in a tWinkling on the opening
OF the doors. The faces of some OF the women,
especially in the front row of the gallery are
growing familiar. Lunches were brought as
yesterday, but those who had Aattered them
selves with the fond delusion of eating them
in the court room, had their dreams rudely dis
PEELED when at noon every person was required
to leave the building. Mrs. Barrows ple-
served her composure wonderfully during the
testimony of Coroner Neatly and as the ter
rible story, for the most part furnished by her.
self. was graphically narrated by Detective
Wood. Twice however she broke down; once
IN the morning, when the bloody garments of
her late husband were displayed, and again
in the afternoon, when the skull and the
femur of the murdered N an were produced.
Good progress was made with the trial and
day more will probably finish the government
testimony.
The Testimony.
The first witness vas
CORNELIUS QUINN,
of Portsmouth. He is an employe in the lum-
Der yard of Thomas e. Call g. Son. On the
14th of November in the afternoon Thomas
Barrows came to the yard and purchased some
joint to make q rack-said he was going to
saw the rounds out of hogshead that he had.
He put the lumber in his wagon, and left the
yard in the neighbsrhood of O'clock. His ap-
pearance was just the same as il always was;
he appeared to be pleasant.
JAMES o. TREFETHEN,
called by the State, testified that he was an
apothecary and postmaster at Kittery. He
had known Barrows for about year. On the
14th of November about half past five p. m he
saw Barrows on the Portsmouth bridge COM
ing to Kittery. He was on foot and asked
him to ride, which he did till Kittery depot
was reached and then he went home. 1t was
then quite dusky.
The cross questioning developed nothing
new.
The next witness called was
EDWIN c. NEALLx,
the coroner, who was summoned to the house
OF Mrs. Barrows the night her husband was
murdered. His testimony was substantially
thus: On the evening Of Nov. 14th he was
called upon about half past ten by Richard
Rickerwell and Lyman Spinney to 60 to the
house OF Thomas Barrows in his capacity as a
coroner. He rent there and arrived about
l0.l6, and there found Mrs. Mary E. Bar
rows, her mother, Daniel Cook, Sr., Richard
Rickerwell and Oscar E. Blaney. He asked
where the body was and was told it was ID the
bedroom. He entered the bedroom and saw
the body of Thomas Barrows lying on his left
side on the bed, left arm bent and supporting
his head. The head of the bed was toward
the East, where thsrs was window as well as
at the foot of the bed, toward the South. The
legs from the knee downward were hanging
over the side. Oscar e. Blaney, Daniel Cook
and Lyman Spinney were in the room with
him. He examined the body and found the
frst wound in the head above the ear. Bar
rows had on cheekerea woolen coat, dark
vest and pants, white shirt and woolen one
and pair of heavy boots. He called for
water, washed tho face and proceeded to dress
the body. In taking off the coat he discovered
wound in the arm, the ball which produced
it having entered just below and emerged just
above the elbow. When he came to the pants
he found other wounds in the region of the
hip and on the leg. One wound was just
above the pubic bone and the bullet was SO near
the surface that calling for lance or sharp
knife he extracted it. While this was being
done Blaney left the room. The bed was ex-
amineds the pillow on which the head OF the
dead man was lying was doubled up and be-
meath it was a watch. The clothes of the bad
were disarranged and bloody, and turned back
to the Sheets An examination of 1t was re-
warded by finding bullet. The time spent
in the bedroom was fully an hour and
throughout it Mrs. Bsrrows did not once enter.
He said nothing about the bullet he had found
10 her presence and heard nothing said about
it. He then wont to get lantern, remarking
to Blaney that bullet with the pistol it fitted
would be of importance. Blaney said he
knew where the pistol was and weuld show
him. A lantern was procured and they went
round the rear of the house toward the barn,
the three men there present going with him.
About seven feet ia front of the
small barn door the revolver was
found and Blaney pointed it out. (Sensation
as the revolver was produced; 1t is q central
fire, fve chsmbered revolver, of American
make and in size is thirty-eight cslibre.) He
examined the pistol and found all the cham
bers discharged and five empty cartridge shells
In it, He pat the pistol in his pocket, went
back to the house and found Mrs. Barrows,
her father and mother. He laid the pistol on
the table and asked II anyone owned 1t. There
was no answer and the question was then put
II any one had ever seen it, and to this Mrs.
Barrows answered that she had not. Mrs.
Barrows was asked If the pistol belonged to
Thomas and said she did not know that he
had any firearms. Afterwara she said she had
not seen pistol since Thoma5 owned one Of
shirty-two calibre. The dressing OF the body
was completed about a. m. After it was
| prepared for burial it was taken into the par
low; Blaney assisted in the preparation Of the
body all the time save when he left the room.
In further conversation with Mrs. Barrows he
asked how it happened that Thomas had shot
| himself. She said he went to Portsmouth that
afternoon and got home about dusk, eat q
| hearty supper, sat down on the lounge and
| talked about killing sick fowl. Her reply
| was that be did not want to kill sick fowl,
| and the rsjoinder to this from him was he did
not. As he did so she went about her work,
| and suddenly heard shot; going to the South
window in the bedroom she heard two more,
| saw Thomas fall in front of the small barn door
| and commence to crawl toward the house. As
| he moved painfully over the ground he called
| her name Maryi Maryl two or three times. She
| waited till he csme almost to the house, then
| took her shawl and as he entered the back door
| went from the front one and made her escape.
| She went to the house of Oscar Blaney, told
| him what had happened, then they both went
| back in his team to the house. They went
| slowly and cautiously tolthe house. On arriving
| at the BarroWs place going through the back
| door and the rooms, saw Thomas lying dead on
| the bed. They again went out, got into the
| team and went to her fathers; Mr.. Cook and
| Blaney started for Mr.. Rickerwell. she dressed
her mother and they followed. They came
| into the house; she suggested sending for Eph-
| rain Spinney and the rest is known to you.
| After the work was finished Mrs. Barrows
| got supper for them at 2.30 a. m. After the
| supper Mrs. Barrows asked him whether he
| was going to call it suicide or temporary nsan-
| ity. His answer was that he did not know but
| would determine on the following day. An of
| fer on his part to see about the funeral was at
| that time rejected by Mrs. Barrows but after
ward accepted. He examined the ground over
| which Mrs Barrows said her husband had
| orawled, but found no blood. He went home
| and came again the next day. This time he
| left his horse at the stable and on examination
found bullet hole in the small door under the
| shed which had penetrated it diagonalIy. He
also noticed washing on the line and asked for
| the clothes he had taken from MIR. Barrows;
| they were given him and he had kept them
since. lThe clothes were produced in court
| and caused much excitement; they bore the
| holes left by the bullets and were stained with
blood They were of cheap qualityand were torn
| and ragged. The pants had bsen slit opoR the en-.
tire length on the inside of the left leg and the
| drawers IS well. One boot was produced with
two bullet holes in it.
The clothes were offered in evidencs.