The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1885-11-26
ROBERT RUBIRTH
CONVICTED OF MURDER IN THE
SECOND DEGREE.
After Four Nights and Four
Days DeliDeratiOn. the Jury
Bring iii a Verdict, Fixing
Punishment at TWEEN
ty Years III the
Penitentiayy.

AT few minutes past nine o'clock
Yesterday morning the jury in the
Rablrth case, which had been deliber-
| ating since last Thursday evening.
| came into court and announced that
q verdict had been agreed upon. His
attorn' being already in court, the
-ISONER WAS SENT FOR.
| + II his arrival the jury was polled
aut. their verdict passed up to Dis
trict Clerk Hart, who read as follows:
we, the jury, find the defendant
guilty of murder in the second degree
and assess his punishment at confine-
ment in the penitentiary for twenty
| years"
SIS that your verdiet?" asked the
court.
cit is responded the jury.
| They were then discharged and the
prisoner remanded to jail. In all proc
ability his attorneys will move for a
ne N trial.
THE CRIME
| for which Robert Rubirth has been
tiled and convicted, was the shooting
Of young white hack driver, named
| WIN. Watford, on the night OF May
10Th or 9th. 1884, close to a house OF
Ill fame, on West Live Oak street.
GA June %. followiag. Watfofd died
J On the night OF the shooting, q
; crowd mostly blacks, were attracted to
a spot III the nelghborhood Of Metz
| Bros saloon, by the cries Of a coioreu
| woman whom one Fred Callahan ha0
! been beating. Rubirth was in that
crowd. Apprehendlng some violence
| toward him for his attack upon the
woman,
CALLAHAN SOUGHT REFUGE
| IN The house Of Laura Hall, a colored
woman, and barred the doors. The
crowd of colored men increased. and
being angered at the recital of the
treatment received by the woman as
saulted by Callahan, some talk of
| lynching him was INDUCED in.
| Shortly afterWard Watford ap-
! peared upon the scene, when
rush, as if to storm Laura
Halls, was made, and in the
confusion and excitment which en-
sued, Watford was knocked down,
and as he was getting up he w2s shot.
at the inquest which followed his
death, Watford's ante-mortem state
ment, take ia view of approaching
death, was read. Il Was as follows:
DYING STATEMENT.
The shooting occurred on the night
of May 26 or q, on Live Oak street,
IN the city of Austin, county Of Tray
Is, TeS as, l was shot by short, heavy
Set yellow man, a barber, on last
night; l had not given him any
cause for shooting me; the same man
that shot me called me to come to
i him, and when / walked toward him
some one else came up behind me and
knocked me down, and when l was
getting up, he, the barber, shot me-;
the man who shot me L recognized
this morning; the officer, Charles A.
Lauson, brought Robert Rubirth, the
prisoner who shot mt, before my bed
and L recognized him as the patty Igho
shot me; have made these d@clara-
tions voluntarily, and am not infu-
enced by any body to make these
statements; my mind is sane, and am
conscious of all which l have stated;
don't know who knocked me down.
ACTING CORONER TEGENER
being cross examined on Watford'S
statement, substantially said: Wat
ford lived eleven days after max
ing the above statement; he said he
had known the man who shot HIM,
for two years, and that he was the
same man brought before him by Of
ficer Lauson. The name of Rubirth
was suggested; he did not appear IN
der the influence OF narcotics, and DR..
Burt said he was not SO at the time:
know nothing as to his character as
regarding violence; do not remem-
Der that Watford was ever brought
before me upon charges Of violent as
sault, but his face seemed familiar
when l saw him that day; the records
OF the courts, if fact, will show it.
ROBERT KUBIRTH IS TIE MAN.
In the course of his testimony at
the inquest. Policeman Lauson, who
arrested Rubirth, stated that he took
Bob Rublrth, the defendant to the
house where the man (Watford) was
lying; went up to the bed and Wat
ford said. "He, Robert Rubirth, is the
man that shot me-" L again called
his attention to the man, Rubirth, and
he again said. "Y es" he is the man."
When 1 first went into the house l
did not hear any one say, Here
comes Robert Rubirth and a police
map. noW;" he was awake and said:
Yes, he is the man who shot me-" it
was not necessary to shake WatfoTd,
he was awake; said: BILLY is this
the man who shot you?" and he said:
eyes," he did not turn over after the
question, but looked at Rubirth; /
know the appearance Of man under
the influence of an opiate; Watford
did not appear in that condition.
EMMA WILLIAMS,
a colored woman, who assisted in
nursing Wattord until'he died, swore
that when Policeman Lauson brought
Rubirth around on the morning after
the shooting, Billy Watford
looked at him and said: Yes,
he sis the man." RGbirth said:
"Look again" And he looked again
and said: "Ye s, he is the man." He
looked at him as though he knew him
both times; do not know who was
there at that time; Watford looked at
Rubirth twice and both times recog.
niZed him as being the man who shot !
him. She swore she saw the shooting;
could not say who did it, but her de-
scription of the man fitted Rubirth
pretty well. On cross-examinatIon
she SWore that when WatfoTd entered
the house he said,
bob, THE BARBER, SHOT HIM"
Other testimony at the inquest Was |
corroborative of the foregoing; and at /
the preliminary trial before Justice /
Won Rosenberg the same, if not stron-
ge: train Of evidence was. webbed |
around Rubirth. At his final trial,
which ended with yesterdays verdict,
there was DO material change in the
facts related. His defense was an al
ibi, which, in the mind of the jury, he
f0
benefit OF some of the ablest counsel
in the Ian j, and every right guaran-
teed to any man on trial for his life. !,
William Watford, the murdered
man, was an Englishman by birth;
about twenty eight years of age, and
had resided in Austin about four
years.
ROUGH ON PAIN.
Cures collie, cramps, diqrrhea, ex-
fcF aches, pains, sprains,
1Ia e.. I