Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1885-10-29

il; the other shovel was below jenkins hrt
q few feet.
Mr.. Hicks was recalled: Was presen'
when these experimental shots were made
a few days ago. Hero several large pieces
OF plotting paper containing bullet holei
produced by the firing OF a revolver OF said
pieces of paper from different distances
were introduced. This shot, fired from
distance OF three inches, set fire to the
paper; also this one from six inches; this
was fred from 10 inches; this from eight
feet, etc.
Cross-examination: Don't know tina,
powder shots will vary when firedfrom the
same distances; am no expert.
Redirect: We shot these holes against
the wind.
Mr.. Holland: Was present when these
experiments were made and when Mr..
Hicks made his statements concerning the
same: know his statements to be true.
Mr.. Fitzgerald was also called and made
q similar statement.
The District Attorney, being duly sworn.
said the papers had been In his possession
since the time they were perforated and
burned, and that they were just as he got
them.
Characterization: I had these papers
| made, and consulted none OF the opposing
counsel.
DR.. Thoma, being duly sworn. said:
| Am a practicing physician here in Eureka;
| Am a graduate of Albany College, New
York; will have been a physician and sur.
geon q years in December next; my first
practice was in the United States Army;
afterwards in Hamilton, Nov, aud other
towns; am now engaged in the practice OF
medicine; knew Joe Dean in his lifetime;
II raada an o,ttopay on tho ha6U nf DAM
DIR. Hagar assisted me; 1t was held at Mr..
Deans ranch near his house; several gen.
tlemen were present; 1t was on the morn
ing of the 8th Of October last; in making
the autopsy, after the body was raised, we
placed il upon a PLATFORM; we removed
the grave clothes from his body down be-
low his hips; then we We've the surface
OF the body; we found certain wounds;
one wound was on the upper third OF the
left arm; The point Of exit was on the
right breast just above the right nipple;
VIC found another wound on the left side of
the body left Of the breast zone and enter
ing the cavity OF the chest; 1t was between
the first and second ribs; / found O wound
then 10 the middle OF the left arm; it went
through the muscles over the bone; we
found another wound that went through
the forearm between the two bones; we
found another wound on the left side OF
his body, the ball lodging in the left side
OF the spinal column; saw no other evil
dences Of violence; We attempted to probe
the frat described wound; we thought the
ball had entered the cavity OF the chest,
but found it vent back and over the left
shoulder-blade; all the wounds were on
the left side; after probing it awhile and
finding where 1t went out, we probed the
second wound and found the probe dropped
down and q little across the body; the
wounds through the arm and forearm we
did not pay much attention to, for We
knew they did no particular harm; we
then probod the wound in the abdomen
and found that it had entered the sbdomen
without resistance, and that completed our
probing; we next proceeded to open the
body, as ia usual in postmortems, by max
ing an incision from the neck to the pubic
bone the whole length Of tho body; then /
made an incision across the body; then !
dissected the upper flaps aud exposed the
ribs of the whole chest; also. laid back the
flaps over the abdomen; We then removed
the breast-bone; in removing that we bad
some difficulty, aud had to use q saw
afterwards in enlarging the opening;
1 requested DR.. Hagar to examine
the ~viscers, which includes heart, etc. |
iAtiV0 lOAk NSoSA RstOh VI thO
OF the functions Of the body followed. In
looking over the interior Of the chest we
discovered no wound; then / told DR..
Hagsr to raise the v~iscers, and we would
examine tho course the probe took; there
WAS no other hole in the interior OF the
chest that we could discover; the doctor
detached the viscera from the spinal col
umn. and I said, Hold on, doctor. there
is a vessel wound" we both examined IL
and found 10 the vena cava; l then ran a
finger through this into the oracle OF the
heart; this was just down in the direction
OF the probe; there was no decomposition
of the veins; the cut was within an inch OF
the heart; the wound in the interior of the
vena cavs was such that / could lay my fin
ger in it; 1t looked as II q portion OF the
vein had been removed; blood veins resist
decomposition and alterations; we have no
doubt but that the wound found In the
vena cava was produced by the same bullet
that entered between the first and second
ribs; we then proceeded TO examine the alb
dominsl cavity, and found that 1t had en-
tered the fourth and lodged in the fifth
lombar vertebrae of the spinal column.
Here q description OF the spinal column
followed, and the ball extracted produced
by the doctor. We did not remove the
vertebrae, but there Is no doubt in my
mind that the bullet lodged where 1t was
pressed against the canal.
II was now l2;4J O'Clock, and q recess
was taken until 2 P. N.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
AT 2:l5 o'clock DR.. Thoma was recalled
to the stand. A human skeleton was
produced. and with 1t another explana-
tion of Deans wounds was made, the
course Of the bullets, etc. He continued:
The cutting OF The inferior vena oava
alone would have produced immediate
death; l have no doubt Of it; this vein.
carries over half OF the blood to the
heart. and 1t takes the blood only about 20
seconds 10 make the circuit of the entire
body; when the vein was cut the blood was
emptied into the cavity OF the chest; as
soon as that vein was cut ii did not, in my
| opinion. take over five minutes for q pint
OF blood to empty into the cavity Of the
chest; that would have produced fainting;
a small loss of blood often produces faint.
ing; the effect OF q bullet embedded in the
| fifth lumba vertebral bone would have