St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-01-16
FOR HIS LIFE.
August Oys OH Trial for the Murder
of Mark Norton.


of Mark Norton.
The trial of August Oys for the murder Of
Mark Norton commenced yesterday in the
district court. Considerable trouble was
experienced in getting jury. The attOr-
news for the prisoner exercised their perOg-
alive of peremptorily challenging quite
freely, and many who were examined con-
fessed TO having read newspaper accounts
that they thought had prejudiced their
Judgment. At noon the regular panel of
twenty-one jurors had been exhausted and
only three jurors had been obtained. A
special venlre Of forty was ordered, and at
o'clock the impanelng again proceeded.
the twelfth man being secured few min
utes after 4 O'Clock, when the following
jurors were sworn in: A. NJ. Greeley,
Joseph Hamilton. ii. VOgt. J. NJ. Gushing,
f. g. Gould, +. Webb, C.. F. McCausland,
G. p. Ranslaw, j. r. Jackson, II. Brent
well. T. b. Hawkins, ii. j. Bowman.
County Attorney +. +. Davis opened for
the state with an eloquent and well-tem-
pered statement OF what he expects to
prove. He dwelt with emphasis upon the
solemn responsibility Of jurors sitting on a
trial like this, and asked that they should
bring their best intelligence and most candid
judgment to bear upon the facts of the case.
western cooper shop. There had been some
little difficulty between Norton and some of
the other men. Norton had recently been
married, and his shopmates had been
plaguing him. On the morning of Dee.
Norton went to Oys' berth and accused him
of hiding his dinner pail; Oys denied 1t. and
Norton hit him once or twice in the face.
when Oys caught up a heavy mall and
struck Norton over the head, not once, but
three times. telling him to the floor and in
juring him so badly that he never spoke,
and died within few hours.
EXAMINATION OF EYE-wITNEssEs.
The first witness examined for the state
was Edward Jensen, whose berth was next
ito Oys in the cooper shop. He said he was
sitting Oh bench engaged in shaving hoops
when Norton went past him on run, and,
going to Oys berth, accused him Of hiding
dinner pail and making fool of him gener-
ally. OyS answered that he didn't know
anything about the pail, and that it was
some one else who had been foOling him.
Norton said threatening, ''Pll fix you" and
then Oys replied, You'd better get out of
my BERTH" whereupon Norton Struck him
in the face with his fist. OyS turned his
back and stepped aside. Norton caught
hold Of him with one hand and struck him
several blows with the other on the neck.
Oys caught up a climb mall and struck
Norton on the back of the neck. Norton
took one step forward and Oys hit him
again. this time on the back of the head,
and followed it up with another blow in the
same place, when Norton sank down on the
floor. The blows were delivered rapidly,
and not a word was spoken by either party
while they were being struck.
Christopher Christopherson. the next
writ oil hig oAf ion ftr.f Of
tracted to the row by hearing Oys order
Norton out of his berth. Norton struck
Oys in the face, and when the other turned
around TO go away, hit him in the neck.
OyS grabbed up mall and turning around
struck Norton on the back of the head.
Norton stepped back little and then Oys
hit him again. NortOn'S knees bent under
HIM, when Oys struck him third blow
which brought him to the floor. There
was an adj and knife within easy reach
which Oys might have used if he had
wished. When the cross-eXamination of
this witness had been concluded, Judge
Koon ordered court adjourned until this
morning, saying he thought probably the
case will be adjourned at noon until Mon
day.
The case is likely to prove an interesting
one, and is being very carefully tried. A
diagram showing the plan OF the shop, loca-
ton Of the different berths, ETC., was intro
duced, and the witnesses were required TO
point out the different points of the tragedy.
The chime mall is introduced in evidence
and proves to be hardwood club about the
size and shape of pOliceman's baton, only
somewhat thicker.
THE PRISONER
sits just back of his attorneys, Messrs. j.
G. WoralI and o. ID. Kinney. His APP
pearance is certainly in his favor. He is
neatly dressed and does not seem to be over
Is years old and has pleasant. intelligent
face BY his side sits his brother, also a
young man, and two lady friends. The
court room was crowded yesterday princi-
pally with residents of South Minneapolis.
Among whom are number of ladies who
are provided with seats inside the railing
The sympathy is evidently with the prisoner
who is spoken of as always having been
industrious and well-behaved. He was
born in Western Germany, Oct. 80, 1864
and came to this country in 1882, arriving
at Minneapolis in July of that year. Hi
brother is his only relative i'll the United
States, his parents, three brothers, and two
sisters still residing in Germany.