Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-12-29

vKRDIcT-wHAT THE PRISONER SAYS.
In the little front room Of house No. 1725 E
street northwest lies to-day the dead body Of
the twenty-sixth victim of violence in this
District in the year 1888. 1t is the remains Of
James Payne, who was fatally stabbed last
Wednesday night by Dorsey Suber. To-day
Coroner Patterson held an inquest. The fol-
lowing jury was impaneled: A. Worch, Chas.
A. Rawlings, Chas. T. Moore, VIM. B. Crowley,
Dennis Ireland, and Jno. McGitton.
The first witness was Virginia Payne, the
mother of the deceased. She testified to hear
ing rumpus upstairs the night Of the 9th,
and on going up saw Dorsey Suber standing
over her daughter and quarreling with her.
She went to him and tried to get him away,
but could not. Her son. hearing the fuss,
came up and asked her daughter If she wanted
Dorsey in the room, and il she did not he
would see that he didn't come in there again.
She then described the difficulty.
cRoss-RxAMINED BY THE PRISONER
Dorsey Suber, the murderer, was present
and asked if he could ask few questions. The
coroner informed him that all questions must
come through him. The prisoner then asked
if Mrs. Payne had knife in her hand when she
came upstairs. Mrs. Payne answered that she
did have knife in her hand, but threw 1t down
when she came up.
Suber then asked if she shook her fist in his
face, but the coroner ruled against the ques-
ton as unimportant.
isn't it fact" asked Suber, ''that when
was ordered out Of the front room I left and
went to my own room in the back of the
house?"
Mrs. Payne answered that such was the case,
and that her son entered Payne's room after
she had told him what Dorsey had said to her.
Several Of the jury then asked the witness
questions, and she contradicted herself several
times.
PAYNE'S SISTER TESTIFIES.
The next witness was Mary Thornton, the
sister of Payne. Her testimony was similar to
that of her mother, with the exception that she
asserted that her brother was on the landing
when Dorsey left her room and raised his hand
to strike him; that he followed Dorsey up into
his room, where the fight occurred. Jane
Payne was then examined, but her testimony
was unimportant, as she was down stairs when
the fight took place.
DR.. Hartigan gave his testimony as to the
wounds. He found five stab wounds. one in
the left shoulder and the other four scattered
over the left side of his back. In his opinion
the man died of hemorrhage from those
wounds. There were some minor vessels
divided, but with proper surgical attention
there was no occasion for the man to die. The
knife with which the murder was committed
was produced and identified as Suber's.
THE VERDICT.
The room was then cleared and the jury went
over the testimony and arrived at the following
verdict: "That James Payne came to his death
at his residence, 1875 E street northwest, in the
city of Washington. District of Columbia, about
O'Clock p. m, December q. 1885, from hem
orrhage, the result of punctured wounds in the
body, inflicted with knife held in the hand of
Dorsey Suber."
WHAT sUBER SAYS.
In conversation with the prisoner, he told a
STAR reporter that the deed was done in self
defense; that Payne had him down on the bed
and was beating him, when he pulled his
pocket-knife from his pocket and stabbed him.
Seeing what he had done, he hurried for DOCTOR
Suber gave himself up at the third precinct
station this morning about $50 o'clock He
appeared with bandages about his head and
hands, he having been cut Mr.. Campbell Car
ringtOn has been retained by the prisoner