Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1888-06-06
THE MURDER TRIAL.
PRACTICALLY NOTHING DONR AT WILLS
BURG, YESTERDAY.
The Morning Wasted Through Absence Of Counsel,
and he Afternoon IN Fixing up a
Motion or 3 Continuance.

VI AAo @AeAAAA6r
The gentleman accosted FASTENED to assure
his reckless and indiscreet friend with the
ineipient Judgment that he was way of in
his surmise, and the man with the roll and
the absence of sense enough to keep away
from card-sharpers walked of, mutteriDg,
'wsll, l thought they was gamblers, they
wear such good clothes"
This incident of life IS we find it in the
small town, is set down Is the one thing
of interest during the morning hours.
because, the pTeliminaries in the trial
of Van B. Baker, expected TO be
inaugurated before Judge Jacob at the
opening Of Court, vera not in fact COM
msnee until 2 o'clock in the afternoon,
and nothing was done even then. This
delay was caused primarily by the absence
of . majority Of the counsel for the State,
and secondly, by motion for q contiu-
anee. Hon. John A. Hutchinson, the
heavyweight in the ranks Of the prosecu-
ton, did not leave Parkersburg until
O'Clock yesterday morning, and Prescott
ing Attorney Hut, of Hancock, and Hon.
John McSWeeney, Of Wooster, D., did not
reach Wellsburg until about an honr be-
fore noon.
Judge Jacob opened Court ut the usual
hour, and after dispOsing Of some current
matters oflegAl business Of mo particular inn
portAnee. called the case Of the State v.
Van B. Baker, and instructed Sheriff
Brown to bring the defendant into Court.
In few moments Baker appeared, looking
particularly well, and after bowling to the
newspaper men and looking curiously
about the room, engaged in consultation
with his counsel.
The crowd in the Court room was very
large, all the space outside the railing be-
ing filed with interested spectators who
listened with absorbing interest while the
uninteresting legal details inel5ent to the
transfer Of the cause from the Circuit
Court Of Hancock were gone through with.
Aus hAaAecA o2AolkutcLCu OuAP tuC SouAl
announced its readiness to proceed with the
cause, whereupon Mr.. Brown, of
Pittsburg, Of counsel for the
State, called the attention of
the Court to the absence of his eo-counsel,
and asked that q delay until two o'clock
be granted, to admit of the arrival of
Messrs. Hutchinson, MeSweeney and HUFF,
who were expected by the first train.
Counsel for the defense said they were per.
fectly willing TO eoncede to the delay, but
incidentally stated that they were ready to
proceed with the case at once. The Court
was reluctant to admit of any delay, but
under the circumstances consented to an
adjournment until half-past one, at which
time the process of securing jury was to
be commenced.
Before adjourning, counsel for the de-
tense made q formal demand for bill Of
particulars from the State, alleging the
facts set forth in the indictment were in
sufficient, but later this was withdrawn,
they resting upon their demurrer and
the plea Of not guilty heretofore
entered in the case. Just before l0o'clOck
Baker Was remsnded to jail, and the Court
adjourned until l:3O p. m, by which hour
it was expected Mr.. Hutchinson and the
other absent legal gentlemen would be
present.
When Court reassembled it was found Mr.
Hutchinson was still absent, but despite a
request from his co-counsel the Court de-
termined to proceed. Mr.. Huff, for the
State, reluctantly announced his readiness,
bot Mr.. Braddock, for TIE defense, said he
had learned the witnesses from Ohio, who
had testified for the defense in the first
trial, had refused to again come into Court,
and he asked counsel for the State to allow
then to use q transcript Of the testimony
given by such witnesses ut the New
Cumberland trial. Before agreeing to
this, the State asked to be fur
nished with list of such
witnesses. While the list was being pre-
pared, the foreign attorneys were formally
admitted TO practice in the Brooke Circuit
Court, on motion of Mr.. HUFF. This done,
Mr.. HUFF announced the State was unwill-
ing to admit the transcript Of the New
Cumberland evidence, requested by the
defense. Mr.. BraddOck exprt ssed his sor-
row at this decision, rs it was absolutely
impossible to compel the attendance Of
the people in question, and if their affida-
Wits were taken they would be virtually
the same as though transcript OF the
former evidence was allowed. Mr.. Cook,
for the defense, assured the Court that due
diligence had been used in the endeayor to
obtain the attendance of the Ohio wit
nesses, but he faneied the reluctance Of
the people in question to come over and
spend 3 number Of days in Wellsburg,
was largely owing to the fact that
they would have to come at their own
expense. He explained that in Ohio
the State paid the expenses Of the wit.
nesses on both sides. This practice did
not obtain in West Virginia, and the
defendant was not financially able to
pay the expenses consequent on the
attendance of the witnesses. He said
the only recourse the defense mad,
would be TO formally apply for
a continuance, to enable them to get an
opportunity to take the dispositions. This
matter was discussed at considerable
length, by counsel upon both sides, Mr..
Brown, for the State, holding that the
transcripts asked foe would not be Rdmis-
sible on the part of the defense for the rea-
son that they were very largely antsgonistic
to the prisoner, and might in the future
afford grounds for writ Of error, based
upon the fact hat counsel could not bind
their client Finally the Stste'peremptorily
refused to admit the transcripts of the evil
dence of the Ohio witnesses, and the de-
tense announced they would at once prepare
a motion for q continuance After consul
tation, however, Col. Arnett asked coun-
sci for the State whether they would &C
eept service, and aid the defense in obtain
ing the dispositions during the progress of
tine trial. The State did not think such
an arrangement could be satisfactorily
carried out, in reply to which Mr.. Brad
dock said the defense was making the re-
quest, and was the only one which could
possibly suffer if the dispositions were i'm
perfectly taken. The State persisted in
however, pending the arrival of
Mr. Hutchinson, and the Court promising
indulgence In the shape of further delay,
matters were temporarily suspended.
About half-past two Mr.. Hutchinson came
into the Court House, having just slighted
from the train from this city, and be at
once entered into q consultation with
bis co-eounsel upon the PROPOSE
ton made by the defense. This over, Mr..
Hutchinson addressed the Court, declining
the proposition. The defence then asked
and obtained leave to withdraw for the
purpose Of preparing an application for
and tha crowd drifted ont of