Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-06-02

| few days ago the court OF Appeals ueclueu
| point in the case against Mrs. Rawson, init
mating in she decision that Rawson's charge
were sustained by sufficient evidence to Civ
them a color of truth, and Mrs. Rawson, who
has naturally taken very much to heart tin
attacks on her good name-which were thu
| cause of her sons murderous assault on Raw
| son-was apparently driven nearly distracted
| by the appellate courts decision. All thi
eliminated in the state of mind which pro
4 duced the sensation which is the subject Of
|, this dispatch
Yesterday morning the divorce case wa
to have come up in Judge Jamieson's court
room and Mr.. Henry c. Whitney, counse
| for Mr.. Rawson, was on hand at the hour
| while Messrs Stiles, Black, and Payne, Of
/ Mrs Rawsons counsel were delayed. Mr.
| Whitney, remarking that he could wait
| picked up a newspaper, and seating himself
began reading. He had not sat there long
| when, to the surprise of everybody, he
| jumped from the chair, crouched down, and
made for the clerks desk, under which he
| hurredly tried to crawl. The cause of his
| strange act was not apparent at the moment,
and those who saw him supposed that he had
| been taken with fit. They were not left
| long in suspense, however, for like a
| flash Mrs Rawson, who had entered
| the courtroom minute or two be-
| fore, was through the little gate that
separates the bailiffs desk from that
portion of the court used by the members of
the bar, and drawing 3S-caliber five-cham-
| bered Smith a. Wesson revolver from be-
meath the folds of her dress, she began firing
| away at the crouching lawyer, and never
stopped until she had emptied it. The first
| shot fired struck the post of the banister
leading up to the bench. This was fired as
the victim was making toward his place of
refuge. Then the shooter wheeled round and
| fired four shots at him as he disappeared be.
meath the desk One of them plowed fur
row in the mahogany top of the clerks desk
another went through the pigeon holes of the
desk, and the other two went through the
victims body.
The noise made by the first discharge re.
vealed to BailtP Sutherland what was up
He was out in the courtroom at the time, but
not a great distance off, and he Immediately
rushed toward the enraged woman and flung
his arms around her. so as to pinion hers to
her side John Reich, the clerk of the court,
who had been barely missed by one of the
bullets, sprang to Sutherland's assistance and
the pistol was wrenched from the womans
hand and she was forced into a seat the
Judge ordering her under arrest for contempt
of court
Meantime, the officers of the court not
otherwise employed went to the assistance Of
the PROSTATE attorney. He was carried into
the chambers in the rear, and DR.. Ed
mund Andrews was hastily summoned, and
at once made as careful an examination as
possible of the wounded man. 1t was found
that one of the balls had passed clear through
his groin, entering behind and coming out in
front The other passed through his left
thigh, very near to the main artery, and SO
close to it as to make the danger from blood
poisoning very great
After the wounds had been dressed Mr..
Whitney lay for some time resting on the
lounge in the room. A stretcher was taken
to the room with the intention of carrying
him downstairs, but, to the surprise of
everybody, he got up ana walked erect to the
elevators, half the length of the court house
building, and from the elevators again to the
street, where carriage was waiting to con
vey him to his home
While the wounded lawyer was being cared
for the court was disposing of the misguided
woman. Deputy Sheriff Morgan was
in charge of her and Judge
Jameson, as the severest sentence
he could then impose upon her entered an or.
der that "the said Meckie L. Rawson be ad,
judged guilty of contempt of this court, and
that she be removed at once to the Cook
county jail where she will be detained for q
term of sixty days"
The big deputy sheriff led the handsome
bankers wife out Of court and in company
with Chief Deputy Gleason drove her rapidly
over to the Jail in closed carriage When
the once dashing society woman found her
self on the way to the common Jail between
two law officers her spirit broke completely
down. She burst into tears and sobbed hys.
tercaliy.
"Oh, take me to my child, my little daugh
ter" she said, piteously; "bring me to the
convent where my little Dot is locked up
But know you WON'T" she continued. "YoA
are like all the rest Ali Rawson's money
is crushing me, and l can't get Justice This
cursed money is destroying my character and
running my little girl for life"
She complained that she had not slept for
week, and begged for physician to give beI
an opiate, and the prison doctor was soon on
hand and administered stimulants and tonics.
The unfortunate woman's counsel were ad
mitted and had brief interview with her,
but no one else was permitted to see her and
her attorneys would not say what passed be
tween their client and themselves.
Mrs Rawson's son Is confined in the same
building serving out a seventeen months
sentence for shooting his step-father, Raw
son, and when told of his mothers crime
said he was shocked, but Whitney deserved it,
as he had bounded his mother TO the verge of
insanity, conspiring to run her reputation by
means of per jured testimony.
LATER,-A closer examination of Mr..
Whitney shows that but one bullet struck
him 1t is in the fleshy part of the right leg,
about two inches below the groin. 1t came
very nearly being fatal wound, but the
bullet had passed about an inch away from
the main artery, and did rot travel near the
bone. 1t came clear through the leg and
passed out that no probing was found
nece isary. While tho wound is exceedingly |
painful and will take some time to heal, it is |
not regarded serious, unless Inflammation or
blood poisoning should set in, which is not
deemed probable.
Mr.. Whitney says he had been looking for |
something OF the kind, as Mrs. Rawson had
threatened to kill him Whatever he had
done in the case as attorney he had done in |
good faith for his friend and client, Mr., |
Rawson, and he simply regarded Mrs. Raw
son as a dangerous woman, who should not
be allowed to run at large, as she was liable,
when set free, to shoot Mr.. Rawson, or some
other of his attorneys.
Mrs. Rawson's lawyers are rather severe
on the methods of prosecution of Banker
Rawson's case. Lawyer Payne declares that
his client is an outraged woman, whose at
tempt on Whitney is only an effort to avenge
shameful injury.
Nobody can deplore more than do said
Mr.. Payne, ''the unfortunate occurrence of
the day. but am justified in saying that no
woman had more just cause of quarrel
against a man who scarcely deserves the
name than Mrs. Rawson had against MIR.
Whitney"
Il is but just to say, however, that Mr..
Whitney stands high in his profession and in