New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-11-22
IN BEHALF OF COUGHLIN.
EXTRAORDINARY EFFORTS TO ESTABLISH
AN AI.IBI FOR HIM!

THAT THE WHITE HORSE WAS
ePECKLED GRAY FRANK WOOD.
RUFF OUT WITH NEW
CONFESSION.
TBr rELEGRAPH TRIBUSE.l
Chicago, Nov PA peculiar incident occurred Just
before the opening OF the Cronin trial this morning
Judge Mcconnell called to his desk Mr.. Forrest OK
the defence and the States Attorney and Mr. Mills, OF
the prosecution aud stated that he had information
which he thought he should in justice impart stimuli
taneOusly to both Sides The Judge then stated that
just as he about 10 enter the courtroom thls
mo Ming he was met at the door by man who IN
trodr' ed himself J. S. Martin" Mr. Martin sald
that he mad knowledge Of great value TO one OF the
defendants In the Cronln case. Dam Coughln lie
did not want 10 be mixed up in the Cronin case in
any way, he said and for that reason had not spoken
to any one of what he knew. At this stage OF the
case though his conscience would not let him rest.
He acted only in the interest of justice. he said and
not knowing just what to do, he concluded 10 see
Judge Mcconnell His story was that ne had seen
DAM Coughlin between and 10 o'clock on the
night of May A. in the Chicago-ave police station.
This communication an important one and Mr..
Forrest at once announced that he would subpoena
Mr. Martin as a witness for the prosecution. The
story II true cOrrObOrates the testimony of Ofhcer
Mcdonald who swore that he Coughlin enter the
| ChcagO-ave station about 8 O'Clock that nighC ana
D
covery of this created great excitement among
| the counsel of both sides The States Attorney and
his assistants however, while admitting the I'M
portance Of Martins prospective testimony, Insist
that the whole proceedings to-day are only part OF
a neatly contrved scheme of the defence. Most OF
the witnesses whose testimony has tended TO establish
an alibi for the prisoners have been embarrassed IN
cro,s-examination by the question why they we're so
late in coming to the front with their Information
and the prosecution think that the apparent reluctance
Of MI Martin in conscienOusly mparting his iiorna
ton first to the Judge part OF scheme 10 create
deep impression upon the jury.
patrick Oman. livery stable keeper and owner Oh
tba famous white horse was the first witness to-day.
He testified that his horse in dime museum IN
This CITY, and had been for three weeks This he sad
was the same horse that he had let COuGlh lrlehu
have on the evening of the murder Ihen LOUIS
Budenbender. Of Hoboken n. j., was called 10 the
Witness chair lie testified that he was real estate
arcut that he had lived in HebOken for t"enty-hme
years, with the exception Of the period between
| Aurust o 1873 and May II. 1850. when he lived IN
Cblcaro During that time he lived near the windsor
Theatre In fat in which DR.. Cronin lived Win the
Conldins on The evening Of the murder the Witness
WAS in Jeckers cigar store, opposite DR. Crohih
bou,e lie was positive that he was In Inc cigar
store at : o'clock and may have remained there until
+, or 9 O'Clock After ne had been there fe"
minutes he noticed the horse and buggy in front
n Dr Cronin's Office 10 ordinary sdebar
/
! buggy and had the top up
what was the color of that horse asked the
! lawyer.
II was gray: a speckled gray with dark legs
| The Morse which yesterday at the dime museum
was not the horse that drove Dr. Olohih away ""u
did not resemble it,
DR. Marshall D. Ewell, Dr. Harold NJ. Mayer and
Dr Lester Curtis mlcroscopists, testified that 1t was
mpos,ible 10 distinguish human hair from the Other
hair hy means of the microscope
| Tho connection of Frank Woodruff with the Cronin
| case Ia, always been ystery % the polce Right
after the disappearance Of DR., Cronin, when every
detective in Chicago looking for the white horse
with which the physician was driven TO hi' death
Woodruff was found trying 10 sell white horse at a
ridiculously small price. Some Of Captain ODon
ners men at the Twelfth Street Police station think
ing that the horse had been stoen arrested woodruff
Nothing was said to him about the Cronn case, and II
did not occur the officers to connect their prisoner
with 1t until he spoke of it himself At that time
he told enough about the disappearance of the Doctor
the finding Of the bloody trunk and other things
to satisfy every detective in the city that he knew more
about the case than outsider could, and 1t was
with con siderable avidlty that they listened TO his
various statements duplicating himself in the trans
action. The Journal" this afternoon explains all
| this in long interview with Woodruff In this
article It is stated that Woodruff, for money, un-
| knowingly, played an important part I'm the con
spracy In accordance with it. he stole white
horse from Dinans stable in full expectation that he
would be arrested and questioned about the murder.
| Then he was to pretend to break down and tell
his story. Contrary TO his expectation, the police
didn't seem TO connect his white horse with the
Cronin affair, and Woodruff had TO ac:
cuso himself OF completely in It, The
idea was that with the total disappear
ance of the doctor, Woodruf's tale about the woman
in the trunk would confirm the theory that Cronln
ran away because he had caused the death OF some
female patient. Then II arranged that IN due
time trace OF him should be found IA England. The
report of DR.. CrUnins appearance in Toronto a
/ link in the chain one end of which began with his
disappear from n cago and Woodruf's story.
The other end 10 have reached the banks Of the
Thames. The finding Of the remains I'm this city
alone prevented the welding of these links into a
perfect whole.
Who tod you to tel this wild story about the
statesl. man and the woman's body - Woodruff
Was asked.
1T was Dan Coughlin," was the answer But
mind you. my statement was mixture OF truth and
Of romance. Dan Coughlin came 10 see me at the
| 1Wefth-st. statOn.'
| What did he nave TO say ?"
! IN tell that to Longenecker when tell him the
| rest II he ever wants me under OATH replied Wood
ruff determincdly
| Are you going to be witness in rebutiall"
- Woodruff hesitated. and for probably two niinuh,S
! wo',hed his words Finally he answered : 9 40"
these two dropped and, a sala ons b sf a
they Will give fory-eight hours ouisu, o,,, ", cor.
man they can trust viii give them plenty o,
r1bora We Trlof and place some Pmpamber Ps0p cronn
l"thc crr ennposcd 10 be shipped away 10 ma % WIS
ofere,l to find them, but The s,a,e s,a,e does nut
liar and wouldn't Try vrn n,e erms. doubt very much
vrbether r. that viii keep me, for my 'hfo"' "'A'~
be cut some akA@