Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-11-22
A WILLING WITNESS
Volunteers to Prove an Alibi for De-
tective Dan COughlin.
VERY CONTRADICTORY EVIDENCE
As to the Color of the Horse Which Carried
DR.. Cronin to
TIE SCENE OF TIE BRUTAL MURDER

CHICAGO, November H.-Just as Judgt
Mcconnell was about to enter the cour
room this morning be was met at the dool
by man who introduced himself as 81. S
Martin" Mr.. Martin said he had knowl
edge that was of value to one Of the defend
ants in the Cronin case-Dan Coughlin. HI
did not want to be mixed up in the Cronir
case in any way, he said, and for that reason
had not spoken before.
At this stage of the case, though, his con
science would not let him rest till he had re
lated what he knew. He had acted only il
the interests of justice, he said, and moi
knowing just what to do, concluded to SEE
Judge Mcconnell. His story was that he
had seen Dan Coughlin between 9 and II
o'clock on the night of MAY at the Chicago
avenue police station.
MAY BE IMPORTANT.
Before going on with the proceedings
Judge Mcconnell called the States Attorney
and Mr.. Forrest to the bench and informed
them what Martin had stated to him. Mar
tins story, If true, corroborates the testl-
mony Of Officer Mcdonald, who swore he
saw Coughlin enter the Chicago avenue
station about o'clock that night. Martin
viii probably be placed on the witness stand
tomorrow.
Patrick Dinan, livery stable keeper and
owner of the famous white horse, was the
first witness called to-day. He testified that
his horse was in dime museum in this city,
and had been for three weeks. This, he
said, was the same horse that he had let
Coughlin's friend have on the evening Of
the murder.
Louis Budenbender of Hoboken, n. J.,
was then called to the witness chair. He
stated that he saw Cronin leave the house
on the fatal night. He said: 81 saw DIR.
Cronin and another man come from the
house and start to the buggy. The driver
started for the horse while the doctor started
toward the buggy. There was some man on
the sidewalk, near the house, who called to
Dr. Cronin and attracted his attention, for
the doctor turned around but still kept 60
ing toward the buggy. Then the driver
went to the horses head and unhitched the
horse, went to the buggy and got in, and sat
on the west side; then DR.. Cronin got in; he
was talking to this man all the while, so it
seemed to me, but I could not hear any,
thing he said from that distance; then they
shifted their seats and this man got in front
of the doctor, and then they sat down and
went of.
THE COLOR OF THE HORSE.
The witness also testified that Dr. Cronin
had what appeared to be a small chest or
box which might have contained his instru-
ments or medicine. The witness was stand
ing in the door OF the cigar store looking at
the horse for about 10 minutes and saw it
before the men came down and all the Incl
dents of their departure.
"What was the color of that horse?'
asked the lawyer.
''It was gray; a speckled gray with dark
legs. The horse which l saw Yesterday at
the Dime Museum was not the horse that
drove DR.. Cronin away and did not re-
semble it. The horse l saw yesterday was a
white horse, but the horse I saw take DR..
Cronin away on the night of May was a
speckled gray. The legs of the horse that
took Dr.. Cronin away were dark, while the
legs Of this horse are white.
The croSs-examination of the witness was
then begun, and the first question asked the
witness, after ascertaining that he left Chi
cago May p, was whether the finding of the
body of DR.. Cronin had anything to do with
his departure. The witness said No." and
the counsel for the defense called upon the
Court to protect the witness from such ques-
tions. The witness said that he had known
DIR. Cronin bv sight for several months. He
could not say who pointed him out TO him.
He could not describe how the man was
dressed who was talking with DR.. Cronin
when he saw him.
SOME MEDICAL TESTIMONY.
Marshal D. Elwell, who took degree of
Doctor of Medicine at the Rush Medical
College, and who is now Professor of Law
in the Northwestern University at Evans
Ton. was the next witness He said he was
also D rector of the Bureau of MeteoroIogy, |
and had given lectures on the subject of |
microscopical examinations since 1884 He |
was fellow of the General Microscopical |
Society of London and various other So |
cieties in this country. To his knowledge |
there was, in the present state of science, no |
means by which human hair could be GER
tainly distinguished from any other hair.
and there is no way by which it can be
scientifically ascertained that two given
specimens of hair came from the same head. |
The witness also testified that there was no
difference In the structure OF the hair of diff
ferent people, and that the microscope was
of no service in the examination of the color
of hair, but that on the other hand it was
misleading. The testimony of this witness
was continued at length, and was of a decid-
ediy technical character.
As Budenbende, the witness who testified !
the horse, was leaving the court |
room he was summoned by the State to ap-
pear as a witness. Budenbender was very
much confused on eroSs-examination, and
made some contradictory statements.
ALL THE SAME WAY.
DR.. Harold NJ. Mayer, lecturer on phvsi-
ology at Rush Medical College and ex-
County Physician, was the next witness
His testimony was to the same general effect
rs that of DR.. Elwell. He was followed bv
DR.. Lester Curtis, a microscopicai expert
who has made special study of hair He
,orroborated the preceding witness as to the
of Distinguishing human hair
from all other hair, or determining that two
specimens of hair have come from the same |
head.
There is, he said, no known way of seien-
ifcally determining that certain ibers taken
rom q floor, for instance, mingled with |
blood, are fuzz or lunago from human
,ody. At the conclusion of his testimony
! -