New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-09-25
THE DOCTORS TESTIFYlNG,
THE PosT.MoRTIM EXAMINATION ON BEN
WELLS BODY.
POINTS BROUGHT OUT FAVORABLE TO BlRcHALL
HOW LONG HAD THE MURDERED MAN
LAIN iN THE SWAMP,

HOW LONG HAD THE MURDERED MAN
LAIN IN THE swAMp,
Woodstock. Ont. sept 2A.-1he Birclall trial was
continued 10 day There tn" u>,al .rcat crowd =;
The Town hall entrance 10 hH prisoner pass His
wife ynd sister i'm law NOT present Mrs. Brclial
,,ing too nerve and i'll to stand the strain.
Or Taylor, the physician WHO called in 70 see
B.uwcn's body when II WAS fonnd in the swamp was
I'M first witnc>. lie testified tha; the clothing was
t,,z.n 10 the ground. In view Of the attempt which
;nc defence expected 10 make to prove that the
hodv cid lie in the sw:Gnp during the storm "f
ic5rusgy Il. the day when Bcnwcll kill d. DR..
Tayo~ was ninutcy examined a. to the condition of
IN. Lody. he >ad he believed that when found it
Lad lain les, than days in the swamp possibly
,o1r He demonstrated on the bead OF jurynan tie
votl, Of the pis,olshot wounds noticed the corpse
lie .ad that On Examining the pistol hot hole III Ben
wells ovccoat collar 4: believed that this would cor
r,pond, II the co!!G turned up. with the wound
and line %! sIngcd ~ It. Either of the two pistol
wounds, he said sufficient produce death
These 1t utterly impossible for the deceased man
10 have inflicted on bimscli.
Mr.. Backstock, counsel for the defence. elicited
from the witness that since the affair he had been
reading up on medical conditions " III reference 10
.orp,c>: that the Witness statements Of to day were
much fuller than any Ec had gwen before. Mr.
Bla, hstOck called the court Crier Of ab,nt the
height Of Ecnwcll. and. pat nlc the coat upon him.
slowed that only bv the coat being c\aCly Straight
and the victim with his face turned exactly !orwa,
.,aild tho wound be made he had stated. Mr.
ElackstOck called for sisteinSn. regarding ,h"
wound the scalp with rsaru IL whirh little had
been SAID This wound the doctor said. was not
noticed until the scalp WAS turned back. The wount
the scalp under the rO>tcrior section OF the
scalp as il was laid back under the di>>ecing knife
The hat by tlc murdered man Is crushed ont o
all resemblance i'll original shape. Mr.. Ela"kst"c
mint and If
omew hat "raitled." The people u Princeton en- to
have universally fixed the da,c Of the ALLEGED murder
Ly the ball at Dake's house. Mr. Kla,k>tock ca
pressed an earnest hope tn,, III" doctor wa not al
hi, ball. and the doctor. with It smile, admitted thdt
h. not
In reply TO questions bv Nj. O>lcr Crown counsel
The doctor said the wound on the scalp was >iir' anu
nttle attention paid To IL
DR.. Wexford. Of WO d,toCk. law The body AT IN"
SwartI undertaking establishment lying on s'ic''Aer
re doctor corrobOrIted what ht> already been >u a.
10 the fozen scet in the sleeve ana the 'l"hs' III
dentatOIs in the ne(h and r.: w"rc hid' a. " 'n'
iodv had LAIN across hard substance and must have
IL ltin iIuIn bciur" tie time hru the >tfh>- ili
lowing death ,ct in. This stiffness in The bod! "i -
pey.ou dyins by violence would sct IN from '"o l"
jlrec hours after death.
There were ;wo OF three important points in the
70, examination in favor Cl the pi!''rci one was
mat while The rigor m"iti> set in Il fcw hours after
dc,th being complete in about four h"G~. i lrt>~u
AWAY again s:x or eight hours later. Anotncr was
,hat the shirt dean and sin a good deal more
limp when Nle BODY was thawcd cut than before VI
lii, Locking a. if /, had 10; long since been ~ n
drred Altogether the appearance Of the shirt do '''
indicate tha, the body had been out IN rdnso!ni
IN night still another p"'NA the dO,tors de
cided opinion, formed ~ time nc 81" 'he o'"!
,ha, !, L.d follcn j. >, ,>;inn In which ii va>
,orrd aud the, h,7cn ~ nat il had been thrown
~ placed in that position Il. Elach>tock brought
81 tha
also that there mark on the LEFT ies OF the
srswers the calf the iee nan strueh "e"'n'
ch-red stump and slight disc ODra ion OF The skin
r,u the cnrrc,p ,pondng locality. This does not seem
% have been noted by the du' tors at the time VI inc
,cue,t The witness ies,:.hed also that there was a
,,nup on the way from the ell, 4a>s TO the swami'
10 where the body WI. found. but ne c"uo l"' S'''
whether tie stump was chiricu or not
,f4r several important witnesses had testified Pro-
s...or Woolver,On who ha- charge Of the work IN inc
mc,eo,oloci,al observatory III Wood't~h JAN wa
called 10 testify TO the state Oi the weather y" 'o
,,y m question in TN, trial. Hi te:-iAiony went
show thai on February IL. the All" ~. HS Vi 'c
,,,rdcr The .emreraturc above rcczl'Is eur
jur Tn. DAYTIME and there were cl'Tids ana los 'n
The fo,low. day il rdiica ana the thcrnol UT s"'"'
. falling tendency. ~ It. H. on fcbruaT! l' VI"
,ne-monc,er was only shade over '"cNc u"-'ce
a,oys zero That night there wa> thunder a"n h-h'
..,uc toved iy ,lcct, which lasted nh'ii ai'c' mu
lint and the instrument showed precipitation. Inc
10Th vas cold the sky mainly ovct'a''' win >io"s
v1nd and drifting SHOW and at . a. H. on 'h' - -
when the body found, there were tu7" "'''u>
with drifting SHOW ,. .,.
20. was recalled and produced hi, rToN'r ana >'"'c'
,,., Il va, larger than Birchalr>. !Ic a-o rcc"eH ="
d. Elrcha!r, several letters. which were put III c,'
tcucc relating 10 the negotiations carFen on ~ "'
u,.oncr to induce pelly and Denwei! ~ come l" '"'
aaa. -,
rho Iudre refused TO rcrmi: the pr'-ecuion to cal!
tllIt
murdered mans clothes marked III The pace
h.re the bic, e, had Ucen out 81 Ike Clothes louu
The body. - .,
Mr. t.rigg the Princeton sexton, "a> cailed a' ''c
instance Of the defence. and "as Questioned d. " "
at.mpt 10 open the grave and steal Ben"ella booE
:, Ia o'clock on the "Wednesday night following 'ih
discovery Of the body he heard vehicle dilvc up anu
,urn toward The cemetery gate and Gathering over
,u, wooden BRIDE aco>, ditch dt 'hc oiuo vi nv
,". Wucn the ,cAtun raised window blind to loon
,ui The person, Ia the vehicle put Inc whip l" |'e
IT, uml !, iumucrnlan hviug at Princeton gave
Important testimony As 10 lirchul vi>it u IN ~ NO
io,e With others present. and in answer TO qu.'lm" 10
Gs TO Bcnwclrs haiti and the hhihcou he, al and n
%s,e ,@crc engaged in lSt hlirhsn ,sed that senMe
bhcd . sanc of cards and Like m">t hnsmun S',n"
TsS %rsA, r ..o aa 'n%"fy s & %% %a p;rss il
Niagara Fans and cnVsll had zone Wr' Gg GH' ,hG 'Gr he
would .tnp IN at Woodstock. and perhaps Paris on h'
Nay Ia, to looG for fam l,,r i, e hank at Niagara
Fails s. v related how Birchall came into tIc p.i, M
On February 81. lie said he wa, an apch, vi ~" 'n
british (;oycrrmen for buynr horses ~ aiana "iih
he might have some bu>ine>, IN the hitcu o'h.es
sss:. sS% ns s, %sf ncd"s Ms eleven SSs i s
ris point the Crown makes fl IN With n ,ne .n
nient Il Pcy that l'en"eii. INC murdered man, lid"
handful of snvcreigns with him. -
Mr lIcrser who owns the lot on which me ,I' swami mi
10 III srction OF the country often. He con
ndent Eirclal knew the locality YELL He admitted :,
have some English friends buy the farm, aud that he
Lad promised lrchall 800 II he would sell the farm
frequently seen Birchall about the locality Of the
swamp -.
chief Young. Of the Niagara police. testified tO the
arrest of I;rcha on February - lat. The man wa