The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-10-23
PROVO.
SUNDAY.
oct. %. 1896
THE DAVIS MURDER CASE.
The Trial Regun-Which Draws Larg
Number TO the Court Room.

: The Trial Regun-Which Draws Large
Number to the Court Room.
In the First District court the case OF
Enoch Davis. charged with the murder of
his wife Louise in June last. came up for
trial. The court room Yas filed with
spectators. among whom were large
number Of ladies.
The case Is OF more than usual interest
In that it was a most horrible and fiendish
murder coupled with the fact that the body
OF the murdered woman was found in the
cellar under the little house where the
family resided by two of the sons. In pre-
Renting the case 10 the court to-day MIR.
Zane, prosecuting attorney, brought tears
t. the eyes OF all assem- led, even the de-
PENDANT was overcome, as he depicted the
murder to the court and jury and stated
what the territory would prove.
Davis and his wife had been married
twenty-five years and a family of nine
children had been born them. The evil
oence thus far adduced has been from the
liitle molherless children, which in brief is
&c follows:
On the night of June 5th, last, which
was Sunday. Mrs. Davis retired TO her bed
In the little one-roomed house, near Ash
ley, where the family lived, the husband
sleeping on the floor. Above the bed in
which Louise slept hung revolver. Dur
ing the night above mentioned she was
struck on the head with the revolver, her
skull crushed, and the Imprint thereof left
on her head, as appeared from an exam
ination made later on.
The following morning Mrs. Davis did
NOT make her appearance, and the nine
little children upon awakening discovered
their mother gone and a blanket upon the
floor stained with fresh blood. The father
ia answer to the question as to where
their mother was, said she mad arisen in
the night and committed suicide by taking
poison. Later on he went out into the
yard, raked up all the refuse and dumped
it in a potato hole, which on the Saturday
previous ne had cleaned out and dug
deeper and spread chips over the top.
h fter doing this he went 10 Ashley and
began drinking heavily and on his return
home told the children be was sick, gave
way to grief, refused 10 eat and finally said
their mother was dead aud that he had
buried her in Cartsin's pasture. That
their mothers last request was to be
buried properly and that he had endeaV-
ored TO do so.
Theodore, one of the children who heard
the story, at once went to Ashley in
formed his brother William of it and they
LekUTuCG uDluC ~ 4ufCellE VI Au6lT
way they met their father with one of
their little brothers, and the father tried to
induce them to write letter, initiating
their mothers writing, and say she had
suicided. for il any suspicion rested upon
him he might swing from the gallows.
This they declined to do.
The two boys then sought the sheriff and
other officials which alarmed Davis. who
said his wife was not dead aud promised to
bring her back. The boys. however, re-
turned home. and upon examining the eel
lar they discovered the body OF their
mother under some loose dirt, clad in
night-dress and with her head crushed.
They carried the remains out and into the
house and sent for DR.. Collins.
An examination of the house disclosed
grnny sack IN which we're pillow case,
sheet and a shoe covered with clotted
blood Several other minor matters were
brought out in the evidence tending to
show conclusively that Davis cruelty mur-
dered his wife. The feeling is intense
against him. The trial will be concluded
next week, and every thing tends to show
that he will be found guilty Of the murder.