The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-10-25

WeSner threw his hand toward his pock-
| et and Brown retreated before the first
| shot was fired a step or two, and that
| Wesner was adv ancing on Brown be-
/ fore the first shot: that Brown kept back
| ing and Wesner kept pursuing, and that
| the second shot was fired after Brown
had retreated some few feet, and that
| Wesner pursued and fell on top OF
| Brown"
| A question impeaching the witness Nc
| Ininch was asked Attorney Clark of Dan
/ vile, to the effect that the witness Nc
| Ininch had told Clark q few days after
| the tragedy that Wesner threw his hand
| toward his breast when he said Me a
| coward?" before the first shot was fired.
The next witness was Z. S. Weddell,
/ deputy sheriff of Hendricks county. He
| testified that he was in the court room
| and saw both Brown and Wesner at the
time Of adjournment. Brown approached
| WeSner and said: Sam, will put my
| reputation against yours in Lebanon;
| that he saw the knife in the hands or
Mesner before the first shot; WesneF
| Brown, and pursued him after the shot"
The next witness was Attorney ,.
| Ralston.- Mr.. Ralston testified. in sub
stance TO the same facts as given by
the deputy sheriff. He saw the second
| shot, and saw WeSner with his hand
raised; saw the men fall together, and
| grabbed Wesner's right wrist and
wrenched the knife from his hand Wes-
ner had argued in his closing speech that
| no other man in Boone county would
make such statements as Brown had
| made, and that any other officer of the
| company would have permitted his right
arm to have been severed from his body
| before he would have made such state
| ments as Brown had made; that Brown
| had stated to Wesner in laughing
mood that his reputation was as good as
| Wesner's
1 Harvey vannuys was n juryman on
the trial; saw Wesner make an effort TO
get knife before the shots; recognized
| the knife when shown to him.
| Joseph Mechanic said that he had been
| working for a gravel road undertaken;
| said he saw Wesner on the streets OF
| Lebanon, and Wesner said to stranger
in his hearing, THAT he would win his
case, but Coly Brown, the. d. s. Of a
| b. would have to kill him before he
| let loose"
! William A. Dale of Haughville was the
4 next witness; talked with Wesner at the
Union depot at Indianapolis the 18th
| of May; Wesner was going to Danville;
/ Wesner said to him that he would get a
| S., 900 or $4,000 judgment or he would kill
Brown.
The defense expect to complete it's tes-
| timony early next week.
| LEBANON, Oct. 21.-Special-An the
| country people for miles around came
| into Lebanon this morning to hear the
/
/ stood at the entrance of the court room
| and almost blocked the entrance, so
much SO that when the judge called for
the sheriff to bring in the jury the
sheriff said:
IT will as soon as cam
Common old-fashioned Westinghouse
| benches served for the audience. Some
| filled the seats and then others stood on
| the back Of the benches. Ladies upset
| one of the benches. and they went down
| like house falling over. This created
| diversion. II would also seem that
/ such a place would be the poorest place
in the world to bring baby, but one
Of the good mothers Of Boone county
could not stay away from the court
room, and as papa would not stay away
/ either there was only one alternative,
so she brought the baby. and in spite Of
sheriff. bailiff or anybody else the baby
made his presence known. There have
| been about thirty-five witnesses exam
| ined up TO this date, and not single
| woman has been on the stand. 1t was
known to The Sentinel reporter last
/ evening that Mr.. Brown would take the
/ stand in his own defense this morning.
| His attorneys did not let il be known
| last night to Mr.. Brown that he would
/ be called this morning, in order that
| he might rest quietly and not be dis
turbed by apprehension of the trying
| ordeal he was to pass through.
Mr.. Duncan called out as the first wit
| ness this morning, James G. Brown
The audience and jury were at once
interested, the Wesner family looked up
| and gazed steadily at Mr.. Brown as he
calmly, with toothpick in his mouth,
| walked over and sat down In the wit
| ness chair. Browns handsome, young
| looking wife appeared vlsibly agitated.
Mr.. Brown was perfectly cool and col
lected.
He said He was forty six years old; had
4 III
| twenty years: said Wesner had threat
ened TO kill him last February; that he
| knew Wesner always went armed; that
| Wesner told him one time that knife
/ was a better weapon and more deadly
| one than a revolver: that he had seen
| Wesner at one time throw knife at a
mark on tree; that Wesner had come
| into his store one day some time ago
| TO whet his dirk on witnesses milestone;
Wesner weighed about two hundred and
ten pounds; had his revolver for several
| years: that the loads in IL at the time
| of the tragedy had been in the revolver
| over two years: that one shot had been
fired out; last April he had cleaned the
revolver; always carried revolver in front
| trousers pocket: Wesner had been eX-
ceptionally friendly 20 him at Danville
the day of the tragedy and two days
/ before: he approached the table Wesner
was at as he went out to his dinner
what, If anything. did you say to
him?"
II said, Sam, am glad that my reputa-
| ton at Lebanon is as good as yours; he
stepped around the table in front Of me
| and said, Cody Brown, you have got a
| pistol, g. d you draw it, and then
| Mr.. Winters stepped in and says:
"'Tut tut; no fussing'
| "AIr. Wesner then says, C d
| you draw your pistol and he throwed
| his hands up that way Indicating quick
/ heavy blow upon his chest as though a
! person, trying hurriedly to draw some
] thing from the inside coat pocket and
/ then he grabbed his knife and started
/ at me.
What did you do?"
| IT drew my pistol as quick as I could
| and ran back from him, and l fired as /
/ ran, and as ran back he followed me
| with his knife I'm his hand; he drew
j his knife with the scabbard on It; after
\ / fired the first shot retreated as fast
1 as 1 could run backwards, and he fol-
4 lowed me Just as fast as he could run
| with his arm drawn up and coming at
1 me; the second shot was fired just as
\ we were north of the judges stand, and
! when 1 was running backwards and
| stumbled running backwards; 1 fell
and Wesner fell on top Of me; l got. up
4 in some way: 1 shot Wesner because
| he was trying 10 kill me; at the time 1
| drew my pistol Wesner was trying to
| draw his knife or rather to get the scab-
| bard off his knife.
| When asked in cross-eXanlination
whether Mr.. Wesner merely had his