Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-01-20
The Poisoning Cases.

two fer assault and battery with intent 20
make sick.
The commonwealth seemed to make out
q strong case Friday. Every witness ex-
amined who had been sick at the mill or
was seized by the malady after leaving
there, testified TO similar symptoms; and
all the physicians who attended them
agreed that their illness was caused by ar
senical poisoning.
Through ali the evidence Mr.. Dempsey,
though he heard every word, kept his feel
ings well unde. control He spoke to his
counsel and made suggestions, and acted
more like an interested spectator than the
man on trial charged with fearful crime
His friends said his demeanor is that Of a
man with clear conscience and a feeling
that his innocence will be proven.
Comments by attorneys and the people
are to the effect that the commonwealth
has clearly proven the fact that poison was
administered with evil intent to the non
union men in the Homestead mill. 1t
stil remains to connect Hugh f. Dempsey
with the plot. The confessions of Patrick
Gallagher and J. NJ. Davidson are relied
on as the cementing link of evidence The
defense will assert thai those two witness
es are unreliable and will attempt an alibi
to disprove their stories.
Dempsey and Gallagher were much look
ed at By the crowds. The only time the
master workman's iace underwent a change
yesterday was when he glanced full at Gal
lagher with an expression ofintenSe loath-
ing. This angry glare was noted by many
persons. The selfconfessed pOisoner saw
it, too, and thereafter avoided meeting
Dempsey 5 eyes.
The absense of a woman among the hun
dreds Of listeners during the day was fact
noted by everyone. The smaller of the
criminal court rooms was uncOmfortably
packed. 4 priest was among the number
and his cloth was scant protection for his
body from the elbows Of the interested per
sons around him. There were also present
large number of physicians in addition to
those who gave testimony. The poisoning
charges have aroused much discussion in
the ranks of the medical profession.
Among the witnesses heard that day
were Geo ". Army, H. P. Johnston and
L H. Craig of Millerstown, this county.
and their physician, DIR. J. l.. Campbell
The men told of going to the mill, end OF
| coming home sick, and DR.. Campbell
gave his reasons for believing that they
were suffering from poisoning.
S. Il. Loveless of Butler. S. s., also
gave his experience, and told of his treat
ment by DR.. Bell.
Quite little excitement was caused in
the Court Room, Monday, when the name
of Patrick Gallagher was called Every
person in the court room strained his neck
To get q view of the man who first confessed
the plot. He stood his examination with
out flinchiug, told his story in a concise
manner and held strictly to it under most
| severe cross examination by Attorney Mar
| shall That gentleman seemed more than
| surprised at the manner in which Gallagh-
er answered his questions. So far Gallagh
er's statements have been corroburated in
every particular, and it is said that this is
only the beginning of the corrobOratlye ev-
idencc.
The court room was not well filled when
the court opened, but as the day wore on,
especially when Gallagher was put on the
stand, the space allotted for spectators was
by far too small to accommodate the eager
people who thronged the corridors of the
court house. The audience was made mp
mostly of WuTkingmen. Attorney Erwin
| the st. Paul lawyer, came iii during the
morning and listened TO the testimony.
The morning session began with the call
ing of j. o Nesbit. who testified that be
was at the VOLTS supper, and short time
after eating was taken with pains. He
didn't vomit much for four or five days.
Mrs J. o. Nesbit, Willie Johnston, John
Frank, Il. NJ. Rodgers, l.. A. Whitson and
Isaac Mcdonald testified to eating in the
mill restaurants and becoming very sick.
DIR E. n. Ksges, who treated Rodgers,
! said the symptoms We're those of cotton
oil poisoning Drs. E. Haworth and
A NJ Barton, who treated several of the
| witnesses, testified III the same strain.
Then Gallagher told the long story of his
dealings with Dempsey, a synopsis of
which we have already printed, and he
stood a searching cross examination with
out fiinching.
J. NJ. Davidson was called and he told
nearly the same story as Gallagher, ex
cepting that he tried to shield himself
more than Gallagher did. He said the
only powders he handled were the nine he
carried from Dempsey to Beatty.
George W. Grail. the Cecil alley dispatch
er of the Citizens Traction line, corrobor
ated Gallagher as to the way he got the SO
from Dempsey. He said Dempsey had
come into his Office and said:
Grail, if man comes here and asks il
left anything for him, give him this mon
ey." II did so and returned the receipt
to Dempsey. He said Dempsey was in a
hurry that day, and that it was not unusu-
al for him to leave things there TO be given
to some one else. He did so frequently,
| Mr.. Craii said.
L. NJ Meutzger, manager Of the District
| N ssenger office, corrobOrated Gallagher
IA to the message he sent To Dempsey after
| the story OF the poisoning had been pub
| lished. The Court made an order requir-
| ing him TO produce the original records of
| tie message, and To furnish the name of
the messenger boy. Manager J. ID. Flynn,
of the Western Union Telegraph office,
| will be called To day to cOrToborate the
statement about the telegram from Beatty
from Cincinnati relative to the TWO cooks,
and he will be required to furnish copy OF
4 the telegram.
| MIR. and mrs J. O. Nesbit John Frank,
and \. A. Whitten told of their illness.
and when II. N. Rodgers, of NiDeveh, was
| called tn give similar evidence, Attorney
| Porter questioned him as to who was pay
| ing his expenses while here. Judge Stowe
remarked significantly that il did not make
any difference who was paying bis expen-
ses; be is here at the instance of the com
| monwealth.
DR.. T F. Kluges, of Armagh, Indiana
county. said he had treated Rodgers, and
that he was suffering from crotOn OIL poi
soning.
Dr. E. B. Haworth. of Hazclwood, who
treated Whitten, said his trouble was eth
er caused By indigestion or by an irritant
poison.
DIR. Barton, of Homestead, said practi
cally the same thing about Isaac McDUn-
aid, whom he treated.
Tuesday the commonwealth closed its
case with rush and apparently clused up
every avenue by which the defense could
hope to pass along IN an attempt to aquit
the defendant. COrrObOrating and firmly
binding the testimony of about all of the
prosecutions witnesses was the testimony
given by Capt. L. Hunt, the chemist,
respecting his analysis in search Of poison.
Arsenic and croton oil, the pois0ns
which the district attorney has based his
cas- upon, were found by Capt Hunt, &C
cording to his testimony, and the common
wealth'S strong case was rested.
For the defense there were several wit
nesses placed upon the stand, but none of
the testimony Was directed against that of
the prosecution and no headway was made
at any point From the start made that
afternoon the line of defense would be that
. 1s.af of eli in nud