The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-08-16
MRS SHANN Festivities
The History of Her Sons
Sickness and Death Told
in Detail.
ALWAYS A KIND MOTHER
rhe Early Morning Visit of the
Three Men Who Mutilated
the Body.
Special to The Jer,e, city Ns,us.

Special to The Jerse, CITY Neacs.
TRENTON. Aug. 16. 1893. After rec ,ss
yesterday. the counsel for the de Tense
announced that DR.. w. w. L. Phillips,
their second expert. would not be able to
testify. owing to sickness. They recalled
Mrs. Mamie Kelly. who t estifisd the day
before. and after clicking some unimport.
ant testimony, went into earnest con-
sultation for some minutes. Il was then
agreed to put the defendant on the stand.
MRS. sHANN ON THE STAND.
Mrs. Shaun refreshed herself by drink-
Ing a tumble of ice water, then aross
aud WAS sworn by County Clerk Gum
mere. She walked slowly TO the witness
chair, aud after getting into it she covered
her face with her hands, because OF the
embarrassment of facing the immense
gathering of people before her. Sue said
she was born in 1S46. two miles above
princeton and had spent her enLire life IN
Princeton and the vicinity. She was
married December 26. 1865. There was a
slight tremor i'll her voice when she gave
the date OF the death of her husband,
Frederick Sham. which WAS November 5.
1892. She was obliged to repeat it SO that
the jury could hear it.
Her five children are Harry, Hugh aud
Mary. all married, Jonn and Mabel.
John was employed by Contractor Whey
lan on the new Princeton Commence
ment Hall. The family were attendants
at tha Episcopal CHURCH at Princeton.
During the Christmas holidays Jonn
went 10 Trenton with Jim F:tzpatrlck.
She saw him start aud he returned about
five o'clock on either Wednesday or
Thursday morning following. She had
just got up when he came into the house.
II was a very cold day. On tho 18Th of
January he complained of sickness. His
eyes were sore and he had mucn distress
In the back. She gave him 81 and told
him to see DR.. Bergen and get medicine.
hen Mrs. Shaun went into the details OF
Johns sickness, describing The various
changes and the character OF the medt-
cine that was given to him.
URGED A CONSULTING PHYSICIAN.
When Informed Of mis- affection she
urged that u consulting physician be
called, but DIR. Bergen said he did not
think 1t was necessary. she continued to
urge him and finally on Sunday before he
died DIR. Lyle was brought Co the mouse.
The antiseptic tablets, she SAID, had been
used during her husbands sickness, he
having died of typhoid fever, and also
for Hugh Shann's wife when she was
sick with fever.
DR.. Bergen told her to use them, and il
she could not ind the box he would
write q prescription for them. The box
was found at Hugh Shann's house in the
country and brought in. She then de-
scribed the uses to which she put the
tablets.
She was then asked pointedly whether
she had ever dissolved them iu water d
given them to John. She answered no.
She frequently slept In the same bed
with ham. was constant in attendance
with him.
PRAYERS IN THE SICK ROOM
She frequently read to him from her
prayer book aud Bible at Johu's own re-
quest. She often prayed with him, aud
several times the rector of their church
held short services in the sick room. a I
which she was always present. There
were always more or less callers at the
house. SUI denied the story told by tue
colored woman, Carrie Pyatt, that John
said that she was too lazy to cook his
eggs.
She said she DISCHARGED Carrie last
October for being impertinent TO Mrs.
Kelly. The medicine was given to John
In capsules, because he had seen Mabel
taking medicine containing iron in tntt
way.
Mrs. Sham was asked to identify soma
writing upon the physicians hart which
had been left in the sick room, aud ut
that point the court adjourned That she
might look them over in the interval and
Us prepAT6Q " t0Sbity b1lt IIoruiu&s
THIS MORNINGS PROCEEDINGS.
Before the witnesses were called in the
Sham murder trial this morning. Capt.
Holt read in open court the evidence of
Mrs. Kate E. Stryker which was taken
at her home In Princeton last night.
Mrs. Stryker in an invalid. She testified
that she heard the doorbell at
Mrs. Shann's house ring be.
tween ono and two O'Clock on the
night that the disembowling took place
Some time after the bell rang, ABOUT half
an hour, the witness heard a carriage
rolling along Withesspoon street, but
whether IL was going up or down tbs
street she could not say. There mad been
a party in the neishborhood that night.
She did not hear the carriage stop.
MRS. sHANN CONTINUES HER TESTIMONY.
Mrs. Shann was now recalled. Her
sou. she said, expected to die. He had a
horror Of emba!ming and Ice about The
body and gave directions how his re-
mains should be treated. He wanted to
be kept longer than his father was when
the latter died aud he asked his mother
to remain in the roosn with him after his
death until hs should be removed. For
that reason Mrs. Sham said she stayed in
the room with the body. She was alone
with John when he expired. The boy
called her at tour O'Clock in the morning
saying: Mamma, Mamma, Pm going
home" She reached his BEDSIDE and put
her arms around him and theu he died.
Mrs. Sham wept a little and Their con-
tlnued her recital. Mrs. Sham was now
questioned concerning the thrae men
who she, charges. Smutilated her sons re
mains. Her testimony was as follows:
THE STORY OF THE MUTILATION.
She was aroused by the ringing of the
doorbell between Que and three in the
morning. When she opened the door
three men steDDed in. They wore storm
coats aud SLOUGH hats. They inquired II
there was u young man deaf ia The
house. She said there was and one OF
them asked IL they could see the
body. She told them mo-" objeeting
on the ground that the hour was late aud
tn at her daughter was asleep in the room
where the body lay. The spokesman oil
the party said they intended to see The
body and he pushed her roughly aside.
Two of the men then passed quickly up
stairs. She attemptei to follow them but
was detained by the man who remained
downstairs. She demanded to know what
this outrage meant. and one of tho triI
said. you'll find QUIZ In q little while
the two men, who went upstairs, came
down, and all tnrse left the house. The
occurrences dazsd her and she did no,
cry out. After the departure of tn
three men, she Went upstairs anC
thought she detectsd q blood spot on the
canopy over the corpse. Mrs. Sham then
aroused Vanselons. a boarder, and b.
detected what had been DONE.
The witness next described the waking
of her family and how she told them OF
the affair. Whether to send for outside
- ItA 49, MI.