Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1895-02-07

fatal Injury. Harry Ia small Tor his age.
hps large blue eyes and cheerful dis
position. Ills eyes flied with tenrs whom
he began giving his evidence and through
oft the remainder of lis testimony he
s0bbed and swept pilcously. lie sud he
ana his father aud h;noc were out In the
stable abols ) cldcS, Saturday. lie aud
his father had sumo words over cora
box whcrcupon bis patent threw him
down ann struck HIM sevs;sl times with .
shovel. Mcuull.s hiierSnrdJ relingnishcd
his hold 0p tho lad ana the father and his
Two foii9 then went III .nc house. Amos
got pair of shoes 10 take to tho shoe
mstcrS. When McCoiley learned that tho
boys vIts s9iag to Milford he told Harry
M could nDt 20, Ano. McCIolloy started
Gown tic Milford ropd, with the shoss on
o,il arm. harry followed Inn and his
father cAmn Ont and called MIN bGcE.
When lie returned Harry Guys his father
;Ersw him down and began beating him
agsin, this tir4o with hit hand, Amos
retrAcod his s;crs, aud babe the parent
desiss end when he refused to do so, he
picked up cedar stick and hit him over
DO heat. Larry says his Father kept on
titihg hin even after Anoa struck him,
but when he wGn5 10 rise he fell sideways,
the left side OF the head striking the heavy
cuTbing around The pump, lie never re-
gained consciousness.
Ainus MeCullGy was called and told that
re boad naL make T. statement unless no 80
desired. lie SAid he wda willing to tell all
Ln knew, and between his sDbY and nnni-
.esta;iOns 81 deep anguish he freely gave
hii testimony. Ii rorrohoreted that given
by his bother. lie sud that after ne hit
bis lsircnt he started down tho rnnd.
knowing tina, II his father caught him he
wunlt kill him. lie said hD told his father
To stop beating his brother, and when he
kept on striking him he lost control of
himself AID hit his parent with q piece of
chunk" which, according to the eyi.
dencr, was u piece of cedar stick, one inch
~ diameter and little over foot in
length. lie swore that this blow did not
knock his father down. He did not know
that he was badly hurt until his mother
called to him, saying "Oh, come here,
Amos, he's killed himself. Then he re-
turned and helped to carry him in the
house lie said the reason he said horse
kicked his father was because he disliked
to have 1t known that he had struck his
father and because he did not know
whether il was the blow or the fall that
caused the injury.
Mrs. McColley was sworn. She said she
was looking out OF the window and saw
her husband fall and strike his head on
the pump curb Amos was then going
down the road She called to him saying,
Come back, Amos, he's killed himself.n
She said the fall and not the blow caused
her husbands death In reply to ques.
ton Of u lurymAn as to her reason for tell
Ing David Millsthat Amos killed his father
with chunk, she said that in the ex-
citement she did not know whether 1t was
the stick or the fall that did il, But she
was sure it was the fall now
Edwin McColey, aged Il years, testified
that he was out Ia the stable when his at
tention was attracted by his mothers
screams. lie ran to the pump curb and
helped his mother and two brothers to
carry his father in. lie said that he saw
his father beating Harry with the shovel
but he was IN the stable when the second
scniiie ensued. This closed the evidence.
The jury then went into long discus
sion. some wanted to hold the boy for
his fathers death. The others didn't.
Conspicuous among the latter were K. L.
Small w, |, Cirwithian and ID. ii. Russell.
They argued that II was the duty of a
cOroncr's jury TO decide from the evidence
and held that the testimony did not war
rant their holding young McColey for
the alleged killing Foreman Prettyman
finally drew up this verdict:
I'VE agree that the deceased came to his
death by comminuled fracture OF the
| skull. From the evidence before us pro-
duced we are unable To agree to the cause
Of death. but do agree most positively
that death was caused from one Of the two
following caiises: First, from blow adj
ministered by deceased's son, Amos, or,
second from slipping on the ice and hit.
ting his head against the pump platform.
| Whichever was the cause we cannot con-
sclentiously agree.
| This rather singular verdict was adopted.
Amos McColley was exonerated.
Attorncy-General Nicholson, after learn
ing from Detective Witsil the details of the
inquest, decided that it was not necessary
for the State to take any action in the case.