Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1895-08-08
KENT MURDER TRIAL,

KENT MURDER TRIAL.
MYRoN KENT IS ON TRIAL ron
MURDER.
"A Jury Secured ana tho Case for
the State Opened by Attorney
Miller-Witneaaen for the state
offer TestiMoney.
fargo, N. D., July 2G.-The story Of
Swidensky, the alleged accomplice of
Kent, ts being told with oil the sick
ening details to-day. Swidensky testi-
fies that Kent agreed to give him
$4,000 II he would kill Mrs. Kent.
At first the witness refused because
he was afraid he would be hung, but
Kent told him he had it all planned
out and there was no danger. Kent
approac hed him several times, and on
March 8 he agreed to commit the
crime. He was to meet Kent in
Prairie City, after getting out Of Jail,
and get his money. Kent went away
on Monday, telling Swidcnsky to 70
to the postoffice Tuesday and ret a
letter for Mrs. Kent. He got the let
ter and Mrs. Kent told him it was
froma priest who had seen Kent 60
ing to Minneapolis. Then she began
to cry and said no more.
Tuesday night about IL he called
Mrs. Kent up and told her there were
burglars around the house. The lit
tie boy, Earl, looked out Of the win
dow and said he could see them, and
while Mrs. Kent was looking Swi-
densky got the gun. When she
started to go to the sitting room he
raised the gun and fired and Mrs.
Kent fell dead. Swidensky then went
to the Hankey farm and told them
that burglars had been arou11l the
house, that he wanted to go out but
Mrs. Kent wouldn't let him. He had
his gun in his hand and it had been
accidentally discharged and Mrs. Kent
killed. In company with Hankey he
returned to the ent house and then
went down town. He told the same
story of accidental shooting to other
people.
The defense objected to the testi-
mony of witness as to acts subsequent
to the homicide as not binding on de-
PENDANT. The jury was excused from
the room and the law point argued
The ruling on the question was
postponed by the court.
The attendance was larger this after
noon than usual, the audience listen
ing intently to the account Of the hor-
rible crime as it fel frlom the lips of
Swidensky. A lady tainted in the
court room, overcome by the story Of
the accomplice. The gun with which
Mrs. Kent was killed was identified
by the witness, who said the shooting
was not accidental, but that the shot
was fired with the intent of killing
Mrs. Kent. He did it because Kent
told him to. The book in which the
plot was alleged to have been written
by Swidensky at the dictation of Kent
was introduced in evidence and the
witness spent the greater part of the
afternoon in translating the story,
which it was arranged he was to tell
after the homicide. During the recital
Of the actual committal of the murder,
about o'clock and before adjourn
ment he went completely to pieces,
and Mr.. Hildreth was obliged to wait
for him to recover. The witness tes-
titled that he saw Detective Hoy in
the Mandan Jail and that Hoy talked
nice and kind to him. and when the
detective left he told him to come
again and he would tell him all.
Ehrlichman came in August and in
stead of Hoy and he told him part of
the plot Of Kent, and the next day, at
Ehrlichman's request, he told it in the
presence of number of witnesses.
Since being brought to Cass county,
Swidensky has been sick and has been
taking medicine. The defense made
a demand for the bottles, they con-
tending he has been given a strong
stimulant to carry him through the
trial. The cross-examination of Swi-
densky will be completed tomorrow
and at the request of the defense
Judge Mcconnell has ordered that he
be allowed to see no one until after
the completion of his testimony.
Fargo, N. D., July -Swidensky
has been under the fire of questions by
the defense all this morning, and has
withstood it all remarkably WELL He
was questioned closely in regard to
his testimony before the coroner's in
quest, comparison being made with
the writing in the book, for the pur-
pose of unearthing discrepancies be-
tween the story told and that which
witness alleges Kent dictated to him.
The witness testified he visited some
Bohemians living near Mandan about
three weeks before the homicide, after
he alleges Kent asked him to kill his
wife. The apparent theory Of the
defense is that the writing in the
book was done at this visit and that
Kent had nothing to do with it. Wit
ness testified he didn't tell Mrs. Kent
her life was endangered. because he
was afraid of Kent, and he thought
Kent would give it up and let him
alone.
He received a telegram while in the
Mandan Jail from his brother in Iowa,
Offering to furnish a lawyer, but de-
MED that when Ehrlickman came
from Minneapolis he told him he was
the lawyer his brother sent. Ehrlick-
man told him Hoy had sent him be-
cause he could talk his language, and
witness told him he wanted to tell the
truth, and the next day made his con-