Omaha daily bee., 1895-11-23
PRESENTING DAVIS CASE
Alleged Rock Island Wrecker Giving the
Company Trouble.
CONDITION OF ITS RoADBED ATTACKED
Bridge Where the Train Went over
Said 20 Have Been Weak and
the Disaster Due to Care
Iessness.

LINCOLN, Nov. 22.-(Special)-Th de-
fense in the Davis murder trial is now hav-
ing an inning and introducing some rather
convincing testimony. 1t is freely said around
town and in the vicinity of the court house
that Craighead's evidence given yesterday
will have but little weight with the jury.
Craighead swore that Davis had solicited
him to accompany him on train wrecking
expedition. When asked on cross-examina-
tion why he had waited eighteen months
with this startling testimony locked up in
his breast, he replied that he desired to
hear what other people had to say about It,
]. S. Weeks, ]. w. Smith, b. l.. Adams
and others swore this morning that they
were present while the bridge where the
wreck occurred was being repaired, and
that the structure sagged when the pile
driver passed over 1t. In the opinion of I.
E. Stevens and j. A. Campbell the spike
holes had been bored. Witness Campbell
stated that to the best of his belief no spikes
had been pulled with crowbar. In the
early part of the present month G. f.
Barras and Brad Ringer were out to the
bridge. They testified that at present II
was not in the best Of condition The de-
fense wishes to show that the railway COM
pany is still careless of the way it keeps its
roadbed. There was heated wrangle over
the admission of this evidence, but the court
permitted 1t to go to the jury pending
further investigation as to its admissiblity.
RELIEVED OF HIS CASH.
A man named A. Bullen was at the police
station this morning to complain that he had
been buncoed out of $50. 1t was decidedly
coarse piece of work. too as Bullen says he
met stranger who asked him to give him
silver for $50 in gold. Buen turned over
the silver and waited for the man to go into
the Lincoln hotel and get the gold. He went
in and failed to come out. Bullen fingered
around awhile and finally went in himself
but has since failed to locate the stranger.
Quite a story was developed in district
court today over simple suit on promis-
sorry note for $780, Ira Tibbetts and wife
Betsy, lived in Talmage in 1886. AT this
time one James Cummins signed note for
him for 5000, which Tibbetts failed to pay,
and subsequently went to Colorado, where he
still resides. According to the answer nied
by Mrs. Tibbetts she had brother-in-law In
the town of Talmage s. G. Gregory. BY
sinuous and unfair means he succeeded In
poisoning the mind of Tibbetts against Betsy,
and in many ways attempted TO bring about
a separation between the two. Mrs Tibbetts
SAYS that before her husband finally left her
and went to Colorado he gave Gregory biil
of sale of $1,000 worth OF property, which
Gregory sold and never accounted for.
portion of it, however, went to pay the 5000
note upon which this suit was brought. one
day in 1886 Mrs. Tibbetts received letter
signed "a Friend" from Colorado, stating
that her husband was i'll, and that he would
die unless she sent him some money. She
had property, but no available cash, and ap-
pealed to Gregory and Cummins, who were
then in business together, for some cur
rency. They agreed to let her have it II she
would pledge her separate estate to the pay
ment Of this 5000 note. She did SO, received
s25 and sent 1t to her husband in Colorado.
The latter returned it, stating that he was
not i'll, had not been, and did not need the
money Mrs Tibbetts today charged, and
had some witnesses present to prove, that
this was all scheme to get the note paid
twice The court, however, helped her out
of the dilemma by ruling that the note was
already outlawed. 1t became due in 1883 and
Cummins should have filed his suit before
December 27, 1898. He had waited until
Nav. 1894. The jury returned a verdict in
accordance with such instructions from the
poI,