The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-10-11
I'M DYING, GOOD BYE
KEEFB SETS UP FOR DEFENSE TIE
FIRST Law DE NATURE

Strike when a Bullet from Keefe's Re
Witness Tells How it Was Done-Dr
Hensier Explains How 1t Might Have
Been.
When court convened yesterday
morning Frank Hardesty was recalled
Tor the completion of his cross-exami-
nation. The defense claimed that
Hardesty had given important testi-
mony In this trial that he did not give
on the first hearing which was had in
Kingman county. Mr.. Hardesty in
substance said:
think 1 did say on the first trial
that for the first time now tell all 1
know about this case. 1 may have said
IT, L told on that occasion what /
thought Of it at the time. There may
nave been things happened since that
recalled circumstances to nay mind /
uia not look over the ground at the de-
pot the evening after the killing. I
know that there was light in the de-
pot that night but cannot tell wheth-
er the lamps Were in the waiting room
light. L was alarmed at the time of the
shooting and it may have taken me
some time to recall all the things that
happened What alarmed me was the
shooting, the scraping on the window
and the coming in Of Ashley and telling
me that he had been shot
Joseph H. Hensler, fine old Nor
wlch physician, was the next witness
Ia c1sI he 30
been practicing physician since 1851,
and at the time of the killing was cor
oner OF kingman county. He said:
On the night of December, 1893,
went from Norwich to New Murdoch.
| think the distance is about ten miles
l went there and found George Ashley
lying dead in the depot waiting room
/ arrived at New Murdoch about mid
night and empanneled a jury TO make
investigation. We barred his heart and
examined the wound. The bullet had
struck the left breast and ranged up
ward toward the right shoulder.
l saw the body again on the 22d of
January when the body was exhumed
for scientific eXamina ton. / did not
make the examination but 1 was pres
ent Il was raw, cold day and 1 kept
fire for the purpose of keeping the
doctors hands warm who was attend
shot must be death. A man receiving
such shot might live five or ten min
utes, owing to his vitality.
ION December sd, 1898, when I took
charge of the body of George Ashley 1
found on the body a jackknife and S271
and a few cents, a set of dice and a few
other little articles. The money in his
pocket was mostly in paper bills and
they were rolled UP in little round balls
a ha n
I think there would some times be two
or them in a roll. L examined the
ground where it was supposed the
snoting was done and found nothing.
George Ashley was a large, strong
man that would probably weigh 2eO
pounds or perhaps go, and in good
health. Ashley must have been stand
Ing up when he received the shot and
his left side toward the man who did
the shooting"
1t was plainly to be seen that the de-
Tense were going to claim that Ashley
was in the same position that a man
would assume if he were about TO
throw something with his right hand.
They were directing their questions to
Show that the ball had taken the same
course that it would have taken if
Ashley had had his right hand raised
to throw something at Keefe.
The prosecution saw this point and
Mr.. Wallace in his direct examination
of DR.. Hensler got him to say that the
same result would have followed if
Ashley had been carrying his overcoat
on his left arm, causing his left should
er TO be lower than the right.
J. d. Music and Eugene Music were
rallied but their testimony revealed
nothing more than had been given by
the other witnesses. Mr.. Horn was re-
called and told that he had seen the
car link the next day after the shoot
Ing and that il was fifty or sixty feet
from where the shooting was done. He
also stated that there had been no
switching of trains after the shooting
20 the time he saw the car link.
J. Z. Doyle was the last witness for
the state. He said: 81 live at King
man. 1 know John Keefe, the defend
ant in this case / have had business
with him. 1 keep a hardware store
and also keep a stock OF guns and re-
volvers. | had business with Mr..
Keefe before December %, 1898. l sold
keefe revolver about five months be-
fore the shooting took place or rather
traded with him. 1t was A calibre
Colts revolver. I never sold a larger
revolver. II was large one. do not
know whether the revolver they had
In court ar Kingman was the one / sold
to Mr.. Keefe or not. / saw the revolver
they had in court and / think il was
not the one sold to Keefe. 1t was like
it"
DEFENSE STATES THE CASE.
The state then rested and Mr.. Ly-
decker stated the case for the defense.
He said: Our defense viii be- self-de-
Tense. The evidence viii show that on
the 23i day of December, 1898, Mr..
Keefe went to the little town OF New
Murdoch. That there was a shooting
match there that day and number OF
people were in town. The shooting
match was not very much of a success.
John keefe went there and had a pistol
with him He told his son that they
would take that revolver along and
shoot with somebody for a turkey.
When he went up 10 town he and some
other men made up a game of cards.
Old man Keefe was not much Of a card
player but he did play that day.
They commenced a game OF seven
IN The evidence will show you that
George Ashley proposed to play for the
drinks and that Ashley also proposed
TO play for q bottle of whisky That
then Ashley said I can name the three
TOP cards in Mr.. keefe'S hand. John
Keefe said. IF you can do that there is
no use of my playing cards with you
John could not bet forty dollars, but he
did bet ten dollars. The evidence will
show that he did name two cards. but
did not name the third, but Ashley