St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-08-27
CONFLICTING TESTIMONY.
Strongly in Mrs. Perkins, Favor
t Mt Times.

death of Mrs. Hawkins was resumed
yesterday morning at 10 O'clock Ed
ward Hoban, a police officer, who lived
just a block from the Perkins house. on
Ninth avenue, was the first witness.
County Attorney Frank Nye occupied
the bench this morning with the cor
oner instead of Assistant Peterson.
who presided Saturday. Officer Hoban
said:
i was on night duty the time of the
accident" he said. 1.-The first fire I
heard of and met Mrs Perkins in the
drug store and she spoke to me and
told me how it happened. She said
there was bottle of turpentine near
the lamp and she heard her sister
scream and then she ran in and saw
the lamp and bottle in flames She
selzed the lamp and threw it to the
moor and Mrs. Hawkins jumped out the
WINDOW. ] saw Mrs. Hawkins a few
days before the first accident She
/, was Sltt1ng up In chair and told me
she was just getting better from an
. overdose OF arsenic, which had made
her stomach very sore and swelled up.
! That was about two days before the
first accident
Nov, you saw the second fire?''
fesi my little daughter sleeps in the
front room, and she called to me that
Mrs.tPerkinS' house was on fire. 7 lump
ed up In my night clothes and went to
the, window. Just then thick, heavy,
black volume Of smoke and flame burst
out OF the top of the bedroom window,
as If the fire. had been confined IN the
room. My little girl said they had Just
carried Mrs. Hawkins over next door.
supposed 1t was just a fire, and SO 7
went back to bed. When got I'D at
lO O'Clock, my wife came back to the
house and said Mrs. Hawkins had Just
died"
= What did Mrs. Perkins saw to you
afterwards about how the fire caught?''
"She said she really didn't know.
She didn't see how the lamp could
have exploded, since another lamp.
filed with oil, stood on the table in the
sitting room, right in the hottest of the
blaze coming from the bedroom. The
bowl of that lamp was badly cracked
and filed with oil, but it had not ex-
ploded.e Mrs. Perkins said she had s5G
under the mattress in the bed and $50
in the dresser drawer, both of which
had disappeared. 1 set three bows
II, i
Thought the $50 might have been SHOW
eled out with that, but they did not find
it,"
Albert E. Russ, father of Mrs. AK
tell, was called next.
: did you look over the debris?, ask
ed Nye. "Yes, SIR
Did you find anything?" "No. sir:
didn't, but some one else did and gave
it TO me-
What was it?' "a part of the lamp
1.-The burner
Have you it here?" 'No, sir; it
was at home''
Mrs. Perkins little boy was called in
at this point and Nye said: "You have
been called in here to make some ex-
plantations to what you said yesterday.
I'll ask you some questions. Where
did you usually sleep?" Sometimes
down stairs and sometimes up stairs.
1 was up stairs all winter. I was down
stairs a part of the time lately. I used
to sleep On lounge in the sitting
room. My mother made a bed for me
on it,
did you sleep downstairs the night
your auntie was burned?" Eyes. sir:
but I'didn't go to sleep. sat up with
my mother that night all night"
Did you take your clothes off?''
mo, sir; l. got up and sat up with my
mother SO many times.''
3. DO you sleep any day times?" "No,
SIR.
What time do you get up?" "About
8, O'clock, sometimes"
Has anybody been talking with you
about this?" Eyes. SIR" with slight
hesitation; "Mr. Hall asked me-"
y What did he ask you?" HE just
asked me If I could remember sleeping
down stairs that night
What did you say?" "I told him
could.''
did any one else ask your Eyes,
sir; think Mrs. Aztell asked me-"
ssss Where did the lamp stand that
night?" "On little table in front of
the window
Do you always keep the window
up? Eyes, sir; clear up"
Was the lamp there at the time of
the first accident?" Eyes, sir.''
- Was it the same lamp in the second
accident?" 'I don't think it was. 1t
was big glass lamp we had had about
ten years, guess
WAS 1t hand lamp or a bracket
iampE 1T was a glaSSlamp, and you
took hold of it around the stand. 1t
was like a common lamp, not very
high"
what kind Of a table was it?'' cit
was a plain table about so high" in
dicating about two feet, "and was
painted white. 1t had one drawer. I
think I could lift it. We kept 1t there
I know in the winter"
Mr.. Nye then showed the boy a map
of the rooms and asked him about the
furniture. the lad pointing out where
the connIode,. bureau. little table and
bed stood.
Ibid you see the bureau after the
fre2,, at don't remember. Maybe
they chopped it up"
Z What became of the table?" At
thinks it was burned up"
/. The boy explained that he was awak-
!