Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-10-13
MANY IMPORTANT TRIALS
Libel Case Considered by Upper Marlboro
-s Court. $500 80
Murder Cases to BE Tried-Smith to
BE Taken Direct From
- nov1sn,o.n
Correspondence of The Evening Star.
UPPER MARLBORO, Md,

Correspondence OF The Evening Star.
UPPER MARLBORO', Md, - :
October IL, 1896.
The circuit court for Prince Georges
county. now in its second weeks sessions
began the trial Of the criminal cases here
today, with full bench present, Judges
Jno. p. Briscoe. Jno. B. Brooke and J.
Parran Grain. The court was engaged
during the day in the trial of the libel case
of state agt Benjamin F. Crabs of Laurel
who was indicted by the grand jury of this
county last fall at the October term of
court and again this spring at the April
term, on the oath and information Of the
Rev. Mr.. Howard Downs, charging Crabbs
with libeling him. This case was brought
about from the result of two letters writ
ten by Crabbs to two parties. duplicating
the Rev. Mr.. Downs in breaking up his
home by being unduly familiar with his
(CrabbSD wife, while he tDoWnS) was pas
tor at the Centenary Methodist Episcopal
Church at Laurel, from 1859 to 1882. The
letters were put in plain. strong Anglo
Saxon, and are rather severe on the rev.
was the Rev. Mr.. Howard Downs, who
testlhed that the two letters in evidence
We're written by Mr.. Crabbs and that they
reflected on his character. He also testified
Laurel. when he left there, etc That
after he had these letters in his posses
sion, accompanied by his brother, Mr.
woodruff. lawyer of Washington. D. c..
ana sha NJ mr.; J.. q: I1manus. he went to Laurel
the latter part of September or first OF
october. 1879 and accused Mr.. Crabbs OF
having written the letters, after showing
therq TO him. He did not deny having writ
ten them, and refused to retract word
OF the contents of either of them Mr.
Downs said that he saw Mr.. Crabbs for
the purpose of having the two letters re-
In the courts.
rms testimony was substantiated by the
evidence or Mr.. Carroll Downs clerk of
the criminal court for Washington ID. c.
VINO testlned to having accompanied his
brother on his trip to Laurel, and that
Crabbs acknowledged writing the letters
ana refused to retract them. The parties
VINO received the letters from Crabbs and
gave them to Mr.. Downs testified also.
Ar. - - 11nfanuS, superintendent OF the
Laurel cotton mills, testified to the sig
nature OF the letters as being that of b. F.
Crahbs and also was present when Mr..
Crabbs refused to retract the contents of
the letters.
The letters were put in evidence after the
testimony or the above witness and read to
the jury. They charged the Rev. Mr..
Downs with being too intimate with Mrs
sephfa T. Crabbs, defendants WIFE sand
wiched with some choice words. not alto
getlcr from the Bible. These letters closed
the testimony for the state - 80. :
The court took recess from ! 30 to 2:3O,
DR.. John p. Duvall testified to seeing
Mr.. Downs and Mrs. Crabbs out driving
together frequently. and it was the talk of
Laurel: that is, they were too intimate.
MIR. George MaTlOW testified that he was
passing Crabbs' fhouseg on one occasion.
Mrs. Crabbs was Sitting on the porch when
Mr.. Downs came along, asked Mrs. Crabbs
who was home. and, receiving a reply that
there one, went In the house and
was followed by Mrs. Crabbs.
Mrs. Mary Dumbhardt, who was the
chore woman att the church, testified TO
going to the church on one occasion; I'M
locking the front door. she found Mr..
Downs and Mrs. Crabbs in very embar-
RAISING position locked In the church. that
Mrs Crabbs, as soon as she discovered her
presence. went to the back door of the
church, unlocked it and went out, and that
Mr.. Downs came to her and gave her some
directions about the church. on another oc-
cason she was at chNircH cleaning up when
they came to the church alone, and he re-
quested her to go out on the front steps
and finish fhe lamps. She. did SO, and they
went in together. Her testimony fol-
lowed by that of several other Witnesses.
who testified to having seen Mr. Downs and
Mrs. Crabbs together en- several occasions
at different places: that both of them ex-
changed frequent visits l. $500
The state is represented by States Attor-
ney Roger f. Bells. assisted by George F..
Merrick. The defense attorneys are Messrs.
Chas. II. Stanley and Joseph S. Wilson.
This case will take nearly all day to-
morrow.
Mr. Mordecai Piummer. who keeps a
wholesale and retail liquor establishment
in this town, was presented late this even
ing with the murder of DR.. William W.
Warning by the grand jury. which is now in
session. DE-. Warning was killed by having
mis- throat cut in the saloon of Mr.. Plum
ner, in his town. n the 9th of August last
This was the result Of fight between the
two men, and Plummer claims to have cut
him in self defense, after the doctor had
| struck him with a glass. Both of these
| men are of the oldest and most respected
| families in the county, and this unfortunate
affair, which resulted in this town losing q
good physician and citiZen-no one regrets
! 1t any more than Mr.. PlGmrnar says he
! does. In his testimony before the court
! when he was put under sfoo0 bail. he said
! he wished the glass that the Ioctor struck
| him with had knocked him senSeless, which
| would have prevented him from killing
him. = e. 80 --~~~ So. s.@
Richard King, the young white man who
| was presented last week for the murder OF
Jas. Crook, will have his case removed
| from this county to an adjoining one He
| is now in the Baltimore city Jail, where he
| was taken after committing this crime.
James Smith, the co1ored man presented
| for the murGer of Marguerite Downs by
| the grand jury here, and who is now r
| Baltimore, will not be taken to Washing ton
| as stated ip an evening paper of Yesterday
but will be brought direct from Baltimore
here and tried the same day and taker
| back. The authorities here are able to pre-
| vent any mob violence. ,