The Newtown bee., 1897-05-07

The preliminary hearing in the case of James W. Futile accused by Mrs Caro- line Booth of shooting her on | April 10, was held at the Town hall on i Saturday afternoon at 10 o'clock before Judge M. J. Bradley. Attorney Charles H. Northrep prosecuted for the state and Attorney James T. Lynch appeared | for the accused. The story is a well known one now, how on that date Mrs Booth was in the roadway near the hut at Botsford and at first it was thought to be the work of two tramps who purchss- | ed eggs of her, she claiming that she told the story of it's being their work for fear of the man Futile, of the fruit. less chase after the supposed cul- prits, and later of the arrest of Futile on her confessing that he was the one that shot her.
 The case has attracted a considerable attention and the mysteries that have surrounded it will cause the progress of the law to be watched with much inter- est. Mrs Caroline Booth is a woman 60 years old and was so enfeebled from the | effects of the wound that 1t was with much difficulty she was able to tell her story so that it could be heard by the court. She was accompanied by her daughter, Miss Emma J. Booth, and her | husband, Silas L. Booth. Her testimony was that on April 10 she lived at Botsford | in a tT1yf.r rA ah l w. Futile, and had lived with him there l for year. That a week previous to the l shooting her daughter came to see her and tried to get her to leave and Futile was mad about it. On the morning of April 10 she left the shanty and started up the road, Futile getting his revolver from the shelf and following her, and when she turned vo look back saw him l fire at her and she fell and knew nothing more until picked up and carried back to the shanty. She also testified that Tut. tie had never threatened her, but had threatened to kill her son, Truman, who lived in Stra.ford. She also identified the weapon that was produced in court I "S SA>S OAS AgLAC U" uCu anu uSGu.
 Cross examination brought out addi. tional facts that she was 60 years old and had a family uf 12 children. That her re lations with Futile were pleasant. That on the morning of April 10, two men came up the road singing and Futile told heI to lock the door. That they knocked al the door and she sold them dozen eggs after which they went away. This wa: about 20 minutes before the shooting That they took more eggs than they bought, but she did not know how many or did not follow them up the road to gel | pay for them. That she saw MT Tomlin- son, Mrs Moran and Joe first after she came to after the shooting, and they car. ried her to the shanty and Mrs Moran cared for her. That two daughters and three sons called on her afterWard. That Futile told her to say if any one asked who did the shooting that the tramps did | it. That she at first testified that the tramps did it before Futile told her to but later said she said that for fear of be l ing killed by him. She said Futile haG shot at her once before when she lived with him at Branchville, and that she left him then, but he got her back again That she didn't know how far away the tramps were when the shooting occurred | Mrs Booth somewhat annoyed Attor ney Lynch with a poor memory. The only other witness called was pr James W. Gordon, who testified that he was called to the shanty about l 30 o'clock April 10, and found Mrs Booth lying or a cot bleeding profusely from mouth and nose, as the result of pistol shot. That he asked her how it occurred and .Tuttle spoke up and said two tramps had shot her, and Mrs Moran also said so. That he made an examination and found the | bullet had entered about one and one quarter inches below the left eye and he probed for it but without success. That he cared for the wound, which he con. sidered very dangerous one.
 Cross examination brought out the fact that he asked Mrs Booth if the tramp: shot her and the first time she did not an swer him, but when he asked her a sec ond time said they did. That he told hel she might die and they would like to gel statement which he wrote on a sheet oi his note pad ss follows: "April 8, '97 Two tramps. The biggest one shot mt about II 30 8. m. They were taking my eggs and would not pay me-" This wal signed by cross and witnessed by Mir Moran.
 At this point the state and defense botl rested and Judge Bradley found probabl cause and bound Futile over to the Ma, term of the Superior court under bond of 5000, in default of which he returner to the Bridgeport jail, Sheriff Rodger
 taking him down on the afternoon train Quite a number of spectators were pre-;
 ent at the hearing.
 P. J. Bolan,a former Sandy Hook bo
 but now one of the foremost merchant of Waterbury, makes an announcement
 to the farmers of Western Connecticut
 this weeks issue of THE BEE. LiB
 many another man MT Bolan owes hi