The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-12-17
Prisoner Undisturbed By Evidence
Against Him.
BEARING IN NORTH sACO MUIR
DER CASE YESTERDAY.
witnesses Teitify to Crellin's Tramp
From North shapIeigh To Portland
1.-The Identification of Knife In
Possession of Accused--Eighteen
witnesses Heard.
ESPECIAL 10 THE fREss.1

ESPECIAL 10 THE PREss.1
Saco. December 16.-Eighteen of the
governments witnesses In the North Saoo
murder case were examined at the hear
ing in the saco Municipal court, today,
and County Attorney Emmons has not
yet exhausted the testimony on the states
side of the case.
George r. Crellin, the prisoner who is
held on a charge of numbering Ivory
Boothby, sat through six hours of testi-
mony without showing the least sign of
worriment. When he was brought into
court, shortly after ten O'Clock, and given
a seat beside his counsel, within the bar,
he was chewing a generous cud of YER
mont spruce gum, and he kept up his
"yanking' of that cud till dinner time.
At the afternoon session the gum was
missing, but he took an occasional
which friend had provided him. He
paid strict attention to the testimony,
ano whenever anything came up in the
course of the hearing that pleased the
crowd of spectators, he Joined in laughter.
The bulk of the states material evi-
denos was concentrated in the testimony
of three or four witnesses, who were
questioned in regard to Crellin's long
tramp from North Shapleigh to Portland,
and about the knife found upon him
which is alleged to be the knife which
was stolen from the pockets of the dead
man the night of the murder.
Detective Saville Of Boston. who traced
Crellin to the lumber camps at Galloupe's s
Mills, VT. was telegraphed for last night.
but he was not in Boston, and there was
no way to reach him in season. His
presence was desired in order that he
might testify in regard TO the finding OF
the knife in the prisoners possession.
The failure to bring the detective here to-
day looked at one time like a serious
matter for the prosecution, but direct evi-
dence connecting the knife with the
prisoner was finally introduced in the ex-
animation of Coroner B. G. Bradbury, to
whom the knife had been passed, In
Crellin's presence, along with several
other articles, Crellin acknowledging at
the time that he recognized the articles as
those that had been taken from him at
the time of his first meeting with the de-
tective. That was sufficient to get the
knife into the case.
The hardest contest came over the ques-
tion of Identifying the knife as Ivory
Boothby's. Two witnesses were called to
give testimony on that point. The first
was William B. Henderson of Forest
street. Saoo, brother-in-1aw of Ivory
Bnothby. Henderson claimed to be
positive that the knife belonged to his
uncle. He had often seen 1t at his uncle's 8
house, and knew it by the peculiar mark :
ing of its pearl handle, and also by the
manner In which the large blade had been
ground.
Before the knife was handed to him In
the court room, Henderson was asked to
describe 1t. Hs did 80 quite accurately,
his only slip being made in saying he
thought the piece separating the blades
was of steel, when in fact it is brass. He
said he saw 1t for minute in the
coroner's hands, last Saturday, and i'm
media6ely recognized it.
Mr.. henderson was under CROSS .exami-
nation long time, Lawyer Haley dwell
ing upon the question of identity. The
witness said he and his uncle were always
trading knives. and fixing up old knives.
The uncle had owned this particular
knife about two years. The large blade
was ground just as Ivory Boothby always
ground his knives. ''No two men grind
a knife exactly alik Q" he explained.
The other witness who was questioned
about the knife was Miss Lucy Il. Dame,
a niece of Ivory Boothby, who had spent
a great deal Of time in his family. She
knew he had pearl handled pocket
knife. and when asked to describe it she
proceeded to do so, but said 1t had four
blades, Then the knife in evidence was
shown her, and she said she had made
mistake in saying "four blades;'' she
meant to say it was three bladed knife.
she thought the knife shown her was the
one her uncle had owned, but she said she
was not positivi.