The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-07-16
Yesterdays Proceedings in
Wake Superior Court,
A FIGHT FOR A LIFE
LARGE NUMBER OF WITNESSES
EXAMINED FOR DEFENSE.
BROWNING HIMSELF ON THE STAND
He Gives Graphic Recital and Description OF
the Scenes at The Killing Of His Father
in Law in February Last.

The trial of VIM. S. Browning was
resumed in the court house yesterday.
The accused was brought in and took
IA seat behind his counsel.
Browning is Il tall man of slender
build. a heavy dark moustache and with
a rather keen, self-contident expression
in his eyes He sat all day and closely
watched every turn in the proceedings
that mean so much for him. The cX-
preston on his face was never changed.
except when it would seem that one of
his witnesses was becoming tangled III
cross-examnation. He watched the
spea ker's stand with the. closest scrutiny,
and when on the stand himself he not
only related but reacted his version of
the scenes at the killing. by movements
of arms and body he illustrated how. as
he claimed the old man Strickland had
with knife in hand. raked for his throat
and how he had. by quick lodging mar
rowly escaped the keen edge of the
blade Then he told how, when he had
creaned his head and body as far away
from his antagonist as possible. with the
old man still reaching for his throat.
he had, in that supreme moment of peril
and desperation, pulled the trigger of
the gun and sent the whole load of the
gun into the face, killing him instantly.
He exhibited his hands to the jury
showing that every finger on his left
hand was gone, except his thumb, the
result of an accident years ago. This
fact. he claimed. made it difficult for
him to cope with his father-in-law i'll
the hand to hand combat that ended in
the death of Strickland. He told in
a graphic manner of cuts received in the
neck and shoulder from Strickland dur
ing the fatal tussle.
On cross examination he varied but
little. if any, from his direct evidence,
insisting all the time that he did the
act in selfdefense.
The State had rested it's case after
the evidence of J. C.. Strickland. son
of the deceased, (pending whose exami
nation the killing was admitted by the
defense) and the evidence of Dorsey
Bum, who testified to threats made bv
the defendant and evidence of Oliver
May. which was to the effect that the
defendant had tried to borrow his pistol.
saying Strickland had threaened his
Browning's) life Afterwards the de-
PENDANT borrowed his gun, saying he
wanted it to shoot wild turkeys.
1t was after the State had rested
stand. and portrayed the scenes of that
fatal February day.
Mrs. Browning was the next defend
ants witness. Calmly and quietly and
without manfesting emotion, she told
Of her husbands returning home and
telling that he had shot her father. She
told, too. of former troubles between
them and threats from her father
against her husband
The daughter of the defendant was
the next witness. She. too. told how her
grandfather had threatened the life of
her afther. She told Of the incidents i'm
mediately after the killng-of her faith
or sending her after Mr.. Parrish. n
neighbor and other incidents Of that
fatal morning.
Mr. A. b. Parish testified to having
found the knife in the right hand of the
deceased when he got to him. Parish
was the first man to get to the place
after the killing occurred.) He describ-
ed the position of the body. He also
testified to having heard Strickland
threaten to cut the throat of the defend
ant.
w. ID. Brown. a justice Of the peace,
testified to Browning having come to
his house and acknowledged the killing.
saying that he did 1t III selfdefenSe. ana
desired to give himself up and abide the
law.
A. J. Chamblee. r. c. Bum. w u
Chamblee, John A. Kemp. G. NJ. Bum.
W. i. Brantley, Preston Chamblee and
Sarah Virgins were examined for tbe
defnse. Nearly all of them. 6 &c g
defnse. nearly all of them testifving TO
having heard the deceased make threats
against the defendant
The hearing of the case will he re-
sumed this morning at 9:3O o'clock.
There are several other witnesses for
the defense and perhaps dozen for the
State yet to be examined.
IT is a very knotty case and one that
is attracting considerable attention. cs-
peciallv in that end of the county in
which the killing occurred.
Some men jump their bail i'm order to
save time they would otherwise have to