The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-04-27
A STRAIGHT STORY
Examination Didn't Confuse Mrs..
Kelly's Witnesses.
BELL CASE CONTINUED
Mrs. Marion Kelly Tells Again the Story
Of the Alleged Attempt 1t
Burning Her and Her
Children Alive.

IL VI S1IuS
Bell, accused by Mrs. Marion Kelly Of
attempting to cremate her on the
morning of the 18th of the month, was
commenced yesterday afternoon before
Justice of the Peace Laurandeau. The
defendant is charged with arson in the
first degree. The hearing was no CON-
pleted. but was continued until Satur-
day afternoon at 9 o'clock, after the
greater portion of the states case was
in.
On h morning of the 18th a fire
alarm called the fire department to the
residence Of Mrs. Marion Kelly, a cot
tage in South Wisconsin street. Cap
tain Dawson n Sergeant McGrath of
the police department went to the fire.
and were there put in possession of a
story that Mrs Kelly had been awak-
ened from her sleep by a man who tied
her hands and feet and the feet of one
OF her two children and sprinkling coal
oil on the, bed set the bed afre. Mrs.
Kelly accused Cyrus Bell, a well-to-do
citizen of the city. of the crime. and he
was arrested and charged with arson.
1t was limited at the time hat the story
was manufactured by Mrs. Kelly to get
even with Bell for coming w her
self n Bells brother. During the
proceedings yesterday, the only evil
dence duplicating Bell was thai of Mrs.
Kelly. but ii was evident her story was
moi manufactured. as o other wit
nesses, who were excluded from the
court room while Mrs. Bell testified,
took the stand and told almost identi-
cally the same story she did. indicating
that some one committed the crime or
else. that a deep-laid plot, worked out
in wonderful detail, had been planned.
Deputy County Attorney Stivers on
Quoted the examination for the state
and Attorney John Cotter and w. j.
Naughten appeared for the defense.
Mr.. Cotter. who examined the witnesses
for the defense. evidently went on the
presumption that the story of the pros
ecutrix was ~concocted. n attempted
to make all the witnesses contradict
themselves. but failed on the material
points.
The first witness examined by the
state was Mrs. Kelly, the prosecutrix.
In relating her story, she said: II lived
on the 18th of the present month i'm a
cottage owned by Professor Bennett in
Wisconsin avenue. On the evening of
the 18th / went to bed about 10 o'clock.
Sometime after midnight l was awak-
ened by someone tying my hands. l
screamed for help and the man who
was doing the work stopped and put
the sheet over my face. My feet were
already tied as well as those of one of
the children. both of whom were in bed
with me-. l noticed an unusual odor.
The following day 1 was taken to New
bros drug store and given a number
of bottles to smell of. When l came to
a bottle of ether / detected the same
odor j had noticed when awak-
ened. / could see the person who
was tying me was a man. After he had
finished tying me. he %sprinkled coal oil
on the bed, n remarked: You'll need
no ticket where Won Are QOinR nnW' He
then set fire to the bed and ran out. He
wore a slouch hat and had a mask over
the upper portion of his face. l could
see the lower portion N his teeth,
which were filled with gold. I recog
nized the man as Cyrus Bell. The quilt
was on fire and / saw unless I got loose
We should all be burned. / loosed my
feet by kicking and got up and
called to the elder child, but she could
not hear. ! leaned over and shouted to
her to get up and take her little sister
out. I then ran put and screamed for
help and MI. Murphy came out of his
house. but ran back for his gun. My
night dress was on fire. and I ran into
a little creek to put il out. Then Mr..
Monkey. Mr.. Brady and Mr.. Babcock
came and united my hands"
Mr.. Cotter conducted the cross-exam-
nation. He began by asking: Are
you a widow or grass widow?" Mr..
Stivers objected. but Justice Lauran-
deau permitted the question to be an
swered. Mrs. Kelly said her husband
was alive when she left California. but
she afterwards received a letter saying
he was dead. Continuing the cross-ex-
animation. Mrs. Kelly admitted she had
previously had trouble with the de-
PENDANT, but said she had no enmity
against him. She said she attributed
her severance of relations with the de-
PENDANTS brother to the defendant, but
she held nothing against him. She
was asked IL anyone was prowling
around her house the night of the 18th.
and aid she was at Mrs. Monkeys
house. a neighbor, and saw a fnan
standing at her front door. 1t was be-
tween 8 and 8 o'clock and quite dark.
She thought 1t was someone to see
about the rent. and went out, but
changed her mind and concluded she
had been mistaken, and as the dogs of
the neighborhood had been barking for
several nights h concluded the man
was there for no good. n her fears
We're excited to such an extent tina she
stayed UP after returning from the
Monkey house. as long as she could.
When she awoke she was lying on her
right side and her hands were being
tied behind her. She said she felt a
cloth slip OF her ace and detected an
odor she was not familiar with. h felt
stupefied but realised she was in dan
VI ~ hsou topPcu HE WITH dnu
stuffed the sheet in her mouth, when
she screamed. She said the man sprin-
killed. oil over her and heard a sound
as though it were coming from a bot
tie. She could not cry out again be-
cause of the sheet i'm her mouth. The
man first lighted a fire under the bed
and then touched a match to the bed
ding. By the light thus made she could
see the gold in the man's teeth. She
was not certain II was a mask the man
had over his face. but he had something
over his face. She was unable to de-
scribe the mans clothing. The cross
examination was very long and tedi-
Gus. Attorney Cotter attempting to
confuse the witness, who was very talk
alive. into contradicting herself, W
she succeeded in sticking to her story
fairly well.
Fredda Kelly. the elder Of Mrs. KEEL
ly's children. was next called. She said
she was s years old. When asked IL she
knew what happened IL a person didn't
tell the truth, she said they wouldn't go