The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-12-13
TRIAL OF MRS. BOTK|N
Charged With Poisoning Mrs. Dun
ming and Mrs. Deane.
SENT A BOX OF CANDY
WITNESSES DESCRIBE ITS Ar
RIVAL AT DOVER, DEL.
All Who Partook of the Candy Were
Seized With Illness, and Mrs.
Cunning and Mrs. Deane Died
Victims Father On the Stand-His
Testimony of Little Value.

San Francisco, Dec. 12.-The trial of
Mrs Corde1fa Botkin for the murder
of Mrs. John P. Dunning of Dover, Del,
and who is also accused of being re-
sponsible for the death of Mrs. Dun
ning's sister, Mrs. Joshua D. Deane,
commenced in real earnest today. The
witnesses were all on hand and the
jury announced itself as being ready to
hear testimony.
The proceedings were set in motion
by Attorney for the Defense Knight
requesting the exclusion from the
courtroom of all witnesses. Judge Cook
granted the request. Attorney General
! White of Delaware and Chief of Police
Lees Of this city being excepted in the
order.
The first witness called was the post
master of Dover, Del, Thomas H. Goo
den. He testified that on Aug. 9 a pack
age was received at the postoffice at
! Dover addressed to Mrs. John P. Dun
ming. He described the package mi
nutely, and when shown piece of ma
Mia paper with the address written
upon it identified it as the paper in
which was enclosed the box received by
Mrs. Dunning. Mr.. Gooden was positive
in his identification, because, as he ex-
planned to the attorneys for the defense,
he had handled the package three times
and that he himself placed it in the
postoffice box subscribed for by the
Pennington family.
Harry c. Pennington, the 13year-old
grandson of the Hon. John G. Penning-
ton, testified to taking the box from the
postcffice box, and identified the wrap
per and the address. He told of the
opening of the box by Mrs Dunning
and the finding of a little handkerchief
ON the top of the candy. He told of the
passing around of the candy to the gath
+ cred relatives and friends. The witness
told how on biting into a piece Of cam
dy, Mrs. Pennington spat it out. He ex-
planned the illness of himself Mrs.
| Dunning and Mrs. Deane and the
| death of the ladies.
| Miss Lila Deane, daughter of Mrs.
| Deane and a niece of Mrs. Dunning,
gave practically the same testimony as
the preceding witness.
| Miss Josephine Bateman, one of the
| group who partook of the candy on the
9th of August, testified that some for
eign substance in the candy caused her
| to remove the offending particles. A
4 piece of some hard white substance
the use of her finger to remove it. The
| day following her gums and lips were
liberated The Jumps reSembled rock
! salt. Miss Bateman told of her illness
following the eating of the candy but
it was rather insignificant compared
with the suffering of others.
Miss Ethel Milington testified to eat
ing some of the candy and to feeling
slightly i'll for several days after She
stated that Mrs. Dunning. handed her
the wrapper, asking her to try and de-
| cipher the postmark, but she could not.
j. P. Deane stated that he was aWak-
ened in the middle of the night by the
agonizing cries of his wife. He told
of her sufferings; her refusal to let him
call her physician at that hour; the ar
rival of the doctor in the morning, and
his ministrations and her final convul-
sions and the death which followed.
John Pennington, father of Mrs. Dun
ming and Mrs. Deane was the last wit
ness today, and he had not finished his
testimony when the court adjourned.
His testimony up to the time of adj
journment had little bearing upon the
case, referring merely to family affairs.