The Red Cloud chief., 1898-12-16
In j. COLLINS BEHALF
TESTIMONY TO SHOW HIM
A MODEL SON.
Women witnesses who nsmsm.
bsrsd the Fathers Dread Of Negroes
The st~enographss Tells About Two
Anonymous LsttsrA

TorxKA. Dec. 1a-Tcstimony for the
defense in the trial OF John Henry
Collins began this morning. The bur
den OF the testimony was to show the
loving relations that existed between
Johi and the father he Is charged with
having murdered.
Mrs. Isabel Cochran. daughter Of ".
W. Phillips OF Topeka, was the first
witness for the defense. She said she
had known tho Collins family init.
mately eve since she was a child.
II am prepared to state" said Mrs.
Cochran, ''that John was very ascc-
tionate to all tho other members Of
the family. He was loving and kind
to his sister, mother and father. John
and his father were like two chums.
They were together q great deal and
seemed unusually aTsctionate toward
each other. I never hoard a word
against John. l mover heard that he
was selfish, harsh or cruel, and I never
saw anything in him that would in
dictate that he was 80. Once l was out
shooting with him and several Of our
friends, and while the others shot at
game, John shot at a mark rather
than at tho game. 1 often noticed
and remarked how chummy John and
his father were. liked to observe it,"
"Did you ever hear Mr.. Collins say
that he was held up by q nogro?"
~ did. I heard Mr.. Collins tell
about being followed by q negro. He
said he was going home at night md
he felt he was being followed. He
looked around and saw q negro dodg-
ing from treo to trec. Mr.. Collins
drew his revolver and took the negro
under a light to look ut him. Tho ne
gro had q long open knife. The negro
begged and begged to be turned loose,
and Mr.. Collins said to him: This Is
the second time you have followed me
and IL you follow me again l will fix
you 30 you cannot follow me- Mr..
Collins then turned the negro loose"
Miss Mary Wyatt, who was stenog.
rapher for j. s. Collins in his real es.
tate Office hero, was tho neat witness.
She had worked for Mr.. Collins ten
years. She said his business was the
selling and renting Of property. He
had all classes of tenants. His sense Of
honor was so high that il persons
sought to rent buildings from him for
immoral purposes Mr.. Collins would
speak harshly to them and often order
them out OF the Office.
II was often afraid that Mr.. Collins
would DO assaulted in his ofico. his
manner was so harsh," said Miss
Wyatt.
''Oncc when he and I were alone in
the Office . negro came in and talked
business. After he went out Mr.. Col
Inns said he did not like the looks of
the negro. This was q few weeks be-
fore he was killed. Whenever Mr.. Col
Inns left home to 60 to another city he
always told me particularly to look
after his insurance. because he expect
ed to die suddenly. He had q present
iment that he would die suddenly and
often spoke Of it.
"When Mr.. Collins was murdered he
had deals on hand that he expected
would net him big profits. He wal
handling the Throop, Copeland, Ches
terHeld and Fifth Avenue hotels, try
ing to sell them. John knew about
these deals and talked them over will
his father, and his father planned
with John how they would enjoy
themselves after he got this money.
1.-THE morning Of the murder ! wal
at the house about 9 o'clock, and JohI
was wocping and sobbing. He SCENE
heart broken. He said 1t seemed ~
horrible that he had to sit there ant
see his father die without being able b
do a thing to save him. I told John Il
, brace up, and he said he would do tn
: best he could. He said he had lost
I kind and loving father"
! Miss Wyatt said the Insurance pa
:, pers Of MI. Collins were kept in hi
, safe, and John knew nothing about II
: Miss Wyatt had told in her direc
: evidence about anonymous letters re
" ceivcd by Mr.. Collins. On cross exam
: nation she said there were two O
: those letters, one received when MI
= Collins was a candidate for mayor Q
Topeka, the other received about
year before the death Of Mr.. Collins
q She said Mr.. Collins told her tho los
was . threatening letter.