The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-01-06
THE CONLlN TRIAL.
The State Has Nearly All of Its Testimony
Before the Court.

Before the Court
Great Falls, Jan. 5.--The trial of Jack
Conlin for murder is attracting a COM
paratively small crowd, although a
murder trial is an uncommon matter in
this county. The fewness of the spec
tators, however, speaks well for the
community, for it shows that there is
not a very large amount of that morbid
ness which draws people to murder
trials, funeral scenes, scandals and the
like. To-day the state practically con-
cluded it's testimony, examining seven
witnesses. Tomorrow morning the
coroner, C. A. Brady, will take the
stand to conclude the testimony by re-
lating the story of the body after it
reached his hands, the position of the
wound and in general the medical as
pect of the case.
There was not much new in the tes-
timony heard to-day, the witnesses re-
peating, each in his own way, the story
told by the witnesses of yesterday. A
strong point made by the state was the
fact related by several of the witnesses
that Gibson, on his return to the Stock
holm saloon, was comparatively sober,
and that he came back for the purpose
of apologiZing for his words spoken in
drunkenness a short time before, on his
first visit to the saloon. According to
Benjamin Paynter, one of this morn
ings witnesses, Gibson, on his seco kl
and last visit to the saloon, walked up
to the bar. behind which Jack Conln
stood, and said
Jack, If / abused you or did anything
wrong this morning, l am sorry for it,
Conlin replied that Gibson had abused
him and had used language that he
would not use to dog. Gibson and
Conlin then had a conversation which
the witness did not catch, until he
heard Gibson say:
Il don't believe that 7 abused YOU"
Conlin insisted that he had and then
Gibson called Conlin a liar. Conln
turned to the drawer where he had the
gun and took it out. Gibson, in the
meantime, walked toward the door and
while his back was turned Conlin, hold
ing the revolver in his right hand and
resting it on his left, or on the bar,
fired the shot that brought death almost
instantly. AT that time Gibson was SO
close to the door that he fell across
the threshold. During the converse
ton between Conlin and Gibson the
witnesses of to-day stated that Gibson
at no time made any threatening mo-
ton toward Conlin and for the larger
part of the time stood at rest with one
hand on the bar and his body leaning
against it.
On the different cross examinations
the attorney for the defense endeavored
to bring out something that would show
the witnesses as prejudiced against the
defendant and that some of them had
even gone so far as to threaten to hang
Conlin after he had been taken into GUS
tody. None of the witnesses, however,
would admit that they had any preju-
dice or had made such threats. The
names of those who testified are John
Shea, Benjamin Paynter, Mike Ryan,
Frank Ritchie, Andrew Cowan, William
Bowen and n. S. Irving. All of them
are miners in the employ of the Ana
conda Mining company.
The jury is not herded, as been the
ease in some former trials in this coun-
ty, but are allowed to go to their homes,
under instructions from the court not
TO allow others to discuss the case with
them or to discuss the case among
themselves until the testimony is all in,
The defense will probably take consid-
cradle more time in the presentation of
its side of the case, there having been
over 40 witnesses summoned on both
sides. Then it is probable that still
more time will be taken up by the testi-
mony in rebuttal and it is therefore
likely that the trial will not only last
through this week but break over into
the next.