The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-01-26
SKULLS PUT IN EVIDENCE.
JUDGE sPEER DECIDED THAT ONE
WAS LAWSON wARREN's.

Chastity Objects Presented in the
United States Court TO Prove That
Missing Man Indicted for Counter
feiting. Is Dead-Bondsmen Finally
Relieved From the judgments
Against Them.
Judge Speer yesterday passed upon the
question whether a skull claimed to be
that Of Lawson Warren, a white man who
had been indicted for couuterfeiting, was
really that of the alleged criminal or not.
After hearing considerable evidence the
judge decided that the presumption was
very strong that the skull had really be-
longed 20 the missing prisoner, that he
was consequently dead and una BILE to ap-
pear in court, and so relieved his bonds
men of payment of the 1850 surety for
which they had become responsible.
Warren was indicted several years ago,
and when his case was called did not APP
pear. He hailed from Emanuel county,
and Mr.. Blumdeid and Others there had
become his surety The bond was for
feited The bondsmen Immediately began
advertising for the arrest of Warren, Of
fered liberal reward for him. and made
strenuous efforts to get his Whereabouts
The last they had head from him was De-
oernber, 1885, when letter had been re-
celVed from him. He was then at Way
cross. I'm the following July the skele-
ton Of a man, supposed to have been white,
was found at Musket swamp, five miles
from Waycross, and three miles from
Waresboro. The man had evidently been
murdered, as there were three bullet holes
in the side of the skull The buzzards
had consumed the flesh and nothing but
few tatters of rotten clothing and some
Of the bones remained. An inquest was
heid and the body was buried at the place
Three months afterward. Mr. Bland, one
OF the sureties of Warren. heard of this
ana going to the spot with the coroner
ana Dr. Folks, had the skeleton exhumed
lor examination. 1t was claimed that
warren had broken arm and one back
tooth out.
Yesterday DR.. Spence of Waresboro. who
mao examined the skeleton. testified thai
the left arm had been broken and also
'Hat while there were several teeth miss
ing from the skull, which was exhibited to
me court one back tooth showed that II
hau been out before death bv the hone
having closed up. He testified also that
lhere were five or six strands of SANDY
co.or beard or mustache with the skull
white man.
Dr. Folks, who was present when the
oody was dug up. testified that although
ne looked for the break in the arm he
round none. Mr.. Mcclellan. who found
the body, testified to digging up a cap near
the body and finding about a lot Of lxinl,v
negro hair. DR.. Spence. though, in re-
buttal of this, stated that he had seen
something like coat padding near the
clothes, and this may have been mistaken
for negro hair. Dr. Folks had saved the
Skull belonging to the skeleton supposed
to have been that of Warren. owing N
two peculiar holes in the top of it which
he stated, were in the skull at the time
OF birth, being congenital malformations.
Ihese were not supposed to be bullet
holes.
Dr. Folks also had the skull of a white
man in court, which he compared with the
skull of the murdered man, and gave II
as his opinion that the latter, instead of
being the skull of Warren was that of a
negro, He based this opinion upon the
narrow, retreating forehead, enlarged
back head and the thickness of the skull
Or. Folks handled the skulls like a de-
monstrator in anatomy before a class of
students, and gave the court the benefit
of some scientific information on the diff
ference between the skulls of Caucasians
and Ethiopans.
DR.. Spence, though, held that these in
dications, on which DIR. Folks laid so much
stress would not necessarily prove the
skull 10 be that of a negro, and pointed
out that there were many negroes with
exceptionally made heads, conforming to
the European type.
1t came out in the evidence that there
had been several mysterious murders in
the vicinity where the skeleton was found
One Of the witnesses, who had found the
body, testified that he had finished mud
dying the neighboring pool for fish be-
fore he went to report the CHASTITY find as
ii wasn't an unusual thing in that neigh
borhood to make such discoveries
The court held that the evidence pointed
strongly 10 the skull having belonged to
Warren, and, in view of the great efforts
his bondsmen had made to find him. he
opened the judgment and released the
sureties. Lawson Warren is legally dead
at least