The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-01-12


passion Again he declared Mills was
/ a victim Of post typhoid alteration, -
thereby indicating his purpose TO show
that at the time Of the shooting Mills
was mentally unbalanced.
Thus he ia reality. has two defenses.
either one of which is sufficient to ac-
quit the defendant if proved
But the first is the supreme question.
The case resolves itself down to Wheth-
er or not Judge Powers can establish
the fact Of intimacy between Mrs Mills
and Mr. O'Melveney, and whether or
not the jury VIII consider such a cause
sufficient justification for homicide
That is practically ali there is to this
case, and any other defense made will
be considered for the purpose. of boil
STEERING the main contention Of the pris-
Onor
Large Audience at Trial.
There was quite a large audience at
/ JuCge NOrrelTs court room. The crowd
mas been increasing daily, gntjl yester-
day II was almost packed. A Jew more
I could have got in were they willing to
stand up around the aisles In fact
there were as many as fifty persons
standing at one time. In the audience
/ during the morning session there We're
I TWO women, Derlbboned in purple. They
/ did not come to the afternoon session.
7 But young married man with his wife
and baby on her knee" came in and
occupied front seats during the after
noon There were some persons of note
IN connection with the case. The Rev.
I u Douglas Wallace. he who may hold
the great secret Of the case, Mr.. Hopf.
Mrs Mills father. General Traffic Man
aged ). W. EccleS, Chief of Police Hill
ton in long frock coat, and the Rev.
Jacob Mills of Helena, the brOther-in-
law % the prisoner, and some lesser
lights were all there.
Mrs. O'Melveney, who, in the morn
ing, looked easier and less ashen than
on previous days, was there, and her
brother. J. K Masonneimer, sat beside
her during the afternoon. Many time
during the proceedings did she, prob
ably the most stricken ana the most in
need Of comfort Of all the actors IN this
tragedy, bow her head in anguish
which she held back with might and
main. Whether or not she will sit
through Judge Powers promised story
OF friends perfidy and a womans
weakness today seems hardly pos
sible
There had been at the adjournment
Of court on Wednesday afternoon
eleven jurors chosen. The twelfth was
quickly found A. r. Garter a mining
man who has lived here seventeen
years, who is married and has a family,
was satisfactory TO both sides and he
was sworn.
As the jury now stands it is believed
that ten of them belong to the Mormon
church while two do not. Much signifi-
canoe is attached to this fact by the
defense which has worked hard to
have jury made up Of pioneers or
the sons Of pioneers who are members /
Of the dominant church
Clerk Little, in a neat white tie and
a spotless white collar set on a shirt of
blue background arose and read the
information charging Captain Mills
with murder. deliberate and willful.
The defendant was Outwardly at least, /
unmOved by the recital of his alleged
crime Mrs O'Melveney looked down
apparently in a dream of things far
away and past and gone as the
technical language describing the kill
ing Of John c. O'AIelveney was gone
through.
Mr.. Putnam's opening statement was
very short. He said the act of Mills
was a cold-blooded cowardly murder
and the defendant sat apparently cool.
First Witness Called.
County Surveyor Wilkes, who wore a !
very red necktie came forward as the
first witness for the prosecution with
a chart or two rooms their furniture J
the doors and distances, the same that |
had been used at the preliminary ex- /
animation. He showed that O'Melveney
was killed in room 80 and that the gen /
eral Office through which Mills passed |
IN going to the chief engineers Office I
WIS room SS. Judge Powers did not /,
attempt to entangle Mr.. Wilkes. eX-
cept TO ask him if he had not said on 1
the preliminary examination that the /
door was two inches instead cf one and !
one-haif inches thick The codnty sur /
veyOr didn't remember
The next witness for the prosecution I
was A. ]. Van KuTan, local treasurer !
of the Oregon Short Line company. His !
Office is about sixty or seventy-five |
feet away from Mr. O'Melvemey's.
Where were you between. $3.50 and ( /
p. m. on Oct. go asked the county at |
tOTmey.
I was talking to Mr. O'Melveney in !
his private office, said the witness. /
Captain Mills came into the room from I
room IS, i spoke to him saying How /
do you do as be came and 1 left, going /
through 10 my own Office. Just as l had 1
sat down [ heard three sounds in sue 4
ceSSlon sounding Ike the tap of a ham, I
mer. A gentleman from Mr.. O'Mel- /
Veney s Office ran in to me and called /
me and I went out
How soon after entering your Of 4
flee did you hear the taps?"
1 should say about thirty seconds. I !
was walking at an ordinary gait and 1 |
have tested the time since then"
When Captain Mills came in he went |
toward the mantel piece. Mr.. O'Mel- /
veney said, hellO Fred, sit down "A"
cOndn-ed the witness in answer to
farther questions.
Judge Powers made Mr.. Van Kuran
feel very uncomfortable. The witness
his brow and even denied the
correctness of statements made in his
testimony at the preliminary hearing.
You paid no particular attention TO
Mills, didn't look him over?" was asked.
No"
The witness had said on direct ex-
amir ton that he had spoken to Mills
as he entered the room. But in answer
to Judge Powers, questions he said
that he had saluted Mills as he was
approaching the window and was some
distance in the room.
OH now YOU have il that you spoke
to Mills when he was midway in the
room" and the witness became stfn
more confused.
StenOgrapher McCune who is now
employed at Diamondville didn't get
mixed up. He had been sitting in the
main room as Mills entered O'Mel-
veney's ROOM He heard the three shots
soon after and he went into O'Ne-
veney's room and saw him atting in
his chair seemingly dead noticed two
on the right side of his head.
Mills Appearance Described.
When Mr.. Putnam asked McCune to
describe Captain Mills appearance as
he went into the room and when he
came out Judge Powers notified the
county attorney that he would object
10 testimony descriptive OF NIfHsi
mental condition going in later.