The Washington weekly post., 1900-09-18
Testimony that Jim Howard
BOasted OF the Deed.
TRIAL OF NOTED MOuNTAINEER
Identified by One Witness m the Man Who
Just After ihe >heotins, and DeBeaneed
By Another as Having Twice Admifted
that he Fired the Fatal shst- Divnised
Facts After Howard Threatened Him.

/ rEdnhlOTls n.y. sept ll-lne HiSl -edi-
/ ~ sensational testimony in the trial OF
James Howard. charged with having fired
the shot that killed William Goebel, was
given to-day by Bowman Gaines. aflocal
hveryman, and James Stubhlefleld, a
former deputy sheriff OF Clay County.
The former Identified Howard as the
man who ran oct from the rear Of the
statehouse grounds and jumped over the
fence Immediately after the shooting.
Gaines was positive in his Identification Of
the prisoner as the man. and said the
latter then wore a mustache, and was
followed by q man who was tall and
slender. A boy who was near by at the
time viii also be introduced as witness
10 corroborate Gaines.
The most sensational witness. however.
and at the same time the most important
witness from the prosecution standpoint.
was James Stubblefeld, a one-legged and
one-armed ex-deputy sheriff of Clay coun-
ty. Stubblefeld testified that Howard ex-
ultingly told him that he fred the shot
that took Goebers life.
Howard'- Alleged Confession.
Stubblefeld lost HIS limbs as a result of
the Clay County feuds last year. His
testimony in detail was that Howard
stopped at his house in February, shortly
after the shooting Shortly after he came
in Stubblefed says he remarked to him:
Jim, you all have been having trouble
down al Frankfort"
Yes responded Howard. according TO
the witness, I'VE have raised hell and
cleaned the platter" and added "I never
sight down my gun barrel but what get
meat or money. and this time l got both"
The witness says Howard was again at
his house several days later. and he asked
him what he meant by his remark on the
former occasion. Howard responded:
by God, | meant just what / said"
Witness said he then pressed him, put
ting the direct question: Jim, do you
mean to say that you killed Goebel?"
Howard, he says, responded IN the at
firmative, and said he believed his noun
tain friends would stand by him ana that
800 men could not take him TO Frankfort
for trial.
Stubblefield said he did not tell the
story of Howard's confession to him uR-
til he heard that Howard and his friends
were planning to kill him.
The defense subjected the witness 10 a
severe crOss-eXamination, but failed to-
tangle him TO any extent.
Witness Jones Disersdited.
]. L Jones. Of Knox County, was intro
dueed by the prosecution and told of al
legged remarks by Howard indicating con-
nection with the murder but his testi-
mony was entirely broken down by the
defense, who not only showed him to
have served two terms in the penitentiary,
but that he had also been promised COM
pensation for his labor in looking up tes-
timony. He said Col. T. c. Campbell had
promised him reasonable sum of money
for his services, but that Campbell said
he only wanted the truth, and did not
want 10 see anything but the truth
brought out
Jones is the uncle OF Howards wife
During all of the testimony Howard did
not display any change of feeling During
The damaging testimony of Stubble6ed,
which from the manner II was given must
have made a strong impression on the
jury, Howard smiled and prompted his at
torneys.
The other witnesses examined to-day
told nothing new. The prosecution will
probably conclude its testimony to-mor-
row morning.