Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-14
FOR Theft Of
A TIME PIECE
Trial of John O'Neill Com
menced Today.
AN ALLEGED CONFESSION
Evidence That O'Neill Admitted the
Theft to Capt. Leyden--Pris0ner's
Explanation.

The trial of John O'Neill, a Centerville
miner. charged with the theft of a valua-
BILE gold watch from Tim J. Harrington
at Riley's boarding house in Centervilie
I or the 18th of last June, was commenced
before the following jury in the criminal
department of the district court today:
Patrick O'Neill, Gus. Kohler, Samuel
Barker, John w. Bergman. w. II. Alb
bolt, j. August, w. F. Packard. Robert
Elliott, Thomas Coughlin, Daniel Cohan,
Peter McDermott and Daniel Freethey.
The defense is being conducted by
Mackel g. Breen; the prosecution by Cor
nelius F. Kelly. 1t was evident from the
! start that the legal representatives OF
the defendant had something up their
sleeve, for on a long table in front of them
was a row of law books resembling a Boer
battery. The books were trained directly
on the judge and each one contained a
p%rotruding marker copperirg a particu-
lar charge which it was proposed to hre
at the court when the time arrived.
TIL time arrived all right, but the court
would not stand the fire. When the pro-
SOCulAOl q SlOSSu = SAW w.
promptly filed a written motion to have
the court instruct the jury to acquit the
defendant on the ground that the eviden;e
was insufficient to convict the defendant.
II nave some authorities to maintain my
position said he, reaching for one Of the
row of books.
II am just loaded with authorities" re-
piled the judge. IL don't care to hear
them. The motion is OVprr1llod.'
Harry Blumkin identified the watch as
one he had sold Harrington for $3.50 about
two years ago, following it with the as
sertion that he had not seen the timepiece
since that time.
Harrington also identified the property
as his own and said it had been stolen
from his room and $500 had been stolen
along with it. Tom O'Neill, he said, oc-
cupied the room with him, but left first N
the morning Of the day of the robbing. He
produced the key to the lock on the door
and sad his and the chamber
maid each had a duplicate of it.
D. w. Brodie, manager of Harry lum-
kin's loan office. testified that early in
July the defendant, had produced the
watch at the store and asked for $40 on 1t.
Witness said he knew the watch and had
been previously requested by the police
department to be on the lookout for it.
He asked O'Neill where he got it and the
latter said he had paid 500 for it In
{, Michigan. following with the assertion
when closely questioned that he had only
loaned the money on the timepiece. Wit
ness further said he had quietly notified
]. j. Murphy, the city detective, and the
officer had taken O'Neill into custody.
Mr.. Murphy co~rroborated Brodie'a
statement and added that O'Neill had told
!, him in Blumkin's store that he had
) bought the watch from a man in a saloon
; in North Main street. On the way to the
nitu toll nSNoi11 hoS yonIa n Ill Ror Y;A
! erty by running. III was captured half q
! block away. At the Jail Officer Leyden
! had questioned him about other things
that had been stolen from the board.
: ing house, but he denied having had any.
} thing to do with them. He admitted
however, the theft of Harrington's watch
! He told the officer he had n into ths
J room and TAX, n it from Harrington's' YES
! pocket.
An objection to the testimony concern.
J inf the confession was made on the ground
J that O'Neill had not told his story vo,un
! tarily, but the judge overruled it.
! Captain Leyden and Tailor McGlyn1
} clinched Murphy's testimony, but tn,
former fixed the date of the arrest. H,
said it had occurred about $3.50 o'clock o,
i the night of July 10. McGlynn said tn,
prisoner had another watch and chain OF
his person when he arrived at the Jail.
This closed the testimony for the pro
secution and Mr.. Kelly asked the cour
for permission to change the reading O.
the information. He said the documen
charged the defendant with having bur
glarlzed HarringtOn's room on the 10th o
July, when in fact 1t had been shown tina
the crime was committed on the 18th O
June. The request was granted.
The defense then opened it's side. tn,
defendant telling his story first. He sal,
he was 81 years old, had come from Mas
~sachusetts where he worked an a long
shoreman, was a citizen of this country
He knew Harrington, the loser of tn
watch, and had frequently visited him II
his room. AS both We're staying In tn
same house, Harrington had maintaine,
MS social obligations by returning tn
call. On July 4 he was in Anaconda an
in jabbing his hands into his coat poke
had come across the watch. He knew no
how it got there, as he had no recollectio
Of having entered the apartments of Har
rlngton n taking it. Along about tn
10th he came down town and took a fey
drinks. Then he jabbed his hand into Id
coat pocket once more and it again struc
the watch. But that coat was not tn
one he had worn N the 4th, as he had ex
changed it for another and the waite
had gone with it. Feeling the need of tn
use of a few dollars. he had, O n finding
h second time, concluded to paw il, bv
while negotiating the loan Detective Mul
ply a arrested him. Asked If he ha
made a break for liberty or the way
the Jail. he SAID he had because Murph
had told him his prospects for a long ter
in Jail were good and he was afraid.
Do you mean to tell this jury that Il
III watch came into your possession WithOl