The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-03-07
Long Array of Witnesses Relate Cir
cumstances Tending to Fix the
Crime on the Mountaineer.
JACK CHINN SUES FOR LIBEL
SAYS A WOMAN ACCUSED HIM OF
KILLING MIR. GOEBEL.
Defendant Ii the Wife of q Frankfort
liant Victory I'm Omaha.

FRANKFORT. KY, March ga crowd
which packed the Franklin county Circuit
Court room gathered to-day to hear the
examining trial of Harlan Whitaker, the
Butler county farm hand, suspected of be-
ing implicated in the murder of Goebei.
A number of prominent women were pres
ent. The charge was changed from mali
cious shooting to murder. Whitaker was
nervous. Thirteen witnesses, all sum-
moned by the commonwealth, were called.
The first witnesses sworn were men who
had been concerned in the arrest of Whit
taker on the morning Of the assassination.
These witnesses were John A. Miles, A.
Miller, Detective Armstrong, Constable
Davis Harrod and Policeman Thompson.
Armstrong and Harrod swore that Whit
taker had contradicted himself in stating
his whereabouts on the Capital square at
the moment the fatal shots were fired.
At noon court adjourned until o'clock.
The last witness called during the forenoon
was Charles Howard. a farmer. who said
shooting that he had come to Frankfort
to protect Governor Taylor's life. Howard
declared that just after Goebel fell he saw
one oI the fHllpOlS anu TWO Oh the HOW
ards. Berry and Jim. members of we'll
known mountain families. in the door of
the executive building, heavily armed He
said that he was deputed by the sheriff to
guard the capitol grounds, but was or
dered away by the commanding officer
when the troops arrived. None of the wit
nesses for the defense were named during
the morning. 1t was believed Whittaker's
attorneys had a surprise in store for the
other side. They declined to cross-examine
any of the witnesses for the prosecution
State Senator Nat Howard is chief counsel
for the prisoner. The county attorney is
assisted by T. c. Campbell, New York
criminal lawyer.
The other witnesses who testified were
Thompson, Frank Daily, r. Armstrong,
John Noonan, John Moran, David Davis,
w. w. Combs. Albert Charlton. Dennis
dence was brought out by P. W. Bowman,
Of Hardin county. He testified that a half
hour before the assassination he saw the
window on the second floor over the main
entrance to the executive building raised.
He suddenly saw the arm of the man who
raised the window and saw two men stand
ing further back. He said that when Whit
clothes he had on then and those worn by
the man who raised the window. He said
one of the two men who was standing
back from the window at the time men,
toned said to the other:
Damn it. we ought to have killed the
other twoi"
This remark he thinks had reference to
two judges of the Court of Appeals. The
description of the two men who are al
legged to have held this conversation tailed
with suspects who have been under sur
VIGILANCE, but who have not been arrested.
Whitaker was held without bail for the
April grand jury. Silas Jones, the Whitley
county suspect, who was given bail, was
put on the stand, but was only asked a
few questions, both sides seeming not to
want to go into his evidence deeply.
The House by a party vote killed the bill
introduced by Representative Haswell
(Rep.), which proposed to repeal the Goebel
election law and to substitute for 1T the
law in force at the time of its passage, and
under which the election machinery was in
the hands of the county judges.