The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-11-04
70 DSljREIAT TE GIRLS
EFFORTS OF THE DEFENSE TO I'M
PEACH THE TRUTH OF THEIR
TESTIMONY
DAY IN ANoKA MURDER CASE
Evidence Introduced to Prove That
Allie Preston Was Drunk When
He SvvOre Miller offered
Him Money.

ANOKA, Mimi. Nov. 3.-The defense in
the Wise murder case introduced mass
of testimony today intended to discredit
the stories told by Martha and Eliza Wise
and that of the boy Preston. Several wit
nesses swore that the Wise girls were
liars Of repute and that their statements
were invariably accepted with reserve.
Miss Sophie Hague, who has been
teacher in the school attended by the
Wise girls, said positively that they were
of bad reputation The value of this
young woman's testimony may have been
somewhat lessened in the eyes of the
jury from the fact that on leaving the
witness stand she waved her hand to
Hardy and Miller and smiled as she pass
ed them.
Mrs. Harry Lapham, who, with her hUs-
band, was first on the scene after the
shooting, was a neighbor of the Wise
family. 1t was to the Lapham house that
the girls ran after the murder. Both Mrs.
Lapham and her husband swore that the
glass door in the parior, which Martha
and Eliza have sworn was pushed open
as signal by the murderers blew open
on the least provOcation. Lapham swears
that the door was blown open several
times while he was in the house after
the murder, and that the only way it
could be kept closed was by locking it.
lie testi1es that he did lock the door that
night in order to keep it shut.
MARTHAS VARYING STORIES.
Martha Wise subsequently told Lapham,
when she was staying at his house, short
~ after the murder, that Miller ana
Hardy We're at the Wi e farm on the night
OF the crime. Later on, she said that
they might have been there but that if
they were she did not know it.
There was a lengthy conference as to
the admissibility of testimony by the de-
-Io.,r rri11rr
had all his life been subject to fainting
spells, and that he had on more than
one occasion tainted at the sight of blood,
even though the blood was that of
slaughtered chicken.
The court decided to admit the tesd-
mony of Miss Jessie ellis, who was at
one time iMller's teacher, which was to
the effect that in the winter of 1S97-1SSS
Miller tainted in her school room. The
family of. the defendant claims that he
has been throughout his life of a timid,
shrinking nature and that he could never
be prevailed on even to kiln a fowl.
Peter Floreen was also called to testify
that the glass door at the Wise house
would blow open at the very slightest
provocation.
Anna Floreen, his sister. testified that
she heard the shots which killed the
Wises, and that when she reached the
house Immediately afterwards, it was
1926 o'clock. .Wise's statement made
shortly after the shooting was admitted.
He said that the total amount of money
his wife had in the bank was SO that
the interest was paid her semi-annually
in a check sent from the Sunnyside bank,
and that every member of the family
knew all about it. The interest amount
ed to a 81 a year.
WAS PRESTON DRUNK?
George Fitzsimmons, a farmer, was
called. He swore that Allie Preston,
whose statement on oath that Miller had
offered him part of the Wise money if he
would help him in the killing, is a strong
part of the states case, had told him that
he was drunk when he made the affidavit
Fitzsimmons swore that Preston told him
he had taken five drinks of whisky and
five glasses of beer on the occasion when
he visited the county attorneys office and
signed the statement Preston had also
told him that Sheriff Merrill piled him
with beer before taking him to the coun-
" attorneys office. Mr.. Peterson tried
hard TO confuse FitZSimmOnS on cross
examination, but the witness had much
the best Of the exchange and stuck to
his story very firmly
This witness added that Preston had
since told him again that he was drunk
when he signed the accusation against
Miller and that he did not remember
what he did or said.
l.. n. Powers also testified that Pres
ton told him he didn't know anything
about the Wise murder He had no idea
whether Miller and Hardy were con-
nected with it or not.
James Casey, another witness proved
to be the brother-in-law of Tierney. the
candidate for sheriff n opposition to Mer-
rIl Preston had told him that he mad
five WHISTLES and five beers when lie
made the statement to Mr. Pratt.
AFTERNOON SESSION
Henry Neuton knew Preston many
wears testified to his stating in George
Fitzsimmons', John Casey's and witness
presence that he had four drinks Of whis-
key at hotel, two in a saloon. and that
Sheriff Merrill bought him five glasses