Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1901-02-26
THE DETAILS OF THE TRAGEDY
BEING TOLD IN JUDGE
CLANCY'S COURT.
BACHMAN WAS AN
-,:.aa.-- UNWILLING WITNESS.
Admitted That He Was a Friend of
o'Brien Who Is Charged With
stabbing Thompson.

Thompson to death with a knife i'm front
Of Gilbeat's saloon. on South Montana
street. on the night of January Il. faced
n jury and his aocusers in Judge Clancy's
court again today. Good progress was
made in the trial of the cause during the
day.
The trial Is being attended by quite {,
number of women, among them being
me mother OF the defendant and the
widow of The murdered man. The latter
is dressed in deep mourning. When she
apps 81 in the court room today >i,c
was accompanied by several Of the six
children who were made ia lherless ana
left without means of support by the
act OF the defendant
Herman HUM was the first witness
called today He said he knew both
Thompson and O. Br.en.
II was in Gilhert'S saloon on the night
of the trouble. said he. Being ac-
quainted with Thompson and Anderson,
who were also III thC saloon. / joined
them ana we had a sew drinks. While
we We're together O'Brien came in With
his ice skates on and began talking to
Thompson. There was another younS
man WIKI O'Brien After a few remarks
had passed between Thompson and
OBrien the latter to,l the former he
was a boxer and would put on the gloves
w.,h anybody. They engaged in an APP
parently friendly scuflie. and O'B.'ien got
Thomps on's head down. Thompson
pulled away from hm ana O'Brien
Slapped him. O'Bren then went out.
but returned again later on ana Thomp-
son asked him what he mealt by the
s,lpping. O'Brien said something was
lie ana invited Thompson outside. I
sail to Thompson, you ought to go out
and scare him away and Thompson and
Anderson Went out. BY and by they
came back and Thompson was ho,iins
a handkerchief to one side of his face.
Ha was WiE-ng blood from his face.
Thompson remained in the saloon abolt
an hour and then started fCc his. home.
When I tod Thompson to go out and
Scare O'B4'ien away Thompson hal his
overcoat on, but at once took it off and
ia a it on the bar. Then he went outside.
Thompson had been standing at the bar,
but followed OBrien right out in res
spcnse 10 the invitation. l did not
hear O'Brien use the expression d
Sweles.
Timothy ]. Nolan. who was also in Gill
bert's saloon at the time of the trouble,
said he knew O'Brien well and had
known Thompson nearly three years. Il
was not paying much attention to them
at first" said Nolan. 20 Brien came i'll
and he and Thompson got to gassing
about strength. O'Brien caught Thomp-
son and had his head down, but Thompson
pulled back and said: Johnny, I'm too
old ana strong for you Johnny then hit
him clip on the cheek and went out. At
ter little some one told Thompson that
O'Brien had remarked that he intended
to do him, Thompson, up, and when
O'Brien returned to the saloon he asked
O'Brien if the remark attributed to him
was true O'Bren answered that it was
lie. Just as O'Brien was stepping
through the doorway enroute into the
darkness he invited Thompson to step
outside, adding that he would show him,
Thompson. what he could or what he
would do. 1t was one or the other"
Arthur Bachman proved to be a very
unwilling witness for the prosecution,
but his previous statements in regard to
the case put him in had box. He was
$50 compelled to acknowledge his friend
illness for the defendant which plunged
him still deeped into the mire of humil-
iation. On the night of the stabbng the
witness had seen two men standing at
the corner of Main and Park streets.
They We're discussing the ARRAY in Gill
berts saloon and on the strength of
what was said Bachman had jumped on
q street car and gone to the saloon to
take a look at the place. Four days lat
or he had told some parties that one of
the two men he had seen and heard talk
ing was John O'Bren. the defendant. On
4 ~ =
known OBren ten or eleven years. but
he could not swear that O'Brien was one
of the two men he had seen and heard
talking at the corner Of Main and Park
streets on the night of the tragedy.
On the strength Of this assertion the
defense objected to the witness telling
what he heard unless he could positively
identify the defendant as one of the men
who were talking about the tragedy
The prosecution therefore had to get
at it in another way.
1t is maintained that Bachman was an
unwilling witness for on two other oc-
casions he had stated that O'Brien was
one of the, two men he had seen at the
correr of Main and Park streets.
Mr.. Bachman. We're you in Gus Nick
els saloon in the evening of January
1872" asked the county attorney.
YES sir"
DO YOU know William Griffith and
Ne,s Erickson?"
YES. SIR
did YOU see them in Nichols saloon
| on the night of the 10Th. the time the
! inquest was held on the body of Thomp-
! so,-9''
: Yes, sir"
Did you not say to them that on the
= right of the stabbing you saw joan
I O'Erien and another young man at the
. conner of Main and Park streets and that
you heard O'Brien say that Gilbert's
, saloon was getting to he a tough place:
| that a man could not go into it with safe
~ and that he had on that very night