Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1901-04-26
EASTMAN GAINS enc POINT |
Certain Evidence Against Alleged
Murderer Ruled Out.
FACT WANTED, NOT OPINION.
Day of Sensational Developments In the
Noted Cambridge Trial-Drugglst Titus
Testifies to Seeing the Fatal Struggle
What Victim Said.

Cambridge, Mass, April 26.-Profes-
sor Charles r. Eastman of Harvard,
on trial for the murder of his brother
in-law, Richard H. Grogan, Jr., July 4
last. gained critical point today.
Judge Gaskill Of the superior court, be-
fore whom the trial is proceeding
ruled that evidence in the form of repe-
titions by witnesses of statements al
legged to have been made by Grogan as
he was dying was not admissible in
certain form, which tended to convey
the opinion and not the fact as to
whether Grogan had been KILLED" or
murdered" The decision came about
in this way: After Walter ID. Titus,
druggist, who claimed to have seen the
encounter between Eastman and Gro
gan, had testified that he had heard
Grogan say, Charles. you have muir
dered me" Lottie Broughton was called
to the stand. She was asked to repeat
what she had heard Grogan say, her
testimony having already gone be-
yond the point where it had been
shown that Grogan was wounded. Mr..
Elder, attorney for the prisoner, inter
posing. said he anticipated the answer
to be Charles, you've murdered me,
and to it he objected as incompetent
eveidence on the plain ground that it
was Grogan's opinion, not specific
declaration of the dying man. On the
same ground he objected to evidence
already presented, which in effect was
opinion and not bare statement of fact.
Attorney General knowlton took the
opposite ground, but the decision was
against the government in almost ev
cry particular, the exception being that
the identical words objected to were
allowed to stand in the direct testi-
mony of Mr.. Titus.
Day of Sensational Developments.
The entire day was full of sensation
al evidence, beginning with that Of
Druggist Titus, who saw the encounter
between Eastman and Grogan. Titus
said that while passing the rear of the
Clark estate in cambridge. July 4. he
heard groans, followed by the words:
ooh, don't! oh, don't" Looking over
the fence witness saw two men strug-
Cling. At length one broke away, say
ing: Charles, you've murdered me-"
These words were repeated, and then
the Liam threw up his hands and ran
toward the house. The taller man,
who was Eastman. followed slowly.
He had an old-fashioned revolver in
his hand Titus, under cross examina-
ton, said that when he saw the two
men struggling they We're standing
side by side in a gateway three and
one-ha!f feet wide with their faces
turned away from him. He admitted
that anything he saw Of the men after
they parted must have been seen
through the pickets of the fence, which
ran from either side of the gateway
He said that the defendant appeared to
be dazed. Several persons who live in
the neighborhood of the Alvan Clark
estate told of excitement following the.
shooting and of hearing cries of Help
Murder!'
Another Important Witness.
The concluding witness, and the one
whose evidence is expected to be very
important, was Belle Bryan, the house.
keeper for Mrs. Grogan. Her story has
not proceed far enough to disclose the
governments strength at this point in
it's chain of circumstances.