Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-01-17
ALL DENY Their GUILT
Men Accused of Jennie Bosschei-
ter's Taking Off Tell
Their Stories.
THEY ARE PLAUSIBLE AND AGREE
Gave the Girl No Drug, They Say, Nor
Did They Do Her Harm
of Any Kind.

paterson, n. d., Jan. 1l.--COunSel Tor
the defense in the Jennie Bosschieter
murder trial yesterday practically
closed its case. William A. Death.
Walter /. McAlister and Andrew
Campbell, the three men on trial for
the murder, went upon the stand in
their own behalf and told their ver-
sions of the events OF the night Jennie
Bosschieter met her death while In
their company. They told the same
story practically, and their testimony
varied but little as TO details. The
plea set up ,by counsel for the three
defendants was general and specific
denial of all the accusations made
against the men. He opened with an
attack on the moral character of the
dead girl, and claimed that the prison
ers were in no wayresponsible for the
death of Jennie BosSchieter. He de-
MED that she had been drugged, and
he denied that she had been ill-treated
and assaulted. x
Testimony of the AeesasA.
McAlister, Death and Campbell were
each on the stand Their testimony
was on the line that they were acting
on a generous impulse when they took
the girl out of thersaloon to the hack
They claimed that she was Jolly
drunk" for n time in the back room
of Saal's saloon; said she was Joking
and laughing after the first drink: that
she became ''dopey after taking alb
sinthe and then became dead drunk.
They had thought a drive in the fresh
air would do her good. and had taken
her'aeross the river ont into the coun-
try. The assault. was denied. They had
lifted the girl out, of the hack because
She was sick, and they had conducted
themselves like humanitarians in their
efforts TO bring her back To her senses.
They had taken her to the brook to OBJ
tam water. They would have taken
her home after she was dead. but
when they reached the neighborhood
they saw persons about.
Meeting Was Not Premeditnted.
They We're frightened at 'the dead
GIRL and did not want to get mixed
up in the scandal They maintained
that they had no evil intentions against
the girl. The meeting in the saloon
was unitentional so far as McAlister
wifs. concerned, and he had drawn his
friend Kerr into the case unwittingly.
Campbell became mixed up in it be-
cause Death did not want TO be seen
On the street with the girl lest some
one tell his wife. The hack, it would
appear from the statements made by
lie pTiSOu6ES. WIS NOT lltehueu lOT tie
party at first, but for McAlister, Kerr
and TWO young women whose names
Mc.illster refused to divulge, on the
ground that their names had not been
mentioned and he did not want to
cause them annoyance.
Alleged Confessions Are Got In.
The stop intended at Lees was not
connected with the girl they had with
them. but because, although she had
lad enough to drink 1.-THE men had fur
ther capacity. The story as told by
each appeared plausible, explanatory
and reasonable. but ebnfiicted with the
testimony of the haekman aud the al
legged confessions of Death aud Camp
bell as introduced blythe state and adj
mitted as evidence. THE state, which
was beaten Tuesday In the effort to in
troduce the confession said to have
been made by Campbell, succeeded yes
terday in getting it all in in even more
detailed a manner than would have
been possible Tuesday. Today the sum-
ming up will occur and probably the
case will be left with the jury about
sundown, although itgsmay be that
Judge Dixon will defer the charge to
the jury until Friday.