Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1902-12-05

y
terday afternoon faced the jury which
had been selected TO hear the evidence
and render a verdict on the charge
against him of the murder NJ his wife,
Margaret, in April Of last yesr. Trial
began before Judges Braley and Ste', ms
of the Suffolk county bench AMI IN sc
presence of a crowd of people which
filled the court room to its utmost, and
overfiowed into the outer corridors.
As the Rlondin case is a complex one.
sitting of the court.
Considerable progress was made for
the opening day, the jury being EN-
panelled, the opening plea made by AS
sistant District Attorney Mclaughlin
in which the government case was
outlined, and a motion granted provid-
ing for Il view of the several premises
in this city and Chelmsford, Mass.
wherein it is contended Mrs. Blondin
was murdered, her body mutilated and
placed i'll trunk, and where the body
was found under brush heap and the
head in a brook. The jury will be
taken sightseeing today.
In selecting jury Blondin had the
right to % challenges and he had made
this number when 1870 talesmen had
been called and only eight Jurors were
in the box. The jury was completed
from the next ID men called. The
government challenged two men. The
rejection of talesmen was chiefly on
their aversion to capital punishment or
disa bility in the eyes of the court. The
court refused the request of counsel
for the prisoner 10 have talesmen asked
as to their knowledge of the case oh
tanned from newspapers in addition TO
the questions required by law.
With the preliminaries to opening the
case properly settled. Assistant Dis
trlst Attorney Mclaughlin addressed
the court and jury. He said that the
government would show that on Jure
Q, 1901, the ''headless body of a woman
was found in remote part of Chelms.
ford. The head was found in near
by brook. Mr. Mclaughlin described
the condition of the body and the head.
and Of the identification of the person
as Margaret Emma BlOndin, wife OF
the prisoner at the bar. The coming to
Boston of Blondin and his wife was
traced by Mr.. Mclaughlin, who also
said that when they were married Blon-
din was already a married man, having
a wife and children in Canada. He
brought his newly made bride To room
in a house on Green street. Boston. He
was at that time a fireman in a candy
| factory.
On Saturday, April 81, 1901. Blondin
asked permission of the engineer of the
factory to leave an hour eaIiar than
usual He left the factory Wbort 4
o'clock.
The government will show, said Mr..
Mclaughlin, that Mrs. Blond;n had
| been out and returned to the Green
street house at 4:10 o'clock. The com
mOnwealth will try to establish that
| Mrs. Blondin never emerged alive out
| of that room. 1t will be shown that
| the prisoner left the house and did OF
| return until Monday when his landlady
asked him about Mrs. Blondin. He
replied that she had obtained sitrl-
ton as StewardeSs on one of the Ca
madam boats. Blondin then pa c<ed up
| the belongings of the couple and had
them removed by an eXpressman.
Mr.. Mclaughlin showed how the
movements of Blondin in Boston ND till
June 6 would be traced and of the con
ficting statements as to his wife's
wherea bouts told to various persons.
1t would be shown, he said. that BIondin
on learning that the body of his wife
had been found displayed great anxiety
to get paper and read the circum-
stances; how he hastily left Boston,
went Oh an ocean liner as a stokcr. and
how he applied to the authorities in
New York for a license as a fireman.
In concluding he said the government
would show that Blondin was Jealous
Of his wife, and this would be set I'D
as a motive for commission of the
crime.
| When Mr. Mclaughlin had sat down,
Lawyer Morrison asked that the cou t
allow the jury to visit the Ousterhaut
farm and the places where the hea |
and body were found, and the house a {
AZ Green street. The prosecution
agreed and the court ordered the trip.
Court here adjourned until 2 o'clock
this afternoon.