Milford chronicle., 1903-03-20
IN
COLLINS CASE.
THE TRIAL OF ELMER COLLINS, AC.
CUSED OF WIFE MURDER.
Has Been in Progress This Week-A
Great Many Witnesses to be Sum
moned A Woman Said to be
the Cause OF the Crime.

the Cause OF the crime.
Calm and well dressed and looking
more like a clerk than farmer, Elmer
p Collins appea. ed before the Court Of
Over & Terminer sitting in special
session at Georgetown, to hear his case
He does not seem to realize his posi-
tion or the gravity ofthe charges made
against him by the State. The cout
convened a few minutes afterl2o'clock
The rrisoner is a small man, with Il
resigned expression of countenance'
and he does not bear the appearance of
having born very heavy load Of anX-
ietv for almost year and confinement
in Georgetown jsil since last October
The jury panel was exhausted, and
sixteen talisman were picked from the
crowd of spectators before the jury was
completed.
In all sixty-fve names were called
before a jury was drawn. Twenty
were challenged by the defence, nine
bv the State. and twenty four we're eN'
cused by court because they said their
conscience would not permit them to
send a man to the galows.
Almost every man called said he had
formed and expressed an opinion, ana
number of them no amount of evi
dence could make them change their
views The jury selected follows:
Henry NJ. Tunnel, William w.
Knowles. Enos B. Wright, Hiram II
Kitchens. .JesseT. Wells, ,Osuaci Towns
end. John f. S. Wroten, William )
Mustard. Joseph B. Hearn, Peter Win
gate, Thomas Pepper and Philip Ii.
Layton.
Acknowledgement Herbert H. WARD
Tuesday outlined before thejury sitting
in the case of Elmer Collins, accused OF
the murder of his wife, Aida, just what
the State intends to try to prove by IT.
witnesses. As was generally suspected
the State will attempt to show tna'
Mrs. Collins was killed in corncrib by
her husband, and that her body was
carried to the wagon house, in which II
WAS discovered. AS a motive for tn
crime. the State will contend and Ell
deavor to show that Collins was in love
with another woman and desired iC
get rid of his wife in order to accompany
the other woman.
Mr.. Ward said that Mr.. Collins haC
made conflicting statements. He haC
blood stains on his overalls and tn
State says that it will prove that tn
blood came there by squirting from
human body. The iron bar will be pro
duced with which the crime was com
mitted. The theory of the State j
that the woman was in a STOPPING posi-
tion when she was struck back the hea'
and knocked to the floor, the bod.
afterwards being dragged to the stable
Mr.. Ward said that the State woul'
prove Collins wasintimate with won
man and wanted her to go away wit
him. de daring that he wOu d clear to
way for II EN-.
F~ank r. Carswell, an architect G
Wilmington, was the first witness ca
ed. and he testified to measurmen'
aLout the Collins property he had msd dc
1 Two pieces of flooring had been re
moved from the cOrncrib, and ter
nail containing a shred of the murdere
woman's dress was marked in III
drawings.
Mary Henry, daughter, of the neare
neighbor, said she saw man runnin
from the Collins stable to the ColllI
house shortly after o'clock, but coul
not describe the man.
George w. Henry, the girls fathe
= said he did not know whether b
laughter was out of bed when he g
, up. Collins said to him when he wei
o view the murdered wOman's bod
. George, this is bad business" " NJ
; Henry said he helped Collins to earl
the body into the house, but could y
remember whether the corpse was stii
He felt some warmth when he place
his hand under the body. He also q
= scribed the location of the murder
/ woman when he arrived at the hOus
Rev. F. J. Cochran testified that
If went to Collins farm with the Re
q H. c. Turner and met the Rev J.
McCreary there. He saw Collins col
d ing from the house and told him he "
l. sorry to hear of the affair.
+ Eyes, it will ruin me-" replied c.
Il Inns, with tears running down his chee
/ He displayed natural manifestations