The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-24
Conversation Nfh Mrs RubeI
 on Morning of Shooting WITNESS EXPLAINS QUARREL
According to Testimony of Witnesses Yesterday Havls Acted In Self
 Defense By Shooting When
 He DId--court Crowded.

William Wise was placed on the stand yesterday by the defense in the trial o1 Glen Havis who Is charged with the Kill ing of Elias M. Lathem at the Morris hotel on the morning of April II.
 Only five witnesses were heard for the defense during the day They were: D. H. Hamilton, janitor at the court house, who answered the telephone the day Wise called up the sheriff's office and asked that a deputy be sent to hts place of business where a man wanted to give himself up.
 s. w. Askew who witnessed the ktli- ing from a point near the register coun- ter at the hotel.
 F. l.. Dyar. who also saw the killing and testified the day before for the state Frank Leonard who was employed as an extra bar tender at the Morris bar.
 William Wise the co-defendant in the case who was participant in the quar- rel preceding the killing.
 At the afternon session the court room was packed with spectators. Among the l friends and relatives of the defendant present were MT and Mrs. D. B. Havis, parents of Glen Havis, Mrs. E. B. Havis. Jr., sister-in-law of the defendant, Miss | Wise. Mrs. W. L. Delheim and Mrs. l Steinau, sisters of William Wise.
 State Objects.
 There was objection on the part of the attorney for the state to allowing tine defense to ask the witness William Wise certain questions. The jury asked to re- tire in order that the court could pass on the relevancy of the questions, and therefore on the competency of the wit ness to testify. The matter was argued at some length by MT. Weakley for lfe state and the court sustained their ob- lection, so that the questions were not answered. They were in regard to the conversation between the witness and his sister Mrs. Joe Rubel on the day of the killing.
 | At the opening of the session yesterday 1 the defense announced that they wanted to ask a question of F. L. Dyar, former witness of the state. He was called but
  Hamilton the janitor of the court house. was then called.
 1 He testified that he was connected with the sheriff's office as deputy; that he re- membered the day Lathem was killed; that he reveived telephone message on that day; that no name was given; that he understood that some one at the Morris hotel wanted deputy as there was a man there who wanted to give himself up and he understood that there was some kind of shooting scrape at the hotel. He said he received the call at about 11:10 o'clock.
 s. w. Askew.
 The next witness was s. w. Askew. He testified that he was railroad man; that he lived at Avondale; that he was at the Morris hotel on the day Elias M Lathem ! was killed; that his attention was first att tracted by loud talking in the direction of the private office of the hotel and that at the time he was standing near the reg ister He said that he looked and saw | three gentlemen clinching in fight and another man ran to them and caught one and threw him toward the ladies stair | way.
 | The witness testified that he then saw a man stagger toward the wash room |; that the man then drew a pistol on Mir. | Wise; that he heard voice say, Don't shoot;'" that the pistol was then turned in that direction, and the man on whom 1t was turned drew pistol and began firing Glen Havis was pointed out to the wit ness and he said he believed that was the man who did the shooting. He said that the man who staggered toward the wash room was Lathem; that Wise was nearer the check room than Lathem; that the man who threw Hayis that he received telephone message on back came from the back office, that he thought he ran into the front office aftef- ward; that he first saw Lathem's pistol when they clinched; that he next saw it when 1t was drawn on MT. Wise at which time Lathem was facing the barber shop door and that he didn't see Wise with a | pistol at all.
 cross-ExamIned. | At this point the witness was turned | over to the state and the -examina- ! tion was conducted by Attorney Weakley He testified that he had been at the hotel | very short time before the shooting; | that when he came from home that morn I ing he went to the gentlemen's waiting | room of the Union passenger station. from there to the drug store and from the drug store to the Morris; that he l went to the hotel to visit the wash room; | that he stopped at the corner of the coun- ter to get match; that he saw no other gentleman at the corner of the counter. | and that the party was to his right and within three or four feet Of him. The witness said that he was not ac- quainted with Lathem, but had seen him before; that he had known Wise for two or three years; that he had seen Havis a number of times before; that he did not see anything in Wises hands; that when he looked Havis was throwing them apart and that he had his hands on both Wise and Lathem. He said further that Lathem was somewhat stopped; that he saw Wise strike Lathem somewhere