Milford chronicle., 1903-03-27
ELMER COLLINS FREE !
The Man Over Whose Head the Suspicion of
Murder Has Been Hanging Has Been
Pronounced InnOCent-The Jury
Was in Retirement about
One Hour.
One Hour.

Mrs. Priscilla Phillips, the day tefole
the murder, saw a colored man on
bicycle going by her house. She had
often seen eOlored men riding wheels
about.
James E. Collins, father of the MUIR
dered woman, and two of his children,
swore that Collins relation with his
wife were pleasant and they were fond
of children.
Several witnesses testified to seeing
tracks about the barn aud leading to
the branch
Eddie Pippin, Robert Birmingham,
boys, said they were boating on the
millpond and saw a man running
through the branch Six witnesses
gave Collins a high reputation for peace
and orderly behavior.
The trial Of Elmer Collins was hur-
ried along much faster than was ex-
pected, the defense not going very
deeply into their theory that Waite,
the negro, had committed the crime.
1t was only by iHdirection. Just enough
was brought out to raise a possible
doubt in the minds Of the jury that
some unknown man had committed
the deed. This abandonment Of a di-
rect effort to attach the crime to the
negro was evidently a surprise TO the
State, as the encouragement had pre-
pared to establish an alibi for the negro
by cloud of witnesses from Smyrna.
Waite himself was brought down fiOm
FarnhuFstand the State possibly would
have put him On the stsnd. Instead
the defense has been conteOt to assail
the character Of the witnesses for the
State and to establish the character and
disposition of Collins.
The defense was content with estab-
fishing the friendly relations between
collins aud his wife and their affection
for their children This was done by a
number Of witnesses, most of whom
proved to lie relatives of the couple.
The Collins family appears to ramify
to almost every part ofthe region where
the crime was committed, and both the
relatives Of the prisoner and of his wife
appear to be doing all they can to clear
the accused man.
The character Of Henry Niblett, who
testified to the praying confession,
which he declared he heard in the barn,
was bolstered up by a number Of men
who had known him and who declared
he was worthy Of belief on his oath,
although several of them admitted that
Niblett had a reputation for telling
jokes and yarns.
Elmer Collins, the prisoner, was re-
called and asked about the bolt with
which the fatal blow is supposed to
have been delivered. Collins took the
bolt in his hand, unmoved by this
grewsome reminder of the tradgedy
He said there were two bolts similar TO
each other which his father had given
him for tethering his COWS to. They
had both been driven in the ground for
that purpose. One of the cows had
died and the bolt lay around the stable.
He presumed the other bolt lay in the
field. He presumed the bar that Mr.
Ward handed him was the one with
which the fatal blow had been de-
livered.
ORA. Robin, the expert for the State,
was then placed upon the stand. The
testimony Of Mrs. Smith, who said that
some hours after the finding of the
body she had removed q speek from
the head and blood had flowed out as
if from a pitcher, was referred to the
doctor declared that this was impos-
sible.