The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-06-14

Gwaltney said he did would nave Deeh
fourteen feet ten inches away from ray
wood to his east, out of Gwaltney $ slght
! fully ten feet. They are both Witnesses
for the State. and yet that IS their testl-
monv Their contention all the time has
boop that Mr. skinner left the post office
J at the middle door and went Immediately
| across the street and that Mr.. Haywood
5 Shot him on this side. If you will reflect
{ moment YOU will see that that would
, have thrown his right side and back IN
line with the trajectory of a pistol held
onvuphere on the southern steps of the
Federal court rooms. Was he shot there?
. Not at all. There were rumors that went
everywhere, 'Shot in the back!'' But
when the evidence is produced he is shot
lIeft-handed in the left side and instead of
lretreating as he would have been doing to
Ihave been shot in the back. the position
DR.. Knox said the ball entered and ranged
down one inch and back two inches Now
lif your Honors please viii bear with nee
will call your attention to the fact that
except according to the theory of the de
PENDANT there is no way of accounting for
Mr.. SINNERS being anywhere near the
southern steps OF the post office. Yet at
least a dozen witnesses Tor the State put
aim there. If he had not come down the
! sidewalk meeting Mr.. Ernest Haywood
and if he did not have an alteration with
! him pray tell me what he was doing down
at the southern steps of the post office
| Their statement and theory Is that he
! came out of the middle steps thirty or
forty feet away and going northeast to-
ward the drug store But we are now
] told that he was at or near the southern
steps and going southeast toward Dentons
4 I'll I off
! to the statement of John Stevens, wit.
| ness for the State. He heard shots end
| looked around and saw Mr.. Skinner leav-
| ing the sidewalk at the lower steps of the
post office, the southern steps. Mr.. Willis
Briggs said he heard the shot and turned
around ana saw Mr. Skinner on the side
walk at the lower end, near the southern
entrance What was he doing there? Ac-
cording to the theory of the prosecution he
was never at the lower steps. Now that
| is the kind of testimony that the State
/ has introduced. I am not going to dwell
upon the evidence of the State. There Is
not single witness, if your Honors
please that during this hear
| ing has placed Mr.. Skinner
where he could have received a
wound where lie did receive it, if he went
into the street from the middle steps of
the post Office; not one. Do you remem
| Der the testimony of Mr.. Austin? He put
| him at the lower steps and put him gong
around the carriage which was standing
| even with the lower steps of the post office
and the only way he could get him IN 20
sition to receive the shot was by stating
| that after he got into the street he turned
I'D toward the Capitol and walked par
allel with the street car track; contradict
| ing every single witness for the State and
every single witness for the defendant.
| Not another soul has testified to anything
Of that kind except Mr.. Austin. But every
other man who has testified at all. has
| testified to the contrary. There are forty
witnesses / suppose for the State, and out
| Of them all no one except Mr.. Austin put
| Mr.. Skinner in such a position that he
could have received this wound. They say,
most of them, that he entered the street
| from the side of the middle or lower
| steps across the sidewalk and came across
| The street; some of them say he went
| toward Denton's or the Marlborough, and
while in that position the first shot was
fred The witnesses for the State say that
his back and right side were presented to
Mr. Haywood. But he was shot In tie
left side, the allTanging backward How
10 they account for his turning? When
| the first shot was fired they say he turned
a little this way or the left, but among
/ those who said he turned it is remarkable
! chat all of them said he merely turned
| his head. His right side was to the de-
| fendant and not a single witness testified
that he turned around, and the only way
| that a person going from the middle steps
Of the post office to the Marlborough House
could get his left side in a position to
receive that wound would be going turned
round and walking backwards. Not a
! single witness (and they have swift ones)
could be found who would say that. They
found one man who said he was trying
/ 10 pick up his hat, but he did not pick
| it up; and they say he must have received
| the wound from the second shot because
he did not walk very far, and that he
died soon afterwards. DIR. Knox seems 20
be impressed as an honest man with that
idea: but he stated as an honest NAL that
/ it would have been instantaneous. He
stated as an honest man that death re-
suited from hemmorrhage and shock
/ hemmorrhage mostly. He stated that the
man bled and we all know that bleeding
stops almost instantaneous with life; that
as death comes the bleeding practically
| ceases: and yet DIR. Knox tells us that he
/ .nfDkS Il1S man Dleu nearly IOuI quar- -
| The other doctors come on the stand and
tell US how long it would take that bleed
! ing to occur thirty two ounces to the
quart probably not more than half that
blood being lost through those orifices IN
| the aorta, and five or six of our reputable
physicians give it as their opinion that
| life and locomotion would not cease for
about a minute That a man could walk
there in not more than ten or twelve sec
| onds is certain IT is thirty feet from the
sidewalk curbing to street car track
Double this and make it sixty feet, and
Mr.. Skinner could have made. it in fifteen
seconds The doctors say he must have
| lived at least sixty seconds. We think
that a man in an ordinary walk could go
| the distance that Mr.. Skinner walked from
the time be received the shot until he
fell and died within ten or eleven seconds.
Ard these physicians testify that he might
/ have lived ard walked for about minute.
So that is out of the way.
Now. if your Honors please it is very
pleasant for us to think that our theorg
does neither the living nor the dead any