The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1903-09-17

charged with the murder of James
McAndrews, on the morning oi
March 80 last, was taken up before
the Court Thursday morning. The
case was easily the most importan,
of the entire criminal session, and
the Court room, during the severa
meetings required in the hearing OF
the case, was filled with people.
The first move in the case was
the selection of a jury and the i'm
mense Importance attached to the
proceeding and the great care with
which the twelve men were choser
is attested by the fact that the en-
tire panel Of sixty was exhausted
before jury was secured, and the
last man was accepted from list o.
eight called by Deputy Sheriff
Bruce Black, from the talesmeu,
and the Commonwealth would prob
ably not have accepted the twelfth
man had it not been for the fact
that they had exhausted their
number of challenges. The defense
objected to nineteen.
The jury as finally selected was as
follows: Frederick Wood, saddler,
Benton; William Stackhouse, pat
tern maker, Berwick; M. T, Nagle,
farmer, Sugarloaf; Isaac Artman,
farmer, Mt. Pleasant; +. B. Jones,
farmer, Fishingcreek; E. J. Obi,
farmer, Hemlock; Clarence Hess,
farmer, Sugarloaf; John R. Deemer
Merchant, Catawissa; NJ. B. Shultz,
Iaborer, Benton; Fri ]. Welliver,
Ir. farmer, Greenwood; o. D. Cole,
farmer, Sugarloaf, and Simon r.
Carl, farmer, Locust.
The jurymen were accepted only
after the most searching and point
ed examination by counsel on both
sides OF the case, the District At
torney in every instance being par
ticular to inquire whether or not
the juryman was client of any OF
the attorneys in the case, whether
he was friend of the defendant,
or the defendants father, and
whether or not he had any con-
scientious scruples against capital
punishment for the crime of MUIR
der.
THE CASE BEGINS.
The Commemorative case was
opened by John G. Harman. He
stepped before the jury, and in his
characteristic, forceful way, and in
a voice that was distinctly audible
in every part Of the room, he out
lined the circumstances of the case.
"On the goth day of March last "
he said "there was committed on
the public road leading from Cen
tralia to Aristes, a most heinous
crime, most atrocious one. In
the morning of that day, between
the hours of ten and twelve O'Clock,
James McAndrews, a citizen Of this
Commonwealth, was found along
the roadside badly wounded. He
was removed to his home, and the
next day taken to the Miners
Hospital at Fountain Spring, where
he died four days later, five days
after the commission Of the crime.
Shortly thereafter and with an
energy and zeal that was commend
able, the District Attorney, Mr..
Duy, set about to ferret ont and uu-
ravel the clues and apprehend the
perpetrator. He went to Philadel-
phia and there secured detective.
and placed him upon the case. The
evidence thet has been gathered and
which we will present for your con-
sideration, will connect Amandus
Levan with the crime. We will
show to you gentlemen of the jury
that he was with McAndrew in
Honbach's Hotel at Aristes, short
time before McAndrew was struck
down. That he was there drinking
with him, and that he was aware
and in fact saw McAndrews display
some money, being his salary which
he had received that morning for
his work at the mines. We will
prove that Levan left Honabach' S
hotel before McAndrews, going in
the direction that was little later
taken by McAndrews, and we will
also prove that he was seen coming
from the place at which McAndrews
was found, a short time after he
had been struck down and from