The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1904-03-08
THREE PHYSICIANS MAKE EXAM
' NATION OF WHITE.
THINK he IS RESPONSIBLE
In Their Opinion Able to Differentiate
Between Right and
Wrong.

While 1t is possible that there may
be "a slight predisposition toward
melancholia, three physicians who ex-
amined John White at the county Jail
last Friday afternoon are even doubt
full as to that, but all are agreed that
he is mentally able to differentiate
between right and wrong and thor
oughly responsible for his acts.
The doctors that examined him
were Hedges, Rinehart and Clark and
did SO at the request of the county
attorney. In answer to their Ques-
tions he told rambling story of the
killing of Schwink and Marie Burns.
The manner of his answering con-
WINGED the doctors that he purposely
answered wrong many of the queries
put to him and that to an extent at
least he was shamming, This belief
on their part was subsequently
strengthened when they were told that
after their departure White remarked
to the other prisoners that "those
fellows tried to fool me; they are not
doctors, but detectives, and want to
find out all about the thing"
Pleads Great Fear.
White admitted to the doctors that
he had never seen either the man or
woman before. but they "did not look
good to him" and he felt that he would
have to kill them or they would kill
him. The woman, he said, had come
to his room and from the look in her
eyes he felt satisfied that she had
gone there to kill him. After having
been In the room a short time she
had left and shortly afterward re-
turned and picked up one of his re-
volvers, which was lying on the wash
stand he had compelled her to put
the weapon back, it was then that he
came to the conclusion to kill her
and Schwink. Acting on this con-
clusion, he said he picked up the
pistol and the woman grabbed it by
the barrel, saying to him that she was
not afraid of him. He forced her to
release her hold and she walked to-
ward the door, When she reached
the door, he said, he shot at her and
then fired two more shots. These
are the shots he claims that went
through the door of No. 4, the room
occupied by Schwink and the woman.
After the two shots had been fired,
White said, Schwink ran out of his
room and grappled with him. schwink
had on only his shirt and undershirt.
In the struggle that ensued he said
the almost reached the door in the
end of the hall, where he shot
Schwink.
Several times White contradicted
himself while relating his story and
once refused to answer a question
the doctors were pressing and got up
from his bunk and began to pace the
corridor. The revolver he used he
said he had bought in Billings, about
a month ago, and bought it to protect
himself. Reverting back to the shoot.
ing, he said he knew that "they were
after him" and several times the bar
tenders at the saloon under the lodg.
ing house had put poison in his whis
ky.
corroborated in Part.
The testimony given at the inquest
by Doctor Lindsey, who performed
the autopsy on the bodies of Whites
victims, in part corroborated the
story told by White as regards 6
struggle between himself and Schwink
The doctor said that he had found 9
fracture of the right arm. In hi!
opinion this had not been caused by
the bullet that entered the top o
Schwink's shoulder. The break wa
smooth one and appeared U hav,
been produced by a fall, whereas i
1t had been the result Of q shot tn
bone would have been shattered ant
splintered.
The doctor also described ski
abrasions found on the legs Q
Schwink, below the knees, Will
they might have been made by rubbin