Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-06-22


| ing in the house. Evidence was also adj
| duced to Weedon's conduct toward his
| relatives in law.
The proceedings this morning were en-
| livened by the appearance witnesses of
| Virgie and Grace Douglass, the twin
| daughters of Mrs. Bibb by a former mar
| riage. These two girls were familiar fig
| ures about the City Hall about a year or
! so ago when their mother was endeavoring
| to secure their custody, Mrs. Beall. the
| murdered woman. being the respondent in
the habeas corpus proceedings instituted
| at that time by Mrs. Bib. The two girls
| are exactly alike and were dressed alike
| and 1t was necessary to keep them both in
| court to convince the jury that there were
| two.
Granddaughter on the Stand.
| Virgie B. Douglass. fourteen-year-
| granddaughter of the murdered woman
was the first witness heard today. The
witness and her twin sister live with their
aunt. Mrs. Oelrichs. with whom Mrs
| Beall lived The witness told of the
| movements of the members Of the family
on the morning of the murder. On cross
examination the witness said her grand
mother was in the habit of rising earlier
than the others and of taking an early
breakfast. 1t was Mrs. Bealls custom to
| eat two breakfasts, one early and one
! about 10 o'clock. The witness went to
/ school shortly before 8 o'clock and did
not return until noon, when she found
the front door of the house locked. She
went to the side gate, but that was
| fastened by paddock, which was on the
outside of the gate The witness then
went to the house of a neighbor for her
| lunch and returned to school at o'clock.
Witness remained at school during the af-
| ternoon, and after school visited the home
| of a SchOolmate in the neighbOrhOOd Her
sister Grace went home and came back
with the report that their house still
| closed. Witness and her sister then went
home together. They met their uncle
! Nhnr I'll n o.
and told them to go to the house of their
mother, Mrs. Minnie Bibb. 1925 7th street
! southwest.
| During the cross-examination of the first
| witness Justice Gould took occasion to an
| nounce that it would be the courts policy
| to exclude testimony which did not have a
| direct bearing on the case. This announce
| ment was brought out by an attempt on
| the part of the defendants counsel to Sc
| cure answers to questions to which the gov
| eminent objected on the ground of irrele-
| vancy. The court sustained the objection
! of the the government and made the an
| nouncement.
The appearance of the next witness.
| Grace Douglas, twin sister of the preced-
| ing witness, caused ripple of excitement
| and all eyes turned toward the girl who
| had just left the stand 1t would have been
| difficult to convince some of the spectators
| that two people could be so exactly alike
| in every respect as these Douglas twins.
| Grace Douglas told practically the same
story as her sister. the only variation being
| that this witness had left home a few
| minutes before her sister.
| Mrs Katherine Dryden. daughter OF
| Mrs. Rachel Beall was called to the stand
| to tell something of the property ie1t 10
| Mrs. Beall and her children by the late
| Chas Beall, Mrs. Rachel Bealls husband
| Mrs DRYDEN was executrix of the estate of
| her father $500
| thing of the division of the property or the
| late Charles Beall, but the court sustained
an objection to this line of inquiry
Ownership Of House.
Bv another line of inquiry the government
! developed the fact today that the house &C.
| cnnied nv the Weedons belonged to the es-
| tate of which she had charge, but that she
| had authorized eviction proceedings against
| Weldon. o;ao,&
| Of baltimore and sings comic songs on the
| stage AS she was a nonresident and much
| of the property of the estate Is In TINS cry
| the witness appointed her haif-sIster, Ml % ..
| Minnie Bibb, her agent in the DiStrlct VI
! Columbia The landlord and tenant agree
| ment entered into between Mrs Blbb ana
| MIS-. Weldon FOR the renting of the Weldon
| house ~was produced in court. In answer
| to a question by Mr.. Lipscomb. the witness
| declared she had not seen Weldon LOT twen-
| ty-two years
After the witness left the stand Attorney
Mullowny read the VIII anu the agree
| ment to the jury.
Mrs. Bibb's Testimony.
| Mrs. Minnie Bibb was then called to the
| stand The witness stated she had first
met Weldon in May. 1903. when she had
| paid a visit to the defendants wife.
| The defendants counsel objected SIREN
| uously to the witness detailing the CONVEX
| sation between her and the defendant at
the time of this first meeting, on the ground
! of its being irrelevant and having no ap-
| parent connection with the murder JUS
tice Gould held that the question OF the
| possession of certain property In which the
| murdered woman held an interest seemed
| to be material. and overruled the objection
of the defendants counsel.
The witness told of the renting Of the
| house at 236 9th street southeast to Andrew
weldon, jr. She did not know the lessee
| was the defendants son. She went to see
| Mrs Weldon at that time, and Mrs. Wee
don gave her the key to the house. The
| defendant came In at this time, and on
| learning that his wife had given up the
key he was angry and swore ut his wife
and cursed the entire Beall family. The
| Weedons paid their rent up to September.
| when they ran behind, and promised 1t
later When she called later the defendant
said he had no money, and again paid his
| respects to the Beall family declaring that
some fine day he was going to throw a
stick of dynamite into Jess Bells house.
but he told the witness not to tell her any
| thing about 1t.
By Jess Bell" 1t was disclosed later. the
defendant meant Mrs. Oelrichs. with whom
the murdered woman lived. The witness
said that after this visit she served a thirty
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