Evening journal., 1904-05-05
LITTLE GIRL GIVES
REVOLVING TESTIMONY
speeial 10 The Evening journal.


Dover May 5.-Georgia Ford. the iS-
year-old girl, who lived at the Powells.
and wearing the same kind of red !
plaid dress as the one found or Esse /
Albin, swore that Essie Albin had lived /
with the Powells for several years but /
had gone away from there three times. /
Witness identified the dress found on
Essie Albin. She left the Powell house
that morning at $50 shortly after
Powell had driven away.
Mr.. Ward had the girl detail very
minutely the Illicit intimacy between
Powell and the Albin girl as witness
knew Of it and the quarrels that follow
ed Mrs. Powelrs hearing of the occur
rences.
Mrs. Powell finally locked Essie AL
bin in her bedroom and kept her there
until Powell agreed to take her away,
and did. The last time Essie was
brought back to the house by Mr.. Pow
ell, Mrs. Powell was sick. In one quar-
rel Mrs. Powell had with Essie, she
knocked Essie down.
Cross-examined by Mr. Ridgely. the
girl admitted that in the quarrels with
Mrs. Powell which she had seen, Essie
would hit back. Witness was not sure
whether Essie had been provided with
food during the time she was locked in
her room.
Georgia" asked Mr.. Ridgely "did
you ever see Essie attempt to push Mrs.
Powell out Of the house?"
mo, sir; never
Lawyer Ridgely continued his cross
examination to try to raise some doubt
about the bloody plaid dress to keep
the ghastly thing away from the jury.
Said She Butchered Herself.
Elmer Cooper, who was working for
his brother-in-law at Alfred Powelrs
tenant house, on February 9, drove past
! Powelrs house and saw Essie Albin
frequently that morning until nearly 10
O'Clock, when he last saw her going
from the wash house to the pump with
a bucket. and singing. Cooper went
with others that evening to the Pow
ell house upon hearing of the tragedy
and Mrs. Powell, meeting them at the
door. said
Il don't know why, but Essie went
up and butchered herself"
Charles c. Wootters. the brother-in-
law to whom the previous witness had
referred, swore that he is a tenant on
the Powell farm. On February he
was engaged in hauling straw from a
large stack. around the other side Of
the farmhouse to the large barns Es-
sic was around there early that morn
ing, singing at her work in the kitchen.
He saw her again that evening dead.
In the attic. Mrs Powell said IN the
lkitchem "Essie has butchered herself" ."
When they went up, Powell asked
witness to get his wife and Mrs. Alice
/ Holleger and bring them up. following
- NH Il A.
details of finding the body.
. Mrs. Susie Wootters was another wit
: ness to the statement Of Mrs. Powell
r that the girl had taken her own life.
Helped Lay Out Body.
Mrs Powell and Mrs. Alice Holieger
assisted the witness in washing the
body of Essie Albin in the kitchen and
laying 1t out in the parlor.
Mrs. Eolleger told Of Powell's driving
to their house that Tuesday evening,
telling them 70 come over 10 his house.
that Essie had been found in the gar
l ret with her throat cut. In laying out
! the body she noticed the sleeves Of the
dress were rolled up, exposing the arms
d as they must have been all day.
Horace Dudy, living within a quarter
of a mile of Powells happened to &c
up to Powells that afternoon between
= 2 and o'clock and saw Mr.. and Mrs
I Cornelius Saxton there, calling.
s Elmer Williams and others gave cor
I roborative testimony.
Cornelius Saxton, the caller at the
- Powell house that afternoon, reached
the house about 2.S0 and upon inquiring
Z for all the folks, was told by Mrs. Pow.
ell that Essie had disappeared.
Maybe she's sick" suggested Sax
/ ton.
$ NO, guess not" replied Mrs. Pow
: lell
E Wen. maybe she went off as Mr.
: Powell did"
I We'll. IL thy've gone off. joy go Will
\ them" rctorted Mrs. Powell.
a Continued on Fifth Psge.)