The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-04-16
MARTIN CLEAR OF
MURDER CHARGE
VERDICT OF AcoUTTAL
urruRNED BY SUPERIOR COURT
may SHORTLY AFTER RETIRING.

xr,,I,ne was Result of Row Over
a.. uGospeP'-AIIeged That Gard
ar the Dead Man, Had Respond
~ "a Invitation to Attend Prayer
,,a,iur with an Oath-Preacher
won't After satisfaction and Live
~ ROW Ensued-Death Was Result
80 Injuries Inflicted by BIunt In
strument.
moi guilty" was the verdict return
sin the case of Henry Martin, a color
- evangelist, accused of the murder
If Tebe Gardner, deacon.
The case was given to Superior
,.o,,r+ i,1ry shortly after O'Clock yes
tardsy evening, and at o'clock the
.,,-,, returned with the verdict as given
above
THE story of the killing of Gard
,sr as brought out by the evidence,
was as follows: Martin was self
constituted evangelist or ''exhorter, Z"
and was doing what he could to uplift
+ba moral sentiments of the negroes
along the Louisville road.
on Ian. q, the night on which the
killing occurred, "a prayer-meeting was
+o have been held at the home of Mar
Tin. and he was busily engaged in get
ting all the converts to his home.
Among others whom he considered it
desirable to have present was Card
per's wife, at that time a candidate
for baptism.
Martin had asked Gardner to come
to church, and he had replied with. an
oath. To this the former took excep-
+ions it was alleged, and went around
TO Gardeners house to get satisfaction.
Gardner left the house, after he had
been disturbed from his slumbers, clad
only in his trousers.
Immediately following, the trouble be-
gan. and from the accounts of all the
witnesses it was an exceedingly lively
row.
Though all the witnesses agreed that
the row was one worth witnessing, the
stories conf1icted in the essential
points. Some stated that revolvers
were fired, while others swore posi-
lively that there We're no shots.
At any rate, Gardner was badly
beaten and was struck over the head
with either a club, piece of wood or
with a revolver butt. Just what in
strument was used in inflicting the in
juries which afterwards proved fatal
was never established, the indictment
reading simply "a blunt instrument. -
The day following the assault Gard
ner was brought to Savannah and TAX
en- to a hospital. Though everything
possible was done for him, he died
on Feb. z. The charge of murder
was at once preferred against Martin,
Coroner Kellar appearing as prose-
cutor.
Grounds of Defense.
In their argument counsel for the de-
Tense took two grounds. Mr.! Gordon
Saussy held that there had not been
sufficient evidence introduced to show
that Martin was the man who had in
ficted the wounds which resulted ia
tally. The only evidence brought out
by the state, he claimed, showed that
there had been trouble. and that as a
result, Gardner had been badly beaten
and injuries inflicted from which he
afterwards died.
Mr.. Frank M. oliver, who was asso-
ciated with Mr.. Saussy in the Defense
held that even if Martin had inflicted
the injury. which they did not admit
that he was justified in so doing. The
Robert L. Colding and Mr.. John Z.
Myrick.
At the close of the trial a crowd of
negroes, supporters of Martin, waited
on the streets before the Court House,
and were profuse in their compliments
of the work done by the counsel for
the defense. Cheers were even pro-
posed for one attorney, but he silenced
oil ATTEMPTS at a demonstration.