Graham guardian., 1904-02-19

y
Willie the day before, and he soon
returned, crying, and stated that
Willie was killed at the gate. Mr.
Jickell ard Mr., Apperson started
Immediately for the gate, and they
were shortly followed by the
| ! other-in.law aforesaid and Mrs
Nickel. The body was found ly
ing on its back in the road, with
the head turned toward the house
The theory of the prosecution is
that the boy had fallen on his face,
and that the body had been turned
over, owing to its situation, and
the fact that the clothing was
saturated with blood, and gravel
was sticking to the face and cloth
ing; and that was the opinion OF
the witnesses who discovered the
body, and seems also to have been
the opinion of at least some of the
physicians called to give expert
testimony. Under the head Of the
body was small stone, or "little
rock" as expressed in the testi-
mony, which appeared to have
been placed there by some one
The body was found at point So
feet from the gate, which was open
and lying down. Near the body
was pool OF blood, and another
pool was found at or very close to
the gate, and between the gate
and the body patches or spots OF
blood were found in the road.
We conceived it TO be an undis-
puted theory in the case-at least
every indication seems to point to
it-that the boy was shot when he
was standing at or very near the
gate, and that he ran toward the
house, falling where his body was
discovered, or close to that spot.
The missiles entered the body on
the left side passing entirely
through it. The wounds upon the
body were described with accuracy
by the physicians who conducted
the post mortem examination.
One wound penetrated the chest
approximately on the aXillary
line, striking the fifth rib, taking
an inward, ford, and slightly down
ward course, producing large
wound of exit at the juncture of
the sixth rib with the sternum;
and the point of entrance of the
other wound was three inches
posterior to the left axillary line,
and two inches above the ileum,
taking an inward and slightly
downward course, penetrating the
abdominal viscera, making q
wound of exit one inch above the
crest of the ileum, and two inches
anterior to the right axillary line
To connect the plaintiff in error
with the murder, the prosecution
relied upon confession in connec-
ton with circumstantial evidence.
The alleged confession was made
to one Joe Lafors, deputy I'm
tied States marshal, in the Office Of
the United States marshal at Chey-
enne, on January IL, 1902, and was
overheard by two other witnesses,
viz: Leslie Snow, deputy sheriff
of Laramie county, and Charles
Ohnhaus, a stenographer, who bad
secreted themselves in an adioin-
ing room of the marshaPs Office,
behind closed door separating
the two rooms They had thus
secreted themselves in anticipation
that Lafors might succeed in oaus-
ing the plaintiff in error talk about
the murder and his connection
with it. No question is involved of
duress or threats in respect TO the
nor is there any claim
that the confession was inadmissi-
BILE as being involuntary, or for
any other reason. Lafors was not
an officer Of the county, and was
not officially charged with any
duty to discover or arrest the per-
petrator of the crime, but his rela-
ton TO the affair was that of de-
tective. At the time Of the con-
fession the plaintiff in error was
not under arrest, and had not been
accused of the murder.
The explanation of the plaintiff in
error is that what he said in the
conversation with Lafors was
spoken in joke or said as 'iosh";
but it is contended, in addition to
that, by counsel, that the plaintiff
in error was in an intoxicated con-
dition, and that he was give to
boasting when in that condition,
and that on the occasion referred |
to he was merely Dragging about
things that were not true and
Lafors. At the time
Horn did not know that any other
person was present and listening
% his talk with Lafors. The con-
'ession, as it is called, was brought
,ut in the course Of a conversation
between Horn and Lafors, and con-
listed of answers by the former to
everal questions propounded by
he latterin reference to the killing
# Willie Nickel, in which Lafors
that Horn had done the