Rosebud County news. [volume] (Forsyth, Mont.) 1901-1906, 1905-05-11
ORDERS CORRIDORS TO BE
CLEARED BEFORE JURORS
LEAVE COURT.
MAKES EFFORT TO IMPEAcH
DEFENSE ATTEMPTS TO SHOW
THAT KOCH DID NOT MAIL
POISON.

Mankato, Mimi, May 7. - A sensa-
ton was created yesterday in connec-
ton with the Koch murder trial by a
report that an attempt was made by
certain interested persons to reach
the jurors with a written argument
in the corridors of the Blue Earth
county court house.
This report gained credence imme
diately after the adjournment of court
last evening, and it was fostered by
instructions of Judge Cray to the jury
a few minutes before the close, in
which the court ordered that the jur-
ors remain in their secluded room af-
ter the adjournment of court until all
persons had left the corridors of the
court house.
Name Connected With Rumor.
These orders of the court together
with the manner in which Judge Cray
delivered them, gave rise to much
speculation on the part of the skepti-
cal, but little attention was paid to
them until there appeared a we'll
founded and startling rumor to the
effect that some one had attempted to
reach the jurors in the upper cOrri-
dor of the court house, to present to
them written argument relative to
the testimony connected with the
trial.
Connected with this report is the
name of a man whose interest in the
case cannot be ascertained, but while
it seems apparent that he has no con-
nection with the defense, it also
seems as certain that he is in no way
directly interested in the prosecution,
unless it is through former social re-
lationship with the murdered man.
In Effort to Impeach.
The defense launched it's heavy ar
| tillery yesterday, in the testimony of
| several witnesses put on the stand in
an attempt to prove that the poison
package mailed to DR.. Gebhardt was
not sent from the village of Hanska
| on the day Dr. Koch visited that town.
! The two principal witnesses to this
We're l.. Leech and Nels Nelson, rail
way mail clerks who have been run
ming on the Minneapolis & st. Louis
| road between HanSka and New Ulm
for several years. These men, accord
ing to their evidence yesterday, were
the only two mail clerks on the run
| between these two stations the week
The Poison Package
was said to have been received by DR..
Gebhardt Both declared that, in their
opinions, the blue box produced by
the state as the exhibit which con-
tanned the bottle of poison when it
was sent to DR.. Gebhardt was not
mailed from Hanska to New Ulm at
the time alleged They said the post
mark on the blue box was not the i'm
preston left by the stamp of either
clerk. AS the box, were it mailed
from 1anska to New Ulm must have
been stamped on the train, providing,
as claimed by several witnesses of
the state, it was mailed at the depot,
the defense evidently could convince
the Jury through these witnesses that
the states testimony regarding the
mailing of the poison package is i'm.
peached.
Assail Hammer Testimony.
The next attempt was to disprove
the evidence regarding the hammer
found near where the murdered den
fist lay. Ten witnesses were called
by the defense yesterday afternoon
and the testimony of all related to the
hammer. Probably the principal eft
fort was made toward the impeach
ment of the testimony OF c. Dingler
who said upon the stand. that he rec
ognized TIE hammer as one he hac
seen at the Koch home.
Asa p Brooks, the eye witness OF
the murder, was on the stand almost
the entire morning yesterday under
going the cross-s summation OF the
prosecution. Mr. Chiids lent his chic
effort in this examination to reading
what purports to be the previous ties
timony of the witness. and asking
him as to it's authenticity.
The prosecuting attorney was una
bile to shake Brooks testimony a!
i o;yon Thursday