The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-01-14
TRIAL OF LAWRENCE
ACCUSED or MURDER OF H. BEL
 MAN OF SELMA.
Prosecutfon Introduces Evidence That In Ante-lTortem Statements Bel man Declared Shooting Was
 Not an Accident.
Advertiser Bureau,


 Of an array of more than thirty wit nesses eight were examined today in the preliminary hearing of Walter s. Lawrence, charged with the murder of H. Beiman. which consumed from II o'clock this morning until after o'clock tonight with recess Of two hours and half. and will be contin- ned tomorrow morning.
 At about 5 o'clock. counsel for the State closed its case.
 There were interesting developments | fin the hearing, both at the morning and afternoon sessions. There was fully as much speculation as to the outcome of the case when the prosecu- tion closed its case as before the hear ing began. There was a ripple of sur prise throughout court room when 1t was announced that the State closed. The Beiman tragedy caused a great deal of excitement and interest in Selma which was augmented by the speculation as to the outcome of the trial of Lawrence and both this morn ing and this afternoon the police court room was crowded with spectators. Beiman was shot last Sunday in his store. The principal figures in the case besides the defendant are the widow and orphans of the late Mir Bel man who were in the court room early
 
 in the argument of the prosecution will bear on the relations of the de- fendant with Mrs. Beiman which was brought out to a certain extent by two or three witnesses today. It is probable that Mrs. Beiman will tes- tify tomorrow morning.
 Objections and arguments in an- swer to objections marked the two ses- sions of the hearing. Parts of testi- af xryff ofI ant to one side or the other were ruled out on account of irrelevancy and technicalities. And 1t is believed that the prosecutions case was weakened by the courts refusal to admit testi- mony as to what took place between the late Mir. Beiman and his wife when she was called to his side after he was shot, The admissibility of the testimony was argued at length. The State argued that the prosecution would prove that Lawrence, whom Bei- man confided in and trusted has not only betrayed the trust and disgraced the merchant and his family but had deliberately murdered him. The at 1 torney said that he would show to the | court that Beiman, in his dying hour. rebuked his wife. He insisted that the testimony had sufficient bearing on the case but the objection of the defense was sustained.
 The ante-mortem deposition of Bei- man before a notary public was in- | troduced as evidence after strenuous | objection by the defense. In the dy- | ing statement Beiman accused Law | renee of shooting him from behind af- ter his coming into the store before
 he (Beiman) had said a word. The deposition was very short.
 Further testimony by Dr. Gay, J .. I T.. nfch hn Ia orxr xxrhA to ldeposition. and Joe Rosenburg was to 1 the effect that in conversation after | the shooting took place and after Bei- l man said he thought he was going to die he charged Lawrence with shoot
 ing him Intentionally and also accused
 him of illegal relations with Beiman s 1 wife for the past three years.
 Two witnesses for the defense, |.
 Yaretsky and E. R. Stewart, testified that Beiman made repeated state ments to them just after he was shot that it was accident MT. Yaretsky also stated that Lawrence gave uht alarm of the shooting, running to the street and calling for assistance.
 Testimony by several witnesses wa; Ithat Lawrence bore no outward un- lfriendliness toward Beiman, and one or 1.-two witnesses testified that Beiman and Lawrence were apparently on good terms although they knew nothing oi their private relations.
 Technicalities of the case have beer lgone deeply into The prosecution in' itroduced a diagram of the store office
 where Beiman was shot and its sur roundings and by this and articles
 found in the room it has tried to re-
 flute an argument of accident which thu
 defense may prepare. It Is probable
 that the defense will try to show thai l ha
 the time he was cleaning 1t. the bullet
 killing Beiman.
 Tomorrow it is the purpose of thu defense to expedite matters as mucf
 as possible in order that argument: by the counsel may be started in th'
 afternooD.
 After the calling of the names O the witnesses tue Mayor recessed tn court until two witnesses, ". l. side near Selma. could be summone'
 and a stenographer engaged to talk
 the testimony in the case
 The counsel for the defense entere' } a plea of not guilty for the defendant Dr. S. G. Gay. one of the physi
 clans attending the merchant at tn time he was shot, on examination b.
 the prosecution testified that he kneV } Reiman who died about 1:S0 o'clocI , Sunday afternoon from gunsho e , the left ear back of the angle of tn
 left jaw. ranging upward and forwarC n | making exit above the inner corner 0 e the left eye. Dr. Gay said Beima s said he thought he was going to di' 5 and after objection by counsel for de = tense and the question had been over 0 ruled. testified that the wounded ma said to Lawrence: What for yo
 shoot me?" and later: You want t . marry my wife; that makes you shoo e me" Dr, Gay further testified tha l. Beiman made several references to hi - wife to which he (Dr. Gay) paid n a attention while operating on tn s wound.
 {. On examination by defenses couns, # Dr. Gay stated that he didn't kno' s. how long before he entered the stoI l. the shooting occurred He was calle y from drug store. he said, by two D, : quaintances who informed him that :. person had been shot. He said | 1T found Beiman lying on the floor of tf r. office in the rear of the store and tn; Y he noticed only Dr. Hooper and Law