Los Angeles herald., 1905-03-03
WITNESS TELLSOF
DOUBLE KILLING
MCCLURE IS DECLARED THE
SLAYER OF TWO MEN
Nued Miner on Trial for His Life In
Judge Smiths Court lntently
Watches Every Move In
the Case

Leaning forward over the attorneys
table. every muscle in his body at ten
sion and his small gray eyes watching
intently from under the heavy brows
the expressions on the faces of the
jurymen, John Mcclure, the aged
miner charged with double murder,
spent the first day of his trial in Judge
Smiths division of the superior court
yesterday.
The prosecution opened its case with
the testimony of DR.. Campbell, who
performed the autopsy on the body of
the victims Following the testimony
of the surgeon, the only actual witness
of the double killing, H. F. McAfee.
was called to the stand and described
in detail the assault upon the two men
as follows:
II went to the Exchange stables on
South Los Angeles early in the morn
ing to secure some sacks from a wagon
which / had at the stables. Tsodicoff
opened the doors for me and said that
he was opening the stables for the day.
He took me to the rear end of the first
compartment of the building and
showed me where to take my sacks
and then went to a small partition and
through a door into the second COM
partment. l heard loud wrangling and
stepped to the little door and looked
through into the second compartment.
There stood Mcclure with his back to
the door and Tsodicoff was opposite
him and facing me. You'll not have
that halter, said one of the men, and
the other answered in like language.
Saw Miner Shoot
Like a flash the old miners hand
went to his right overcoat pocket AMI
as he withdrew 1t an ivory handled
Colts revolver came with it. He fired
point blank at Tsodicoff and L saw the
flame leap from the clothing over the
mans heart. Straight past me ran
the injured man and as he ran shout-
ed, My God, my God, he has killed
me- When the wounded man reached
the wall of the building opposite he
dashed headlong at it and his nose
was broken by the force. He then
dropped to the ground
II then turned my attention to Nc
Clure. He stood in the light and his
revolver was pointed to the rear of
the stable, from which came the sound
of a man at work in the straw. For
second that barrel cleaned in the light
with the gray eyes of the miner shin
ing above it, and then came three
EI,.N
body of Jerry OShea, the Irish hostler,
who had been at work arranging the
bedding of the horses, plunged out into
the hall, with the blood coming from
a wound in his breast. Mcclure
dashed toward it and struck nine times
into the body with great bowie knife
which he also drew from his pocket.
He then turned and walked out to the
street, muttering as he went, and was
arrested by an officer near First
street"
w. G. Asmus, superintendent of
an unexpectedly strong witness. He
testified to having seen Mcclure steal
into sthe rear of the Exchange stables
with the halter under his arm and peer
into the stable through a crack in the
wall shortly betZ'e the tragedy. AS
mus asked Mcclure at the time what
he wanted and Mcclure said that he
was looking for some one. Asmus
later heard the shots and testified to
having seen Mcclure bend over O'Shea
and stab him.
+. Several witnesses will be heard to-
day and the case is expected to rest
with the jury before the close of the
session this evening. Attorney Nc