The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1905-05-05
WEDNESDAYS PROCEEDINGS.


today that it did not use. He was man
who was confined in the Brown county
Jail last fall for some trivial offense,
and happened to be in at the time that
DR.. Koch was in confinement. Had he
gone on the stand he would have tes-
titled to a conversation that he claims
to have overheard between DIR. Koch
and mis- sister, Miss Ida. The latter
came to the jail to see her brother and
mentioned to him the fact that there
was report in New Ulm that the
cravennette overcoat had been found by
the state and would be used in evidence.
Koch replied: "You know that there is
nothing in that, for the coat was done
away with and nobody will ever get it."
This is the story told by the man who
was subpoened and who did not go up
on the stand The defense would have
strongly denied this.
Attorney Pfaender said that the at
torneys thought that it would be bet
ter only to put reputable witnesses on
he stand. If the witness referred to
was put on, the defense would have a
chance to make capital out of it, saying
that the state was using jailbirds to
help convict Koch.
There were also several witnesses who
were on the stand at New Ulm who
were not called by the state. Gen.
Childs, when asked why this was, re-
piled that their evidence would have
been merely cumulative-that is, they
would have merely testified to what
other witnesses had already testified to.
1t was decided not to put Mrs. Kasz
on the stand the second time, although
it was understood that she was ready
to swear that the hammer in evidence
was the one that she saw at DIR. Koch's
office. She said that the other day when
on the stand she did not recognize the
hammer because the court reporters
label was upon it. Mrs. Kasz was in
the city yesterday, having been sum-
moned by the state, but the attorneys,
after thinking it over, feared that even
if she told her story as she said she
would she might prove detriment, as
the defense would be sure to make use
of the fact.
One of the normal school. classes, that
in civics, visited the court room yes
terday afternoon
w. G. Sheppard, a reporter on the St.
Paul Daily News, who reported the
New Ulm trial for his paper, arrived
in the city yesterday afternoon, having
been subpOened as witness by the
state. ~
While DIR. Stricken was on the stand
yesterday he grew quite emotional and
some of the spectators declared that he
shed tears
Among the New Ulm people who
came to the city this morning were
County Attorney Hoidale, Druggist W.
G. Alvin, Sheriff julius, Fred Engel-
bert and Frank Behnke.
Detective Rydell took "trip to New
Ulm last night and returned this morn
ing with blue bottle of the kind in
evidence and which did not have the
words physicians Sample" printed on
it in red ink. The defense yesterday af-
ternoon had tried to draw out the fact
that all such bottles received by ply
sicians or Others have the above words
on them. The bottle brought back by
MIR. Rydell was one received by DIR.
Stricken.
Asa p. Brooks, the New Ulm editor
who saw the murderer through the tran
som, was on hand this morning. The
state gave it out that it did not in
tend to call him, but would inform the
court of his presence and let it use