The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-05-23

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Ton Wihifra HNef GNphfeFna YfHfanlI
Ic-rphius ferrsHuvs started yesterday 10
tell iI~ story W chat dtove h~r ~ HHi
hrr uncie and suhf tseisnp snd C%unrrsit
Hesein. = wafrsn tainted that t-st ~.
scfii~s thr wvctina nature ~ 'hs story
A volcp, uod's vulcs. aid. 'kHi ktl
yuur unrls'' sumina fitsi. this WA tbs
eiri's extAanatiun ~ tho doit1e murtes
Thew had tren nuise- buSgins In hrr l~sd,
lrils iingihs, india,inc. sounds WHOM
ah~ couldn't ~dpscrita FROM tho tins. NJ,
long after shs wa n yrtrs Old, shcn her
aunt sarried her Into ter unuls'a bod iisr
uhcie'a III treatment continued. inc ira sing
In ~ do grnrracy aud v]iolcnc,. until her
maria ~ 10 Ulu-eprs Terranova
Thwo weekr Of In ppines- follow cd hsr
marriage and then came tho insinu alton
by the uncle TO her husband. her Confession
when challenged and her h,isbin de do
Aertion Of her. For ten days the voice was
i~nsistent. She vent to her mother. who
had hea ri The story. but the mother wouldn't
ha We anything 90 do with her because she
had two daughters at home.
? 'tA N ItNOlNtFt ~ hhhi't Wv wv F'''s
according to Josephine. She got them
and In a few hours Gaetano and Conoetta
Reggie we're dead, stabbed to death.
The girls manner was that Of a child a.
she told this story. Her gestures were in
voluntary and many. They were not In any
way suggestive OF having been thought
over. Her voice was clear and childish
with little foreign accent. She seemed 10
be hiding nothing. but she became EN-
barraszed and hung her head when her
lawyer insisted on dragging from her the
shocking particulars of the story, She
called the interpreter, whispered to him In
Italian and he bawled out the translation to
the court room.
And in that court room were at least
thirty women. 1t IL true that some Of them
hung their heads and covered their faces,
for not even the derelicts Of a Bowery dive
would care about hearing a similar story.
-Yet when the afternoon session opened
some of these women were back to get
more Of what had gone on in the morning,
but they were disappointed, for that feature
of the girls history had been exhausted,
Up to date there has been no evidence
to contradict the girls Story. Her exami-
nation was finished yesterday afternoon,
and Assistant District Attorney Ely failed
to make her contradict herself except on
one point. He brought out that when she
was examined at the Coroner's inquest she
said nothing about her Authorization, as
she put it, "A voice, Gods voice, told me
to kill, kill"
The girl walked to the witness stand
without showing any sign Of being fus-
tered. She wore a white shirtwaist and
gray skirt. At her throat was a gold cross
and around her neck was a string Of imita-
ton pearls. Except when she became ami
mated and excited her voice was soft even
musical,
She was born in San S~tefano, Italy, and
came to this country when she was about 8
years old She was a Roman Catholic, but
she received very little religious instruction
before she came here. On the ship coming
over she had a ~fainting spell and was Ill for
three days. But she was all right when she
landed at Ellis Island. Her aunt and uncle
met her, as her mother had sent her to them.
They we're very kind, she said. They
kissed me-"
Gaetano was her godfather. Her life was
very pleasant for the first five or six months.
She went to school and to church. Then
things changed. Her uncle and aunt stopped
her from going to both. She had to get up
early in the morning and work until late,
She did all the house woodworking, scrub-
bling and ironing. 1t was midnight gen.
orally before she got to bed, 1t was a busy
household, the Reggios', for they always
had from eleven to sixteen boarders. The
girl counted them off on her fingers,
They kept me working up to the night
Of my marriage" she said. THE night
before my wedding | worked until 10
o'clock"
A little over six years ago, one cold night,
her aunt carried her from her bed to her
uncle's. That was the beginning Of a series
of indignities. Although sick, she was
compelled to work.
am ashamed TO tell, " she said.
John Palmieri, her counsel, wanted every.
thing. He got it, but not directly from
the girl, as she turned her head and told
the interpreter. At the most shocking part
Of II, a newspaper woman sitting not far
from Justice SCOTS seat threw up her
hands and toppled of her chair. There
was a stir and men and women got up and
stared until Justice Scott sternly ordered
them to sit down.
Inside the enclosure were several doctors.
experts for the prosecution. They didn't
move. From the back Of the room came
I SOTOneT D THyeiCldn " ftduloi. III u loW
moments the woman recovered and was
assisted out Of the court room. Josephine
went on with her story and the other women
settled pack In their seats.
The girl said she spoke to her aunt and
was told not to mind. Her head burned
and for q week she was not herself but she
had to work every day. No doctor was
called for her at any time. When she COM
planned, her aun slapped her, sometimes
with her hand but often using a stick. She
was never allo wed to leave the house and
play with other children. Her uncle and
aunt made her talk Italian with them, but
forbade her to talk to the boarhers. At
times she got little TO eat-generally h
was left when the rest had been fed.
Then Giuseppe Terranova became a
caller at the Reggie house. One day her
Z uncle told her that Giuseppe wanted to
marry her.
"He said Giuseppe loved me" she said.
Il said, Yes; and / like him very much
Tn n short time she was told that she was