The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-02-06
TESTIMONY
 FOR DEFENSE Witr ses For Stallings on the Stand. 'SOoD SHOWING IS MADE Evidence of the Prosecution Con-
 tradieted in Instances. Half Dozen Men Swear that Buck haIts Cursed stailinss the Day of
 the KiIlins at Green-
By VIII T. sheehnn.

By Win T. sheehan. Greenville, Feb. 5.--(Staff Corre- spondence)-whea today was done in | the Circuit Court of Butler County, the case of Dan Stallings was before the | jury, for him brighter and more hope ! full For today the defense had it's best | inning.
 But the jury, when it comes to make It's verdict, will have to weave it's way through labyrinth Of contradictory testimony. An acute and trying task the jury has in this case of Dan Stall | ings. It Is called upon to exercise a rare discrimination when 1t will finally come to determine justice as 1t sees 1t, Conflicts and contradictions in plenty are even now before these twelve men who are called upon to say what sheil be the fate of Dan Stalflngs This witness's testimony will have to be dis carded; this other witnesss testimony will have to be endorsed This ret of facts sworn to by two or three wit nesses will have to be accepted and adopted. notwithstanding that two or three other witnesses swore that they were not true and that quite another set of facts were true.
 Which is the chaff and which is the wheat in this mass of testimony, 1t will sorely puzzle the jury to tell. In sort
 
 tous case. a task IS been set this But Ter County jury as difficult in discern ment and determination as few JCTies are ever called upon to do.
 Back and forth the testimony has moved on this main and vital question, Was Dan Stallings justified when he fired the shots that took the life of Red- ford Buckhalts?
 Today the center of the stage be- Ionged to the defense and right well did they use 1t. And when the day In court was finished. the side of the de- fense in appearance was much strong CT than 1t had been at any time since the trial began. But witnesses for state and defense had cross-fired each other
 staliinEs's Evidence Confirmed. The testimony of Dan Staliings In his own behalf was today given strong con- firmstIon. A half dozen witnesses swore to the insuiting cirses of Rad ford Buekhalts a few minutes before the shooting even as StaIlings had TO- peated and described them when he was on the stand. They had seen Buckhalts in the buggy and they described him as drunk and boisterous. They swore that he reviIed and cursed Dan Stall ings as he passed up the street They swore that he continued cursing as long as Stallings was in hearing.
 And they swore, these witnesses that when Stallings stepped into the street to speak to Buckhalts, the man in the buggy repeated that insult, which Is the greatest insult one man could put upon another. They swore, too, that at the same instant Buckhalts snatched his pistol from the buggy seat and fired the first two shots of the deadly pistol duel A full half dozen witnesses so testified
 The defense today got strength and vitality from the evidence of Probate Judge Harris Lampley of Butler Coun- ty. For Judge Lampley confirmed in one or two important details the state ment that Dan Stallings had made to the court brief while before the shooting he was standing on the side walk in front of the Elks Hotel talking to WLkerson Nicholson. To them came Dan Stallings even as he had said he had come.
 MT. Nicholson was talking of the ill., ness of a member of his family, Stall lings placed a hand on the shoulder of each and asked who 1t was that was sick. There was nothing excited or unusual about his appearance. At the same time the attention of the witness was attracted by the cursing of Rad ford Buckhalts, who was sitting in a buggy The witness walked down the street. BuckhRlts was boisterous and cursIng, using frequently an insulting term.
 The witness went into Wright's store. While there he heard the shooting. At first two shots were fired-one close to the other. Then came an interval followed by a rapid fusilade of shots.
 Medical testimony was introduced to show that 1t would have been impossi- ble fer Radford Buckhalts to have fired a shot after he had received any one of the three shots that took his life. Two of these bullets went through his breast and one through his brain. The testimony was to show that he could have had no volition. no use of himself after receiving any one of the three fatal wounds.
 Col. Lee Long TestiAes.
 Col. Lee Long was the first witness of the day. He saw Dan Stallings few minutes after 6 o'clock on the evening of the tragedy and near its scene. He appeared in his ordinary condition as he always appeared.
 The witness after he had gone to supper heard of the shooting. He went to PeaElers store where the doctors were working on Stallings, who ap- peared to be suffering acutely, but was conscious. Stallings recognized him. The witness told stallings:
 The Other Man ls dead.
 StallingS made no sort or comment at receiving the news.
 He testified also that man stand ing on the underpass looking down, could see nothing of q man on the side walk in front of Ramsay's Wright's store except his legs. At that time there was awning hanging above the side walk.
 steve Malone, former witness, was recalled to testify as to Dan Stallings's leaving his buggy on the evening of the tragedy
 that on the afternoon of the tragedy he saw StaIlings in Pierce's bar. but he was not drinking.
 Dr. T. F. Stallings was recalled to testify that he saw Stallings on the afternoon of the killing and he was not drinking.
 StaIIIngs. and who was with Radford Tsuckhalts on the afternoon of the traredy. He first met Buckhalts at 2 o'clock in the afternoon at Johnson's hardware store. Buckhalts was carry ing A pistol. They went to Pierce's haT where they had a drink or two. ata1iiuga wanted to know if that O.