The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-10-08
DIR, ROWLAND WEEPS
AND ALSO HIS WIFE

The Argument For State And For De-
tense Was Strong And During the
Day There Were Many Wrangies
Retyeeu Counsel as the Defense
Made Charges That States Attor-
neys la Suppressed Facts Ard
The State Eliminates That Defense's
witnesses Have Strayed From the
Truth. f.
This Rowland case, in which man
and wife are on trial for murder. is
now in the hnads Of the jury. and To-
day or on Monday the issue or me
or death will be made for DR.. ID. b.
Rowland and his wife, Lille M ROW
land. accused, indicted and tried Tor
the murder of Engineer Charles X
Strange, then the husband OF the
present Mrs. Rowland.
All day long yesterday there was
from counsel, and it was
late at night when Judge Long deNV-
cred his charge. this being hnlsned at
both State and defense expressions
are that it is a strong and lnpartiai
charge. Immediately after its denV-
cry the jury announced that it Woulo
not BEGIN it's elaboration till this
morning. and retired to bed. 1t
ia freely predicted BY hun
dreds that it will be a verdict OF &C
q%uittal, with a very small chance ona'
there may be a hung jury
Arguments was made yesterday
nv Mr.. Elmer M. Shaffer for the
state. Mr.. t. It. Hick, of Hen
derson. and Mr.. Walter Watson
for the defense: Solicitor Armistead
Jones for the State, in the ofoet
named, the argument BENG closeo 9
,iobt nv Major S. CT. Ryan for the ue-
Tense and Col. r. NJ Argo FOR the
state. the concluding arguments peihs
Iorg and earnest, every point peil-5
emphasized, 1t was said by Juose
Long privately that all OF the argu-
rnents We're strong ana aple, ana esp
cia1ly cid he speak highly OF the arSu-
ment of Mr.. Walter Clark, Jr., VINO
made his maiden effort in the opening
speech: and of Mr., Elmer M. Shafier,
the other young attorney IN the case;
For the first time during the trial
DR. Rowland broke down before
court adjourI ed for supper. This
was when Major Ryan was telling OF
his ministratiCns to the dying Engineer
and then ir burning words declared
that the Brotherhood of
Eneineers was now seeking to have
him hanged. At this DIR. Rowland
wept. his BODY shaking with emotion.
shortly before Mrs. Rowland had been
in tears also as Mr.. j. n. Holding had
Spoken of the effort being made to
have her hanged, though later she
was smiling and laughing at some at
tack made ar the States Witnesses
The argument of counsel ranged in
time from nearly an hour to about
two hours apiece, and the line Of the
Ell t IS indicated in the following
account of their remarks and the Incl
cents OF the Say, marked nv grave
charges made against the States our
sci, which in each case was bitterly
denied. Judge Long time and again
having to stop the wranglins OF coun-
sci as to the charges and statements
made On each side there was an
evident intense feeling between the op-
posing attorneys.
Elmer NJ. Shafer For Prosecution.
The argument of counsel was be-
gun al nine o'clock yesterday morn
ing. the first to speak being Mr.. Ell
ner M Shaffer for the prosecution.
In hi. argument Mr.. Shaffer dWelt
with particular emphasis upon the ne
cessfty for recognizing ntial
violence and how the chain of his
had been placed about the Rowlands.
He held that circuInstantial evidence
must be recognized, or thai society
would be at the mercy o3 the MUIR
derer and the assassin. That the Row
lands had done murder, and by sub
terfuge and lies before and after the
deed had to cover up their
sin he held was clear, shown by the
circumstances.
Mr.. Shaffer also spoke upon the
matter of the corpus deficit and that
il in every case it was necessary to
produce the crime marked body that
Justice would fail. as with the BODY
consumed by lime, or fire or in the
depths or he sea there would then
be no possibility of bringing to JUS
tce those who a committed muir
der. The proof, he held, must not be
one to prove beyond a reasonable
doubt, u one that viii show that
there is probable or r~easonab cause
that the murder was done by the par
ties.
Mr.. Shaffer next reviewed the points
or the case and pointed out where it
showed that the murder had been
done by the Rowlands. AS to the
charge Of Col. Harris that the States
attorneys were prosecuting or hold
ing up facts he declared that If was
a poor bird that would foul it's own
nest and that Coz. Harris was a mem
per or a profession that had great
men in it and that deserved it. AS to
the actions of DR.. Rowland and Mrs.
strange he held that the new mar
rage IN six weeks after S~trange's
death, with the attendant circum-
stances, was a flouting of society that
deserved i'll. He showed the motive
mat existed for the murder, the loSe
or Rowland for the woman and his
love for the money she had, while the
opportunity existed and the conspir-
acy TO DO murder could be made by
the falthless wife cnd the u~nfaithful
physician. The aconitine poison in
cloentS places the murder definitely.
ana on April four DR.. Rowland had
enough poison with him to kill 1900
people, that on the sixth he put four
~hypoderInlcs into Strange who was in
good health the night before and who.
SAID by MS wife to be "a little sick
met him at the door, and who in a
Few hours was dead, death without
any symptoms of heart disease, but
with symptoms Of aconitine poison,
though the nature OF the poison made
1t impossible to get a trace in the
stomach, and to add to the proof is
the nasty marriage of Rowland and
ArS. strange SO as to cover UP teSti-