The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1907-02-28
CULpEpER TRAGEDY
Shooting Of BywaterS by StrOther
Boys
.. 7. LsMON TELLS The STORY
Court and Jury Visit RotheTwOo6, Where the
Shooting Took PIacs-The Case VIII Probably
End This Week.

I
in the Circuit court at Culpeper, the tria
of James A. and Philip j. Strother, VINO
are charged with shooting To death I'M
f. Bywaters, there brother-in-iaw, ON
the night of December L., was begun.
4 AT the afternoon session A. C.. Keith,
acting Commonwealth Attorney, and
John l. .Ieifries, senior counsel Tor the de-
Tense, made their opening statements to
the jury.
Mr.. leffries painted an elaborate pie
ture OF the tragedy upon the evidence he
said be would bring out in the defense oil
the two brothers who shot Bywaters
about an hour after he had married their
sister Viola Mr.. Jeffries gave what he
declared were all OF the narrowing de
tails of the ruin of good woman by the
man whom she and her family trusted
and said the facts in the ease would
prove tue shooting to have been justified
As Mr. Jefiries went over the cir
cumstances he told much more than was
heard at the coroner's inquest, aud those
who crowded into the courtroom learned
more about what is alleged 10 have hap
pened after the marriage than had even
| been rumOred IL was an exceedingly M
teresting. pathetic and appealing nara
1 tive.
At the close OF the session Mr. Jeftries
announced 10 Judge Harrison that Mrs.
\ Viola Bywaters, widow OF the victim.
was in town and would like To be called
as soon as possible, il she were 70 he used
as a witness. Mrs Bywaters is still in a
weak condition, and the attorneys Tor
| the defense declared she was anxious To
return 10 her home.
Mrs. Edward Gaines, her sister, who
| has been at Ler side ever since the shoot
| ing, Will accompany Mrs. Bywaters,
lusteld of hearing Mrs. Bywaters
/ Tuesday the inry was taken 20 koth"r-
wood, the home place az tie Strothrr-
aud the scene of the shooting As
| RDtherwOOd is almost five miles from
! Culpeper, the jury was taken there IN
vehicles 10y Deputy SheFiffs Bowerset and
Judd. who have them in charge.
Just back of the attorneys for the Com
mOnwealth sat b. +. Bywaters, father
of the dead man. lie endeavOred not
TO lose q word, even when Mr.. Jeffries
branded his son as a selfish, hairless be-
trayer Of a good, pure woman who loved
him better than anything else IN the
world
All of the - men from Shenandoah
county filed into the courtroom at 10
O'Clock. Theic names We're read rs the
material from which the jury should be
selected The men chosen 70 serve were:
Asa A. Sheet, aged 81, married, Wood
stock.
+. NJ Bushong, married, Woodstock
N. A. Price. 33, married. New Market
Daniel Linchter, 81, married, Wood
stock.
". Lantz, "a single Mount Jackson.
Josiah Wisman, 53, married, Jadwyn.
]. 0. Bott. 30. married, Toms Brook.
Charles o. Keller, II, married, Toms
Brook.
P. NJ. Jarrett, II, married Strasburg
J. c. Townes, II, married, Toms
Brook.
W. Z. Fleming, II, married, Maurer-
town.
W. W. Bird, 81, single, Mount Jackson
Most of the men are farmers andit VIII
be seen that only two are unmarried.
In addition 10 the necessary II men 1
Others were selected. They were John
". Capp, A. A. Stickley, g. II. Haun and
5. q. Henkel.
Ii did not require long for the selection
of the Jury. Only 20 men were called and
3 OF them asked TO be excused, If possible,
owing to their health or their fear Tt
garding the effect newspaper stories
might have had upon their minds. But
one man declared be did not believe IN
capital punishment.
As soon as the jury had been organized
Judge Harrison started matters by lOok-
ing TO the Commonwealth Attorney Tor
mis- opening address. Mr.. Keith an
nOuDced that he was the Common
wealth's Attorney OF Fauquier county,
and had been brought into the case by
MIR. c. NJ. Waite, commemorative At
torney for Culpeper, when that official de-
cided for personal reasons TO wlthdra"
from the case.
This case has created great deal OF
interest" he said, and ! want 10 tell
YOU what the Commonwealth expects to
show by the evidence Bywaters wa
about 30 years old, genial fellow, with
many friends Nearly every man, woman
and child in Culpeper knew him, and Tor
some time prior To his death II was
known that he associated with Miss
Viola StrOther. This trouble graw out
OF that association. III be frank and cay
that intimate relations existed between
them and resulted in q condition which
every man regrets Out OF that cOndi-
ton came the difficulty which has
brought about this case.
ION December Ii Bywaters and Miss
II e., G,,lnafaap Qul fhura
was nothing unusual about the appear
ance OF either The following day hr
went to her house and was charged by
her brothers with having been intimate
with her. Both denied it, but later they
both admitted it, making a full COMES
sion as to the true condition. That Is
the first time, so far as the Common
wealth knows, that the true situation
was explained. A wedding was agreed
upon and believe it was to have been
performed in January as any other we'd
ding. Then Bywaters came back TO
town and on the following day was GO
ing about as usual.
"That day the two Strothers came here
and whether by compulsion or not do
not know, but Bywaters got out a4lesttp
to marry thsir. sister. Mr.. Ware, the
Episcopal minister who married them.
was told, believe. that Miss Strother
was i'll with typhoid fever or something
OF that sort, and as the couple had been
engaged some time they wanted the GER
snony performed for fear that she would
| die before they became man and wife
REV. Mr.. Ware performed the cere-
mony while Miss StrOther was in bed,
but his suspicious We're not aroused.
James and Philip Strother, VIM. By
waters and his bride was there with the
minister. The StrOthers kissed their sis
ter after the ceremony and shook hands
with Bywaters, expressing their friend
ship.
The next information received was
that Bywaters had been killed. He had
been shot and his body was lying on the
roof of a porch. There were l3 wounds
in his body. Two of the wounds were
necessarily fatal The bullet which
probably killed him cut an artery lead
ing to the heart. One just behind the
right ear did just as destructive work.
There were several Others in the back,
one in the hip and some in the arms
And | don't think the counsel on the
ethan dido will dpnv that lanes and