The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-06-29
COMBATING ALL EVIDENCE Defense IS Discrediting Orchards Story. STILL TAKING TESTIMONY Haywood Murder Trial Drags
 Slowly.
 --A-s- -. Tesfimony of Witness for the De- fease Makes the yindicator Exc plosion Appear Accidental Rather Than Criminal.
 

Boise. Idaho, June 2S--The attorneys for Wm. D. rsaywood continue to cen ter their efforts on the discrediting of Harry Orchard and the establishment of their claim that Orchard killed Frank Steuner Jerg in revenge for the loss of his interest in the Hercules mine.
 Today they directly attacked the Vindicator explosion with the testimony of a witness. that made 1t al gar ac- cidental rather than criminal Thomas Wood, a non -unionist, who entered the Vindicator mine as a timberman after the strike began, swore that the night before the explosion, he placed a box containing 25 .ounds of giant powder at the shaft of the eighth level. He saw the powder the next morning shortly after ten o'clock and 8 few minutes later Superintendent MeCor- mick and foreman Beck came to the eighth level. They remained but short time and left to go to the sixth level, where they were 4tilled. Wood swore that when he reached the shaft twenty minutes later, the powder was gone and it was a reasonable inference that Mccormick and Beck took it with them.
 Wood testified that he had seen a revolver in Beck's pocket, that the fragments of only one revolver was found in the sixth level and that the bodies of Mccormick and Beck were blown apart, indicating that the ex- plosion had occurred between them. Orchard said that he fixed a revolver with wire attachment so that when the safety bar was r@ised 1t would send bullet into the giant powder he had placed. One witness for the state has sworn that he later found wire att tached to the safety bar, but Wood, who was among the first to reach the sixth level after the explosion, said that he carefully examined the safety bar and found nothing attached to it. Wood gave testimony in clear and. forceful manner and told d thrilling story of the climb to safety of the men cut off by the explosion below the esNfxtn feSset--' s-ss tss "a t ss s~ as William Easterly, who concfdued his testimony this morning, and D. c. Cop ley, who was called this afternoon, both swore that they heard Orchard tell of the loss of the Hercules mine and threaten to kill Steunenberg for it. On cross examination the state scored them both, and particularly Easterly, who received two letters and one tele- phone message from Orchard on the evening of the killing of Steunenberg, for remaining quiet when they knew a crime might be committed Easterly contended that he did not know
 
 plained that although he knew Thomas Hogan" was Harry orchard. he took no steps immediately after the crime except to consult counsel for the federation, because he was not an in former and Copley. asserted that he did not take Orchard seriously when they met in San Francisco, and he told him of the Bradley crime.
 Morning Session. When court opened this morning in the Haywood case. pr. McGee was re- called by the State for cross exami- nation. Dr. McGee had testified that he saw Harry Orchard in the Occur d'Alene in 1904 with a man named Willingham. who Orchard claimed to have given him the Peabody bomb.
 The prosecution today wanted Dr. McGee to describe Cunningham. The witness said he had seen the man but twice and then they almost came to blows over political discussion.
 Was Cunningham a stout man?" asked MT. Hawley.
 We did not get that far" replied the witness.
 Did he have a moustache?"
 T don't know, but he had a gum
 Following Dr. McGee, w. B. East erly was recalled. Easterly denied he had ever talked with Orchard as to the Independence depot explosion.
 Orchard was at Cripple Creekthe lat ter part of 1908 and the first of 1904. He mined little." said the witness, but he was quite hend at card games. He seldom worked more than a month at a time."
 Easterly asserted that during the Cripple Creek strike days, there was never any talk of violence at the meet ings of the union. except by a visiting member The visitor proved afterward to be secret service man in the em- ploy of the mine owners. The labor leaders always eounselled peace. say ing that any disorders which might oc- cur would be attributed to the union. Easterly said he was arrested at Grip pie Creek as a matter of military ne- cessity" and thrown into the bull pen" for violence. Easterly said he was at home in bed when the Independence depot was destroyed. He did not know what had happened untilnext morning He then heard that the soldiers were coming and went to Cripple Creek where. along with many others, he went to Victor.
 At Victor Easterly said the soldiers, in passing Federation men would say:
 There's one that ought to be hanged or have his head shot off"
 '.In the afternoon. c. c. Hamlin. Secretary of the Mine Owners Associa- tion, made a speech in the streets In which he referred to the Independence depot explosion and said that fifty or more of the leaders ought to be hanged and the rest driven out of the district Then a shot was fired and as Easterly put 1t, the fireworks began"
 Were you armed?" asked Darrow.
 Easterly said he had "six shooter"
 What did you do?"
 T did like many of the others; was very badly excited"
 ''Where did you goT'
 When the firing was over went up Third Avenue and stayed there until l saw the militia maneuvering' around and apparently surrounding the union hall Then they began shooting at the hall and went on up the hill toward home On my way I stopped at Steve Adams's house and told him what had heard and seen"
 What did you tell him as to leaving the country7'
 T told him of the threats had heard against him and others and told him