Los Angeles herald., 1907-10-12
SA VS. MAGHL
rs MURDERER
PROSECUTION ASSERTS HUSBAND
sTRANcLED WIFE
ATTACKS THEORY THAT SHE
TOOK POISON
Opening Statements Made In What
Promises to BE One Of the Great
est Criminal Trials In His
tory Of Illinois
BY Associated Press.

BY Associated Press.
DECATUR, ILL.,. Oct. 11.-Assstant
States Attorney Mitchell of Dewitt county
opened the actual trial of Fred and Fay
Magill this morning when he began out
lining the states case to the Jury. He
spoke briefly.
According to his opening statements the
prosecution will endeavor to prove that
Fred Magill murdered his first wife, Mrs.
Pet Magill, by strangling her after he had
given her chloroform, and that his present
wife, Mrs. Fay Graham Magill, was an
accessory before the fact The state will
also seek to show that the Pet Maglll let
ters were forgeries and will place par
ticular emphasis on what are known as
the seventh and eighth" letters. The
seventh was the one in which Magill was
urged to marry Fay Graham and the
eighth was the one which was brought TO
light purporting to have been an acknowl-
edgment by Pet Magill to her parents
that she was in love with another man
than her husband.
Judge Cochrane has ordered the wit
nesses for the defense to be on hand
Monday morning at 8 o'clock.
Mr.. Mitchell in his opening statement
made much of the fact that Magill failed
of his wife and that doctor living ten
blocks away was first summoned. rhel
prosecution alleged that MagiI1 had prac-
ticed a series of deceptions on the public
to keep the fact of his wife's death quiet
Prosecutor Mitchell admitted Pet Ma
gill had bought chloroform and strych-
nine, but he declared they were for killing
cats. He asserted Magill took advantage
of the presence of chloroform to murder
his wife.
Constantly with Girl
''Magill," said he was constantly at
Fay Grahams side from the time of his
wife's death until the time of the funeral.
Relatives had to demonstrate against their
scandalous conduct"
The state alleges that Fred Magill
feared everything and everybody for days
after the tragedy.
He repeatedly said he feared he would
be tried for murder.
The state made point of Pet Magills
near sightedness and the glasses found in
her husbands bedroom. Pet Magill could
not, it was asserted by the prosecution
have found poison and mixed 1t without
glasses.
Judge G. K. Inham of Clinton stated
the Magill case for the defense. He adj
mitted there had been close relations be-
tween Fay Graham and the ,Magils. This
The defense contends it was owing to the
unfriendly feeling between Magill's rela-
tives that Pet Magill was driven to sui
eide. Also 1t was these unfriendly rela-
tions that forced Pet Magill to make an
intimate of Fay Graham, for Pet had to
go outside the Magil family to get her
friends.
Felt kope Around Neck
After a brief statement by the LAWYERS |
for each side, the introduction of testi-
mony was begun.
Wesley Davis, a tenant on Magill's |
farm, testified that he heard Magill say
"he felt a rope around his neck and he
wanted to die He also listened to |
Magill read the letters alleged to have |
been written by Mrs. Pet Magill.
Mrs. Davis testified she had asked Ma
gill as to when his wife had retired on
the day of her death, and on being told |
at IL o'clock, remarked that she must |
have kept busy writing letters from then |
until she had killed herself. Magill re-
marked that some letters were written |
a long time before his wife had killed |
herself.
Maud Taylor of Chicago described a |
visit paid her last July by Fay Graham,
now Mrs. Fred Magll. The young ,wo-
man talked freely of the Clinton affair
and said whether Pet Magill had lived or |
died made no difference, because Fred |
had determined to get a divorce in order |
to marry her.
Miss Maud Carr, who went to the Ma
gill home after the death of Mrs. Pet |
Magill to remain after the funeral, testi-
fed that she and Faye Graham slept to-
gether and that Fred Magill occupied |
bed on the floor in the same room.