Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1907-12-28
HoWARp,s TEsTlMoNY.
In Famous Kentucky Case Says He
Was In Hotel at Time of Tragedy.

Was In Hotel at Time Of Tragedy.
Georgetown, Ky-James Howard
took the stand in the Goebel case. He
he (Howard) was in the public room
of the Board of Trade hotel at Frank
fort A man named Robinson stepped
out in front of the hotel and brought
back the information that Goebel was
shot. Howard and others in the room
jumped and ran to the door, Mortified
at the news. After the shooting How
ard went with the others to the Capt.
tol hotel, but he did not see Goeber
then and, in fact, never saw him be-
fore to know him.
Howard denied emphatically that
he ever received a letter from Taylor
or Youtsey asking him to come to
Frankfort He did not know Taylor
and had never seen him. The wit
ness further said he did not know
Youtsey and never saw him until both
had been tried and convicted and were
in Jail at Frankfort. He was then in
troduced to Youtsey in the Frankfort
Jail by Mrs. Youtsey in the presence
of Mrs. Howard, his wife, Mrs. Built
and others.
Howard said he did not know he
was charged with the assassination
until he saw in the newspapers that
he had been indicted. About the
same time a bench warrant had been
sent to Clay county for his arrest.
AS soon as he was notified that he
had been indicted he surrendered to
Sheriff White and accompanied him to
Frankfort to give himself up and an
swer the charge against him. Since
then he had not had days freedom.
Howard most emphatically denied
that he was on the state house square
at any time during the morning of
Jan 80, when Goebel was shot; said
that he was not inside the executive
building that morning, that he never
say Gov. Taylor of Youtsey, and de.
clared that she had absolutely nothing
to do with the assassination.
The witness admitted that late in
the afternoon of the day when Goe-
bel was shot he with others visited
Capitol square, going as far as the
steps of the executive building.
Howard stated that he and Youtsey
were in Jail together at Frankfort.
Before Youtsey made a confession,
Youtsey said: Howard, as far as
| know, you are innocent of any con
nection with the Goebel assassination,
but Arthur Goebel is cruel and will
ing to see the Kentucky river run
with innocent blood"
Howard added: "Youtsey gave me
an affidavit he knew nothing against
me-"
Howard was not cross-exanined,
the only question asked him being
whether he had not been tried and
convicted three times and his case ap.
pealed to the supreme court.
One of the features of the DAVIS
nroase24AAess'-- was rne INTRODUCTION Of
w. j. Davidson as a witness This is
the first time since suspicion was
directed against Davidson in the
spring OF 1900 that Davidson, who
was assistant. secretary of state under
Caleb Powers, has set his foot on
Kentucky soil
His testimony was not sensational
as expected, the main point being
contradiction Of Powers in that David
son says he only talked about bringing
men from western Kentucky, while
Powers says that they discussed TO-
gether the feasibility of bringing the
mountain men.
Among those present was William
Goebel of the 1907 Yale football team
who is visiting his uncle, Arthur Goe.
bel, over Christmas.
1t is now believed that the end of
the Caleb Powers trial Is in sight and
that the case will be given to the
jury on Thursday, Jan. 2, 1908. The
most important of the many witness
es who have testified was James How
ard, who himself has been tried and
convicted for completely in the mur
der of William Goebel.