The daily sentinel., 1908-06-29
lBv Roy McClintock.l

The trial OF Stepnen W. AuaHhs
for the murder of Arthur Collins in
Telluride in November, 1902, was
begun this morning promptly al ten
o'clock in the district court room of
Mesa county. There was nothing
spectacular to mark the opening of
the celebrated case, other than the
unusual number of witnesses sum-
moned.
The doors of the court room were
kept locked until shortly before 10.
Five minutes before that hour the
doors were unlocked by Undersheriff
Wallis, who permitted the entrance
only of witnesses. attorneys and 9TH
er officials connected with the case.
and the newspaper men. Special
Deputy George Toupain arrived with
the noted prisoner. and shortly af-
terwards Judge Shackleford entered
and took his seat on the bench
Undersheriff Wallis then declared
the special session of the district
court of Mesa county in session, and
Judge Shackleford directed Clerk
Primrose to call the roll of Jurors
summoned In the special venire. The
entire Sc who had been served were
present and answered to their names.
Almost the entire body of the
court room was filled with the jurors.
no spectators being admitted until
after the jurors had taken their
seats, and then only few of those
who were at the doors were able to
crowd into the room.
At the attorneys table inside the
railing was perhaps the most dis
tinguished body of attorneys who
ever acted at trial in western Colo
rado. For the prosecution there
was ex-Congressman H. NJ. Hogg.
who has been employed by the state
to assist in the prosecution. With
Mr.. Hogg sat District Attorney Hugo
Selig of Montrose, Deputy District
Attorney John H. Fry and James S.
Carnahan.
Around the prisoner was grouped
his imposing array of counsel. chief
of whom was Judge A. Nj. Hilton of
Denver Associated with him are
Leon ]. Whitsell, who has long rep
resented the Western Federation of
Miners in the many cases in which it
has been interested, Attorney Esteb,
Samuel n. Wheeler and c. w.
Weiser of this city.
Few of the witnesses in the case
were in the court room. Among the
most interested spectators. and the
one on whom the eyes of all center
ed. after the prisoner himself, was
his wife. She sat OUTSIDE the. falllnS.
just behind her husband and his at
torneys, and took keen interest in
even the dryest of the preliminary
proceedings. Often she leaned across
the railing to talk with one of the
attorneys, and more than once she
passed note to Mr.. Whitsell. re-
garding some phase of the case.
The prisoner himself is not man
who would be picked out of crowd.
either good or bad. OF medium
height, he has dark hair. eyes light
blue in color, watery and rather
shifty These eyes, with his long
prominent nose, his high cheek
bones, and his somewhat receding
chin. are his most prominent fea-
lures, if one excerpts strange pallor.
due of course to his long confine-
ment Altogether. the man who is
accused of so many revolving crimes
is not the sort of a man who would
be picked out of crowd as being
desperate criminal. There is about
him too little suggestion of char
acter.
His wife. on the contrary. who
looks to be several years younger
than he is a comely woman. of more
than usual strength of character. if
one may judge by her features. Her
eyes are blue. but they are darker
than her husbands, and there Is no
lack of indecision in her chin. She
was dressed, this morning. in a plain
shirt waist suit, the only color be-
ing furnished by the rather profusely