Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-20
POISON CUP BIG
FEATURE IN CASE
AGAINST M'COMAS
WITNESSES DIFFER AS TO
POSITION OF RECEPTACLE
ROGERS GIVES HINT OF DEFENSE
FOR ACCUSED
Officers Giving Testimony Admit
Hearing Shots Fired, but Did
Not lnvestigate--"off
Their Beats"

Before a courtroom as packed as the
nudge would allow 1t to be, the taking
of evidence In the trial for murder OF
w. p. McComas for the Killing OF MIS-
Charlotte l.. Noyes, who was snot &c
death TT her home. 81 Little street
about midnight. February 70, was De,
gun Yesterday morning. When the
final recess was taken at 1850 o'clock
only a faint idea had been outlined OF
what the prosecution and the defense
would endeavor to prove in their fight
for innocence or guilt.
That the STRONG fight VIII center
about the throwing of the acid and tne
position of the defendant when the
fatal shot was fired was made eVioent
late In the afternoon. :,
II was not until Policeman Fred V.
wyatt was put on the stand yesterday
afternoon that the position OF NC
Comas when the fatal shot, as told by
himser. was fired, that a new factor
entered into the story other than could
be cleaned from the testimony before
the police judge at the preliminary ex-
ami lation.
The new details came thick and fast.
Watt declared that McComas told MN
~, stood in the doorway between the
VI sfting room and the hall when ne
killed the woman.
Repeats Mccomas' Words
He said McComas told him the acid
had been thrown on him In the Kitchen
and that. pointing to an empty cup
that lay on the floor of the sitting
room under the table, upside down,
McComas said to him: There Is the
cup tn. contained the acid"
Earlier in the evidence 1t had peen
testified to that cup supposed to con-
tain the acid, and found by later chem
zeal analysis to contain sulphuric acid
or oil of yitrioI had been found by
". C. Carey on the kitchen stove.
Wyatt testified that this cup, with
out a handle, was found by himself be-
hind the gasoline stove In the kitchen
on the floor, after he had disarmed
McComas and had been told by him
that the cup containing the acid that
had been hurled on him by Mrs. Noyes
was lying, empty and upside down. on
the floor of a room many rect away.
At the close of the afternoon, AT
fornev Earl Rogers made the first d.
rect disclosure of the defense. He IN
terrogated Chemist julius Koebig, an
expert, who analysed the contents OF
the cup without handle. which, Win
the powder that was in 1t, was iiteo
from the floor and placed on the kitcheN
stove by Policeman Wyatt.
II was evident from Attorney ROC
e-s' questions he is trying to prove the
white powder in the cup on the Kitchen
stove really was dehydrated sulphuric
acid--that is. the acid with the water
extracted-and that the dashing OF this
nowder in the face of McComas or
against the door In the kitchen was
even more dangerous than would nave
heen the dashing of the 'commerclal
LIQUID acid known as oil Of vitriol. He
was borne out in his contention tnat' II
A. were dehydrated sulphuric acid IN
powder form, 1t would be more deadly
to animal tissue, such as the bare race
and hands, than commercial acid.
Police Indifference Shown
one other peculiar feature of the
story had to do with the bravery, ef-
ficiency and usefulness of the so-calied
niyht watchmen and police officers IN
this CITY. Special OFFICER c. G. Sawyer,
formerly member Of the regular force
and now night Waterman In the
Westlake district, testified that ne
heard the shots and even took note OF
the time. He said that he didn't m
vestigate because they weren't fired on
John G. Hosick, also a special police
officer and night watchman near the
scene of the tragedy, said he heard the
three shots, but didn't investigate De-
He added that he couldn't leave his
heat without orders from the chief OF
notice or Officer Foster, who employs
him.
Frank +. Aufdemkamp. another wit
ness, who was close enough to the
scene of the tragedy to near INC
whistle of one of the bullets as he SAID
good night to his sweetheart declared
he fold the story to an officer on Sew
enth street, telling him where the bull
LET came from, and that this officer
calmly turned around and saying that
sit wasn't on his beat" walked away.
Ar the beginning of the morning
session Judge w. P. James announced
that he would allow only as many
snectators in the court room as there
We're seats to hold The witnesses
were excused and the standing audi
ence was forced to leave.
Woman Testlfies
Miss Dora Willy, nurse. who was
attending a dying woman at house
on Ingraham street the night Of Feb
ruary 2S, was the first witness called
by Deputy District Attorney e. ].
Fleming. who is conducting the prose-
cution. She testified merely that she
had heard three shots and scream
about midnight on February %. SEEM
jnglv coming from the direction of
Mrs. Moves home. She said there was
an interval between the first and Sec
ond shots, but all three were fired rap
idly. the scream coming atIer the tnird
shot Cross examination did not ma
terially. shake the testimony of the
white clad witness. Her evidence
merely showed that shots had been
fired at certain time In the neigh
borhood and that there seemed to be
an interval between the first and Sec
ond.
c. G. Sawyer of 1915 Cambria street.
night Waterman whose beat comes
within two blocks of the house on Lit
tie street, where the tragedy was en-
acted, testified that while sitting on
box at Union avenue and Seventh
street. talking with Arthur Petzoldt,
he heard what sounded like three shots.
At first he thought they sounded like
a horse kicking against the walls OF
barn.
1T was just IL 1885," said Sawyer.
"Did you go to 671 Little street at
once?" asked Attorney Fleming.
NO" was the answer. Il went there
about forty-five minutes later. l saw
Sergeant Tyler and Detectives Roberds
and Ritch and Officer Wyatt there.
woman was lying dead on the floor OF