The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-02-28
CLEMENTS CASE
IS WITH THE JURY
Arguments Closed At Late
Hour Last Night
TRIAL MOVED RAPIDLY
Number of Witnesses Are Examined
Number of Witnesses Are Examined
on Last Day-Verdct Is Not Elk
pected Before Some Time
Tomorrow.
BY WILL w. NELSON

Decatur February 2.-(Special) AFTER
a speech of two hours and fifteen min
utes by Judge o. Kyle for the state the
arguments of counsel in the Clements
trial closed tonight at 9:45 o'clock Judge
Thomas w Vert delivered short but
one of the most able charges ever heard
in the courts here. He charged the jury
especially that the corpus deficit had been
proven and that the defendants confess
sion was made voluntarily without hope
of reward if the jury believed the evil
dence The case went to the jury at 1920
o'clock tonight.
A verdict is hardly probable before
Monday.
Days Proceedings.
It was 1920 o'clock this morning when
the state announced that it would rest,
after placing a number of witnesses on
the stand in rebuttal in the Bob Clements
murder triad. Mr. Callahan, attorney for
the defendant, also announced the de-
PENDANT is through Judge Vert <~ted
that the court would take five minutes
recess, after which the argument of coun-
sci commenced.
In the rebuttal evidence this morning
the state succeeded in bringing out much
evidence exceedingly damaging to the
defendant. The state practically succeed
ed in breaking down the evidence of the
| defendant himself and that of the de-
PENDANTS bright little 9-year-old son,
Culbreth Clements, who told such a re-
markable, straightforward story from the
witness stand yesterday in behalf of his
father.
Defendant on Stand.
The defendant himself was the first
witness called in rebuttal by the state
this morning when court opened at S:45
o'clock. He was asked by Judge o.
Kyle what he did on Wednesday, the day
of the night of the fire. He testified he
cut wood all that day about $50 yards
from his house in the woods and left it
lying where he cut it, He thought he
/ cut about two wagon loads.
| George Guier testified that she was in
| the woods near Bob Clements house
about two weeks ago and found about
two wagon loads of cut wood, it looked
like it had only been cut about a week
| or 10 days. On cross-examination by the
! defendant the witness said he went there
| for the purpose of looking for cut wood,
but no one told him to go. 81 just wanted
| to see if there was any cut wood there"
! When questioned by John Sample, one of
the defendants attorneys, witness said:
Il would not say this wood had not been
cut since November "a or 25."
Coleman Jennings testified that he saw
Henry Culbreth on the day of the night of
the fire three times and that he could
not have been at Tom Edmondson's house
ON that day. Yesterday the defendant
! testified that Henry Culbreth was at Tom
Edmondson's house that day and that
| Culbreth and Mrs. Tom Edmondson went
out to the turnip patch together and
| that Edmondson and his wife quarreled
! on this account, because Edmondson was
jealous of his wife on account of Gull
breth and tiat on the night Of this day
! the Edmondson house and barn were
| burned
John Jennings of Valhermosa Springs,
| a man who is said to have been employed
to work up some blind tiger cases here
a few days ago, was the next witness
introduced by the state in rebuttal He
testified that he saw Henry Culbreth on
the day in question with fresh beef in his
buggy to sell going in the direction of the
river and in the opposite direction from
Tom Edmondsons
Bascomb Turney testified he picked cot
ton on this day and saw Culbreath that
On REORGANIZATION the witness didn't
know where Culbreath was the rest of
the day.
Edgar Russell, on whose farm Bob
Clements family now resires, testified
that he had known the Bob Clements
family eight or ten years, that he knew
Corbin Clements, the defendants 9-year
old son. that few days after Clements
was arrested the witness went to Glenn
ents' house.
"Corbin told me-" testified the witness,
that when his father came home that
morning there was blood on his neck and
on his hat band and that the defendant
told his wife to get him some clean
clothes which she did and that Clements
put them on; that Clements remained at
home all that day in the house; but that
late that evening he went out to feed
his stock and took MS gun with him."
When asked by the defense who brought
up this conversation with the little boy, /
the witness said he did
Il asked the boy what he knew about
it." said the witness. THE night of the
fire L got home from the springs. where
| had been that evening little after
o'clock. | asked the boy If his father
did this and he said yes. Ed Luker was
with me when the boy made this state
ment," declared the witness.
Ed Luker Testifies.
Ed Luker was the next witness called
and he corroborated Edgar Russell to
what Corbin had told them concerning
his fathers guilt. On eross-examinaton
by the defendant this witness was ques-
toned most rigidly concerning the reward
offered for the murderer of the Edmond
sons and as to who was going to claim
the reward. The witness told of a meet
ing of John Helms, John Lenox, himself
and others, all important witnesses for
the state in a store at Woodland Mills,
in Which the question of the reward was
discussed The witness acknowledged to
having said in this conversation that he
thought his brother. Rufus Luker, who
married the defendants sister, should
have the reward, The defendant had not
been arrested at this time and they were
discussing his case and all thought Bob
Clements was the guilty man and that
he should be arrested. Rufus Luker
Bob Clements brother-in-law, suggested
that he would swear out the warrant be-
said that this wouldn't 40 on account of
Lulsers relationship. According to the
witness John Helms left the store, not
saying what he was going to do, and
went to Justice w. J. Days and swore
out the warrant against Rob Clements
himself. After hearing of this the wit
ness admitted saying that 1T looks like
John Helms is going to get that reward"
Examined BY Coroner
G. w Bell, member of the first cor
oner's jury that investigated the Edmond !
son murder, a short time after 1t took
place, testified that Bob Clements was
the first witness examined by the coro-