The Mena weekly star., 1909-12-09
ELLIS STARS WITH
 STATE ATTORNEYS
Defendant on Stand iu Willis Murder Trial, Declared Mind Is Blank Re gardiug Homicide Story of
 Willis Abuse of Wife Admitted

put 10 him, but proceeding eau
 tiously and sticking dog gedly tt
 his story under grueliug cross
 examination, Will Y. Ellis for tht
 first time yesterday publicly tolt
 his version of the killing of N. P
 Willis of Indianapolis, for which
 he is being tried for murder,
 Ellis was on the stand five
 hours, three of which were used by Governor Johnson, associate counsel for the state, in subject. ing the defendant to battery oi cunningly devised cross ques- tions.
 The state scored a point just before adjournment when, in the cross-ex animation of Deputy Sheriff Barney Stiel, recalled by the defense, it vas brought out that Ellis and Judge Austin had engaged iu some conversation in the judges chamber immediately after the shooting, and that about the same time when Sheriff Rob- erts entered and asked of Ellis, "Ar. you the one who shot Will lis?" the defendant nodded his head.
 MT. Stiel was the only witness examined yesterday aside from Ellis and today, with the testi- mony of Henry Melton, the de fense will be ready for the ex- perts. All of tomorrow will prob. ably be occupied in the examina tion of the defense's alienists and Friday the state will begin its rebuttal.
 A peculiar mannerism of the defendant in shutting his eyes and holding slightly forward when eyer he spoke, seeming to enun- ciate with an effort, was a strik. ing feature of his appearance on the stand. He would look at his qusstioner while apparently form ing his speech and just as his mouth opened to utter the words his eyes would close and his head would move slightly forward. If the sentence was long, he would flash open his eyes at each pause for breath and close them again. The action seemed to be invol- untary.
 Ellis was put on the stand im- mediately on the opening of court yesterday morning, Judge Lea having ruled favorably to the de- fense iu it's contention that it had a right to show communications made to the defendant by his wife as affecting his sanity. In ruling for the defense, Judge Lea said, however, that he was in grave doubt as to the question and would like for the state to save exception and appeal, th.t It might be settled once for all.
 In answer to the cross exami nation ot Governor Johnson, Ellis would not say he was not insane at present, and he denied any knowledge of having killed Willis. or knowing that he was dead.
 It was ruled by Judge Lea that the stories that Mrs. Ellis had told Ellis of troubles with her former husband were admissa ble, r,gardless of their veracity. These stories were related by Ellis, and were of personal and physical abuse, giving details of bruises and kicks.
 Mrs. Ellis, he stated, told him that two weeks after the birth of little Mary, Willis made her get up from her bed in Cincinnati and carry the child through the rain to a cab and go to Indiana polls, where Parker Willis and his mother would take turns about coming into the sick room 10 abuse and curse her.
 Ellis then told of the persecu- tion by detectives and of the effect it had on him.
 Speaking of the lapse of his memory, and of the time of the killing, Ellis said:
 ''l don't know how I got into the court room, and the frs, thing l plainly remember the court made an order of some kind giving Willis the child. I had len suffering with headache and my head had been roaring all along. Something kind of snap ped and the next thing I know I woke up on a passenger train somewhere just about sunset. The sun was shining in my face and guess that's woke me up." Two men, whom he afterward learned were Deputy SherIffs Hawkins and Stiel, were with him and he sat there for awhile wondering what had happened After thinking for sometime, and unable to figure it out, he testi