Las Vegas optic. (East Las Vegas, N.M.) 1908-1921, 1909-05-14

OF HeI IcsluSuCG any lOAu HTI ende NC
had a package for her husband She
opened the door and took the package.
| 1t was wrapped in newspaper and
| tied with twine. She did not open
| the package until the next morning
when her husband returned. They
opened the package together and
found that it contained a rife, but
| that the stock had been separated
from the barrel of the gun. The wit
ness stated that she did not recognize
the man who brought the gun to the
house; that the night was dark, and
she could not identify who he was.
Conductor Maitland corroborated
1.-THE evidence of his wife, and identi-
fed the soldier rife No. 1S3,446 as
the one left at his house. He stated
that he kept the rife in his house
about three days, and then having
heard Of the loss of the rifles from
the soldier train, he took this rife
and delivered it to Superintendent
Kurn, telling him of the circumstance
of how it came to be left at his house.
Mrs. George Drake was the next
witness. She stated that she resided
in Ration and was the wife Of Con-
ductor George Drake; that she knew
the defendant. Guy A. Messick, but
did not know the other defendants,
Wernz and Mcnamara; that she was
acquainted with Messick in April Of
last year; that Messick called at her
house two different times and the Sec
ond time he called he brought gun
with him and left 1t there After the
gun had been there some days, De
ective J. H. Green OF the Santa Fe
company. anl Deputy Sheriff ]. G.
Gale came to her house and asked her
If there was rifle in the house left
there by Messicl. She showed the
officers the rifle and they took it
away with them. The witness stat
ed that there were three guns In the
house, two of her husbands and the
one that Messick left there.
Jay C. Gale and j. H. Green were
then called to the witness stand and
one Of the rifles belonging
to the soldiers as the one they got
from the house Of Mrs. Drake, beins
rife NO. 1877 .269, ana they turned the
rifle over to Ben Williams.
Ben Williams, chief special agent
Of the Santa Fe system. was the"star''
witness Of the trial. He was subject
cd to a severe cross-examination by
Attorney Yeaman. He identified the
rifle No. 1929 as the one turned
over to him by Officers Gale and
Green, and stated that he in turn
had delivered it to the United States
marshal. Witness stated that he
knew all of the defendants; that he
first spoke to Conductor Wernz about
the loss of the guns on the soldier
train, of which he was conductor, at
La Junta on the night of April 21st
1908 in the presence of Supt. J. M.
Kurn and Officer Cartwright; that on
that occasion he told Wernz that
there were three rifles stolen from the
soldiers on that train and asked him
what he knew about it, and told him
thai he understood that he and his
brakeman each got one Of the
rifles. Wernz replied that he knew
nothing about the rifles whatever;
that he had not seen any of the rifles
and did not know anybodyelse that
had The next day witness stated
that he in company with Officer Gale
searched the house of Wernz in Ration
that Wernz was present and again de-
MED knowing anything about the
rifles; that the witness then placed
him under arrest. After he was ar
rested, the same afternoon in Ration,
w nlidlHo otutCu buut WCAhL odlu W
him.-'I did not tell you the truth
in La Junta. 1t is true that ] did
have one of those guns" He stated
that he and Messick and McNamara
bought the three rifles from the SOL
diers; witness stated that he asked
Wernz what he had done with his rife,
and Wernz stated that when he found
out there was search being made
for the guns that he threw his gun
in the Arkansas river behind the La
Junta roundhouse. Witness stated
that he had talked with the defendant /
Messick in the San Miguel county
iail; that he told Messick that he now
had in his possession the rife he had
left with Mrs. Drake in Ration, to
which Messick replied that he and
the other men had bought the rifles.
Witness stated that he also talked
to the defendant Mcnamara about the
rifles on the 21st Of April 1908; that
l. 1.