The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-08
Sutton Case Takes on New
 Interest Al Annapolis
CHARGES BY MRS. SUTTON
Contents of Some of the Letters Have Leaked Out and in Them 1t Is Said Are Some Very
 Serious Allegations.

Annapolis, Md, August 7.-(Special)-
 Behind closed doors the naval inquiry
 had read four letters written by Mrs.
 N. Sutton, mother of the lieutenant who
 met his death on the campus For a few
 minutes it seemed that the exclusive pub
 lication of the letters would open the
 court to all other newspapers.
 Taking refuge in the fact that he had not actually presented Mrs. Suttons letter
 to United States Senator Rayner to the
 court, the correspondent was not called
 to the stand to tell from whence came
 the secret letters. The court went into
 secret session at 10 o'clock this morning.
 The first hour was spent reading the ex-
 cited utterances of Attorney Davis for
 Mrs. Sutton and Judge Advocate Leonard
 of record of Friday.
 Before reading the letters written by
 Mrs. Sutton, which caused the naval court
 to close the door, the charge was made
 that the letters had leaked" At the
 doors the newspaper men, 100 strong, were clamoring for admission. The court, through Commander Hood frowned and
 growled and finally decided on closed , session. Mrs. Sutton, all in black, was
 on the stand. One by one she identified
 the letters which were offered by Major Leonard. This was the only testimony taken during the day. Just why Mrs Slut
 tons attorneys should have objected so , strenuously to the reading of her own let ters has not appeared, and MT. Davis, tae attorney, refuses an explanation, upon the {, ground that he is under the injunction
 of the court to say nothing.
 Important Letter. The letter which seemed to impress the court most forcibly, according to an informant of the correspondent, who was in the sealed court room, was ad- dressed to Col. Charles A. Doyen, com
 mander of the Annapolis marine sta tion. The letter was cited in the ! Hearst News Service today hours be- fore even the court knew of it. In
 this letter the moth her of Sutton charges deliberately that her son was practical ly beaten to death before bullet was fired into his head.
 The fact that Colonel Doyen will probably come up for courtmartial ac- cording to Attorney Davis, has pre- vented open comment on his record This agreement of silence on the part of the newspaper men was ended when
 the court went into secret session this
 morning.
 In her letter to Doyen Mrs Sutton unburdened her soul She openly ac- | cused fellow students of murdering her son. She mentioned names and it was 1 this fact that caused the meeting be- | hind closed doors.
 | Mrs. Sutton went into court today not knowing which of the 400 were to | be read to the court. That she had | written 300 letters and more she readi- ! ly admitted.
 1 q am no turn coat" she said. 1T l stand by everything l have written or | said
 My son was murdered. I know who l did 1t, and unless they are punished. l am no mother.'
 The secret court opened in the as-
 sembly room at the appointed hour
 First Struggle. 1 The first struggle in the sealed naval inquiry this morning was over the charge made yesterday by Henry E. Davis, at 1 torney for Mrs. Sutton, that Mai. Henry Leonard was acting in bad faith The major wanted those few remarks" wiped | out of the record.
 | Attorney Davis would not so move The 1 court finally ruled that nothing had been l said which needed expunging, so the rec
 ord stands, "bad faith" "hallowed grave" military reputation, and all. | The court finished reading Mrs. Suttons letters at 11:30, and promptly adjourned l until Monday At first there was some | doubt as to whether or not Mondays ses- 1 sion would be open. While a fleet of afternoon men was sending from the telegraph offices a frantic protest against such secrecy the naval board reconsid- cred and sent word that Mondays session would be open as usual I Besides Mrs. Sutton, her daughter. Mrs Rose Sutton Parker of St. Paul, remains to be examined as a witness. Mrs Par ker's testimony promises to be somewhat sensational. She is expected to tell the re- suits of her personal investigations of her brothers death and relate pertinent | conversations with some of the young of | fcers of the marine corps, who now stand | before the court as accused by her and l her mother of complicity in the shooting i of Octoberd 1S, 1907, when Lieutenant Sut- l ton was killed or killed himself as the | former board of inquiry determined The inquiry Is expected to last until | near the end of next week lac kH