The Mena weekly star., 1909-12-09
THE LETTER WHICH
 LED TO DEATH
Ell. Goes on th, Stand in His Own Be '' 'haIt--Charcsllor Elliott Makes Startling Statement in Connec-
 tiou With Willis Letters.

apparently in oe''e' sp'''' 'ns" ~ b.eu at any time since the
 ;., ooened, bat exhibiting a ,.nh, trace of nervousness Tn his soeecb, Will Y. Ellis, who IS on ,r;,l in the first Division of of the r,cu,t Court, charged with mur- s., for the killing of N. P. Willis ., Indianapolis last July, took .s. stand in his own behalf yes terday afternoon. Except for his nervousness, he exhibited no s;gus of the mental derangement from which the defense contends he was suffering at the time he committed homicide.
 E,lis was on the stand scarcely ,s minutes, however, when the oo;ut was reached where the story of his wife's troubles came into the story. and the state interposed au objection. IL was contended that as the law in this state pro- ,;des that a husband or wife shall mt be competent witness for or ,gainst the other and that no communication of one to the other shall be competent, the story of alleged wrongs and prosecutions .t the hands of Willis. which Mrs. Ellis is alleged to have re- lated to Ellis, are not competent from nim.
 On the stand, Ellis told a few facts about himself and his life, ba, did not get into the eist of 4 the story. He said he will be 2S years old December l2. He was horn and reared in Fayetteville 
 aud is a graduate of the Univer- slty of Arkansas in electrical en- eiueeriug. Since June, 1902, he * has resided in Pine Bluff, and at the time of the killing was gen z eral superintendent of the Citi- zeus' Liz hl aud Transit Company, ! which position he holds in name \ vet. He married Mrs. Hattie q Bell Wills in April, 1908, he said. q Their engagement lasted about two months before the marriage.
 Ia order to be always ready for emergencies, he was in ,he habit of carrying a pair of pliers aud a # screw driver when ou duty, he ies,ifed. These tools were found Y ou him when he was arrested here, strengthening the contention of < the defense that he had not in- # tended to come to Little Rock on the day of the killing.
 # The last letter of Parker Willis to little Mary, and in which he made a charge which was prob ably one of the moving causes for the killing, was either lost oI stolen shortly after the homicide, lis alleged by the defense, and to testify to this the defendant,
 W. Y. Elli', took the stand fol the first time for few minutes # yes CT lay morning.
 # This missiye was written or E Willis regular letter head. Il
 was addressed to Mrs. Ellis ant
 was meant for Mary. IL wa.
 signed, ''Y, real papa" In |
 aslngle sentence burned like tire
 iuto the brain of the defendant,
 Although he had even forgotten
 whether Willis name was signed
 to the letter and practically all O
 the other contents of the missive
 lne one sentence stands out il
 bold relief iu his memory.
 What was that statement, Mir
 Ellis" asked his attorney, con
 ducting the direct examius ton.
 Tt said Your mother is an im
 pure woman.'"
 Ellis choked as he uttered tn,
 sentence. His whole Tram
 seemed to quiver and he coul'
 scarcely speak distinctly as he en
 ueavored to follow his counsel il
 'he examination.
 That is a damned outrage.
 slnfamous. And the man wh
 wrote It ought to have his nec
 broke.n
 10 these words Chancellor Joh
 n. Elliott of Pine Bluff comment
 eu on the letter when It wa
 suown to him by Ellis July 2;
 @ ,uur days before the killing C
 Willis, according to his testimon
 yeSterdav.