The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-18

and that she again stated that she had not been getting on well.
 5s. On cross-exmination, MT. Middleton asked the witness if she did not hate the accused woman. and she replied that she certainly did now, but not un- til after the crime was committed.
 MT. Middleton forced her to admit having written nasty, scandalous iet- ter to a neighbor of Mrs. Hattie Pope and her mother, In order that the gos, sips would spread the news conseyeo in the letter, throughout the neigh borhood.
 A boy named Reynolds testified tnat he had seen the accused woman 1u1nDi- ing around the trunk in which were ia ter found the bloody clothing. HIS evidence was introduced merely as corrobation of evidence admitted al the hearing last Saturday
 F. Bloody Clothing.
 The bloody clothing was brought in to court-and after a conference De- tween the defendant and her attorney relative to them. the State began lts argument in the case. Solicitor Aoaihs stated that Chiffon county had been darkened by the most brutal, nienaisn crime in the History of Alabama II not In the South, It rivalled the deeds of the criminals of fhe dark western
 
 actly equal a cold blooded murder or an aged infirm and blind parent, by child at the time in her right mind < The solicitor reviewed the entire case. beginning with the difficulties which occurred during the married lire of the woman with Woodson Pope. There were frequent quarrels between the mother and daughter which he sald resulted fin the foul murder. He pie tured the little group. Mrs King, Mrs Pope Warren Woods and Claude Pope, that gathered at the little cottage for dinner on. the day of the crime. lie then painted a word picture of the tragic death of the old woman. He described how the state had contend ed that the old woman had been struck down at the edge of the yard as she was being led toward the grave, which he said had probably just been dug. He contended that the murder was premeditated and that after the old woman had been hit over the head with A smaathing iron. he pictured the body being dragged along the ground, by | The heels and at the window he told how it had been thrown over the sill. where the throat was cut from ear to ear. He contended that the murder ess. then for some reason or other abandoned her plan. of burying the body in the grave which she had>dug | of from the house in the hollow. changed her, clothing. and then discov- cred that her infant had. while follow ing her. crawled> through pool of blood flowing from the ghastly wounds of it's grandmother He then described the throwing away of the baby dress and of the ap- pearance of the woman at the home of neighbor with a blood spot on her cheek and one also upon her arnf. | This was followed by description of the finding of the bloody clothes in the trunk on the Saturday following the murder. The shoes worn by the woman and the tracks at the grave, l which he said corresponded to a tee, to tack with those woIn, by the ac- cused woman, were referred to.
 Plan of Defense. /
 The defense endeavored to shatter the chain of circumstantial evidence first by showing that 1t was inpossi- ble for the woman to have committed so many different acts within fifty minutes time During that brief pe- riod AIT. Middleton said that the State had endeavored to show that the wom- an had dug the grave five or six feet | in length and from twelve to eighteen inches in depth: had lured the aged wo- man to the yard. struck her down. and carried the body back to the house where the throat was cut; changed the clothing of both her self and her baby and walked distance of three ouart. CTS of mile. all within a period O, less than an hour.
 After emphasizing the absufdity O, the States contention, Mfr Mfddletor picked up the bag of clothing cksd just as 1t had been found in the trunk exhibited the blood stained clothtng the clothing which was said to havs been dripping with blood and tbar heid before the court. the white bag without stain of blood upon if
 The court quickly announced that |, would hold the defendant without bail and without murmur the woman wa led back to the prison.
 Previous to the calling of the case Judge Reynolds gave to l. c pora father-fn-law of Mrs Pope. the cue tody of the 9-year-old boy, who was one oNthe witnesses in the case. Judge Reynolds stated that he was in the act of sending the little fellow to the m. dustrfal School at East Lake, where he would be properly taken care of but upon the application of Mir. Pons had decided to let him take the how back to Childersburg. The husband of the accused woman now has three of his children with his parents, Thom. as. aged :, Bessie, aged 5. and Mary the infant.
 Kind Hearted Sheriff.
 It was the contention of the county authorities that the boy could not be taken care of while the mother was in jail, facing a murder charge. Sherif1 Catts, however. when he learned oi the issuing of the adoption papers stated that the boy was welcome tc remain with him until his mother. l case had been disposed of. and that there were many good women in the town who would be glad to take tht little fellow, so deep is their sympathy for the mother. It was also dNhai l the defense would not care to have thu