Smyrna times., 1911-08-30
BEGIN TAKING
OF TESTIMONY
Hear Seven Witnesses at the
Trial Of Henry C. Beattie, JT.
OOD-STAIHED AUTO SHOWN

Accused Man Appears Much Amused |
at Lawyers Efforts to Confuse Wit
nesses-Prosecuto Introduces Evil
dence to Show Motive For the
Crime.
The jury which will decide whether
Henry Clay Beattie, Jr, of Richmond,
shall go to the electric chair, con-
victed of wife murder, was completed
in battered old Chesterfield court
house at Chesterfield Courthouse, Va.
Made up almost entirely of lean,
bronze-faced farmers, the jury, as
completed, follows the lines indicated
by Mondays selections. The names
of the twelve men, as they remain
after the defense exercised its four
peremptory challenges on the panel of
sixteen, are as follows:
N. w. Farley, quarry1nan, thirty
seven years DID, E. l.. Wilson, farm
er, thirty-eight years old; A. L. Fet-
teroff, contractor, thlrty-four years
old; Irving L. Bass, JT, farmer, thirty
years old; V. w. Fuqua, farmer, twen-
ty-sevon years old; w. L. Burgess,
farmer, fifty-two years old; M. E. Pur-
die, farmer, twenty-seven years old;
M. c. Robinson, farmer, forty-four
years old; Thomas A. Hancock, farm
er, thirty-seven years old; w. P.
Rocks, farmer, forty-eight years old;
NJ. E. Blankenship, assistant superin-
tendent of a silk mill, thirty-eight
years old.
Nine of the jurymen are farmers,
and all have declared themselves as
not opposed to capital punishment
At the opening of the trial Beattie
pleaded mot guilty" to the indictment
charging him with the murder of his
| young wife.
On the anniversary of his marriage
to the woman he stands accused of
having murdered. Henry Clay Beattie,
Jr., sat in the stuffy courtroom at
Chesterfield Courthouse, Va, and
| heard seven witnesses called by the
commonwealth give testimony ON
which the prosecution hopes to send
him to the electric chair.
On the courthouse lawn, only few
feet away, stood the blood-sOaked au-
tomobile in which the young wife met
her death. Beattie himself calmly i'll
spected the car when it arrived, and
not once during the proceedings did
he show any signs of blanching.
Twice during the cross-examination
of two. detectives he flushed with
amusement and struggled to hold bach
his laughter.
OF the seven witnesses examined
two were physicians, DR.. Herbert
Mann and DR.. Wilbur Mercer, who ex
amined Louise Beattie's body on the
night of the murder. The others were
Thomas Owen, court stenographeI
and uncle of Mrs. Beattie; Detective
Wren and Wiltshire, of Richmond
who investigated the case; Corone
Loving, of Chesterfield county, ant
: May Stuart, a stout middle-aged won
an, who told of Beattie's association
with Beulah Binford.
None of the witnesses except Mi
) Owen recalled that Beattie had di.
played any grief over the tragedy
Others said they had not seen hiI
shed tear.
Prosecution Shows Motive.
With the first witnesses calle
: merely to establish the death of Mr.
. Beattie, their testimony was largel
a review of what came out at the Il
g quest, and it was not until the Stual
woman took the stand that the pros
e cution began its attempts to disclos
the motive for the crime. She swol
to being the proprietor of a reso
in Richmond, and that Beattie ha
appeared there with the Binford gi
4 four times within the two montl
preceding the murder, and for the la
$ time on July II, the night before Il
q crime. Beulah Binford, she testifie
II she had known for several years.
" After having the witness descril
II how Beattie and his seventeen-yes
n old companion had visited her plaC
the commonwealth introduced in e.
ID dence a letter written by the defen
4 ant to the Binford girl and identifi,
1t as such at the inquest. Penned
ID his fathers business stationery, Be;
$ tie wrote, in part:
" Dear Kid-Pay this on the fur
,e ture and make him give you an ite
" lied account of what you must p
,e each week. Well, be good, wi
n oceans of love brimming with kiss
IA Yours. HON
n The boy showed no emotion VIII
hi the letter was read, but the elt
he Beattie held a palm leaf fan in fro
ar of his face.
nd