The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-08-27
BY Associated Press.


Chesterfield Court House, Va, Aug
26.-Considerable progress was made
today by the prosecution in the tri
OF Henry Clay Beattie, Jr., on trial
charged with wife murder. A num-
Der OF important witnesses were heard
They were many tense moments for
the prisoner as the prosecution,
through the testimony of Detective T..
L. Sherer particularly, uncovered frag-
mentsf Of a conversation which he is
alleged to have had with Beattie con-
corning Beulah Binford, the girl in the
case.
Plainly evident was the hand Of the
prosecution today in endeavoring to
show that the underlying motive for
the murder was the fear that Beattie
had that his father might learn of the
resumption OF his relations with the
Binford girl, and an alleged physical
ailment Of Beattie at the time of the
murder. The court, discerning the in
tention Of the prosecution to unfold
this part Of the mystery, asked permis-
sion of lawyers On both sides to de-
fer discussion on this point until an
other occasion, when other witnesses,
including DR.. Mann. might be re-
called.
SIX YOUTHS TESTIFY.
Six youths took the stand and testi-
AGO bAdt W1A4lcs returning from q dance
on the night of the murder they stop
ped at the spectacle Of a stationary
car, with a man working on the hood
and q woman standing on the running
board. and w. B. Sydnor, one OF the
boys, identified the Beattie car as the
one he had SEEN Sherer's testimony
laid the founadtion for the future con-
tention of the prosecution that Beattie
shot his wife while standing, either
nm n qV4rp hf.n ysA f@s - a
way. and that the pool Of blood did not
ooze through the footboards or lower
part OF the machine, but resulted from
Mrs. Beattie's fall when shot near the
car.
B. B. Adams, boY, testified to See
tng q man alone beside q machine
similar 20 the Beattie car on the same
road three hours before the murder Ii
supposed to have happened. His tes-
timony bore out the charges that Beat
tie could have brought a shot gun from
Paul Beattie's home to the place where
few hours later he conducted his
wife.
Eherer testified that Beattie told him
his wife knew his relations with
Beulah Binford before their marriage
Court adjourned until Monday.
COURT CoNvENEs.
Judge Watson rose from behind a
big vase OF flowers which adorned his
desk, ,smelled them q moment and
raped sharply with his gavel. He
appealed to '-the Virginia gentlemen"
present to be tolerant of the heat and
keep their coats on in Difference to the
women present.
Henry Clay Beattie again sat beside
his father, eagerly reading q morning
papers verbatim account of yester-
days testimony.
r. X. Mosely, 1S years old, the sec
ond of the eight high school boys who
claim to have passed a machine SINH
lar to that in which Beattie and his
wife were supposed to have been, was
the initial witness.
A. X. Briggs, the first of the group
of boys, had testified yesterday that
he saw a man tinkering with a ma
chine on the road and that a woman
was standing on the running board but
gave no detailed account of the per-
sons he saw. The eight boys had
been at dance at Bon Air, returning
in two machines over Midlothian turn
pike to Richmond.
did you pass a machine on your
way to Richmond?" asked the prose-
cution.
yes. One with a lady ana a man
IN It: It was standing still," replied
Mosely
what was the man doing?"
'.Fooling with the hood"
did you offer any assistance?'
Yes, we asked II we could do any
thing for them, but the man said .no'.s
Where was the lady?"
Standing on the left hand running
board"
The defense then turned to the wit
ness, Hill Carter questioning him II
he remembered the exact hour of the
trip from Bon Air.
TT was after 10 when we left Bon
Air. said Mosely.
ly?"
Wen. reckon It was moving "a
little for we got home about IL"
When you later visited the.scene of
the blood spots. was it near where you
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