The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1911-07-08
Stokes letters 1aR
sADT0 SUPPRESSED.
SEVERAL ARE READ BUT 9TH
ERs ARE MlsstNe HAS NO.
IDEA OF THEIR WHEREABOUTS

NEW YORK, July S,Where are
the, rest Of the Stokes letters2
How. did they come to be, sup.
pressed? 4
Who suppressed them and why?
These are the questions that Rob
.ert w. Moore, Of counsel for Lillian
Graham and Ethel Conrad tried to
get answered this afternoon, in their
preliminary hearing on the charge
that they attempted to murder w. B..
d. Stokes, the millionaire hotel man,
when lie called at their apartments
to get possession Of those same LETT
ters.
The questions we're not answered
wholly to Mr.. Moores satisfaction,
but he was able to advance SO far
that he will rest his case tomorrow
afternoon after one more witness has
been called, the elevator boy who
took Stokes to the girls apartment
on the night he was shot. Magistrate
Freschi will then decide whether the
case shall go to the grand jury.
H = z ~
Under cross examination Stokes
told how he first met Ethel Conrad,
how she enlisted his sympathy anew
for Lillian Graham, who sick and PEN
niless, Stokes said Miss Conrad told
him, had attempted suicide; how he
came to call on the two girls after
Lillian Graham's recovery, and what
his sentiments for them were. His
narrative only faltered when he was
questioned ABOUT the missing letters.
But those who expected the two girls
to take the stand we're disappointed.
The defense succeeded in eliciting
most of the facts on which the people
must base their case without disclos-
ing its own hand.
Only once did Stokes show signs Of
confusion.
"Are these nine letters (produced
in evidence yesterday all you ever
wrote Miss Graham?" asked Attorney
Moore.
"No."
"How many did you write her? As
many as eighteen?"
Perhaps = j
what became OF those missing let,
,ters, which you admit having written
and which were ID Miss Grahani,s
pos essi6n d the night Of the Eshoot5I
liHg?" I. "a
"I haven't the renlotest idea, said
Stokes, blandly.
AT the afternoon sitting counsel
for the two girls called to the stand
James Cummins, house detective at
the Ansonia; owned by Stokes. Cum
minis said he had searched the girls
apartments two or three days after
the shooting with the central Office
detectives and found the letters on
a closet floor behind trunk.
And these officers Of the depart
ment Of justice OF the city allowed
you to rummage the apartment and
take from It what you wished?"
n aThey didn't know / had found
anything" parried the detective.
Mr.. Moore pounced on him like q
hawk.
aThen you deliberately secretel
these letters from the sworn officers
of the law?" he thundered.
Il put them in my pocket"
eyes or no?" insisted counsel.
eyes," admitted Cummins.
Subsequent Testimony was that
Cummlns had delivered the letters to
a Mr.. Gleason, personal counsel for
Stokes who had passed them on to
former Judge olcott, In charge Of the
case for Mr.. Stokes, who in turn de.
.livered them to the District Attor-
ney's office. Cummins the detective
had not counted the letters, he sYore,
and did not know their contents.
Judge olcott swore that the package,
us It reached him, contained twelve
letters.
"There were eighteen Of those letl
ters at least" said Mr., Moore, after
the hearing. "Who suppressed them%
"They'll make interesting reading
when they are produced, added Miss
Graham. II wouldn't dare tell you
~ II,a,t. ha1taEyn