The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-10-05

CT witness in this case that needs atten- ton. l submit to you that these lawyers for the prosecution certainly went to sleep at the switch when they went down to the sheriffs office to discuss with a iail-bird a confession said to have been made by Nabors I submit to you that | that blow they attempted to deliver us proved boomerang. I wouldn't hang a measly, yellow dog on the testimony of a witness who has been impeached like | old man Crane was. If the old man did not see the light he at least saw a ray of hope that made him talk about going home Saturday at 3:45."
 Attorney King said that there was aan- other citizen who needed dressing down. Tom Alread. He told how Alread came from Tupelo, Miss-a public spirited citi- zen who rides across state lines to tes- tify But he said, there was someone with Tom-one Dobbs, railroad detec- tive, who took care of him." "They wanted a lock- and they found one; they wanted a confession and they found one; they wanted Majors away from the engine five or six mintes and they put the pressure to Harrison and put a gap in his testimony and Majors was away.
 MT. Kings appeal for Majors was closed with a request to the jury to watch with extreme caution the evidence for, Jlc state because of the powerful railroad behind the prosecution.
 Don't forget, gentlemen of the jury, that you can't convict Majors unless you believe Harrison. When was Harrison telling the truth?" He pointed out at length that Majors had no motive to wreck the trains and kill his fellow workmen.
 Attorney Ross Begins Attorney George Ross followed Mr. King in the argument for the defense. We have,'' he said, Fin this court to- day, a corporation prosecuting citizen of this state. You may call it the state if you want to, but say it is nom-de- plume"
 Attorney Ross referred to Solicitor Beddow and Solicitor Morrow as employ ed by the railroad. Mir Beddow objected to the argument as based on an untruth-- the supposition that he had been em- ployed by the L. & N.-which had not teen shown. Judge Weaver sustained tn, objection.
 Harrson's testimony was gone over, and MT Ross said that MT. Brooks and Mr. Harlan had been behind Harrison and caused him to change his testimony from what it was in the preliminary hearing 
 No motive had been shown by the prose- oution to compel Nabors to wreck the train, said Mir. Ross. "The only thing they can rake or scrape is the little mis- understanding between MT. Ashworth and the defendant The evidence is that this misunderstanding took place in July. 1909, five months before the wreck And |Mr. Ashworth himself says it was fixed uo and that Majors apologized. To say that was the motive is preposterous. It is weak, I say. There is no other motive that can be brought out, or they would have shown 1t.
 The testimony of various witnesses was gone over, and Mir. Ross proclaimed that the detectives of the L. & N. who had worked on the case. had made a goat out of Alread and out of Shipp. He said that Mr. Watts Lad testified that a train could have thrown the switch to the siding. He took the photographs of the scene of the wreck and explained how 1t could have heen done.
 Certainly the l.. & N. is interested" said MT. Ross. 'They want to vindcate the L. & N. in the eyes of the public. But there is another standpoint from which they are interested. Certainly if they get a prosecutions of somebody for throwing the switch they would be relieved of lia- hility in civil suits. They think they can convict somebody cheaper than they can settle these damage suits"
 Scores Expert Witness
 Attorney Ross scored Colonel Caldwell, the expert put on by the state, saying that Caldwell, although his office was only block and half from the court house, stayed away from his business all week to testify. "IIe did that said Mir. Ross. because he wanted the s25 day for his services.''
 a'S Ino1f tx.tfI, oe having been secured by some human agency. And, believe said Mir Ross, by some one actively engaged in the prosecuton-Someone within the sound of my voice. He argued that it was against all reason to believe that man with the intelligence of Nabors-a man from whom a shrewd detective could not elicit a confession, would, after mstrial of his case make the confession to old man Crane.
 Solicitor Heflin was asked by MT. Ross: "Is it violation of the law for a rail- road company to issue passes to people not employed by the road?"
 "I don't know that that has anything to do with this case" said MT. Hefiin.
 Turning to the jury. Attorney Ross said; ''I will tell you that it is viola tion of the law. and the company has violated the law in prosecuting this case"
 Colloquy With Solicitor
 At this point in the argument a col loquy occurred between Solicitor lief lin and Attorney Ross in which MT. Ross pointed out that although the so licitor had been notified at the time of the last trial of violation of the law by the Louisville and Nashville, there had been no prosecution of the railroad Solicitor Heflln replied that the fault was not his but the grand jurys and that the only reason it had been brought into this case was to prej- udice the jury.
 The testimony regarding the finding of the lock was commented on MT. Ross pointed out that the letter purportinE to tell them where the Cunningham lock was, was received February 22. while the search for and finding the lock was on August 24. MT. Lamb took his men down to Cunningham the day after the wreck in December, when the ground was bare, and could not find the lock; but six months after the let ter was received, in the month of Au- gust, in the weeds the lock was found"
 MT. Ross compared the Thompson and Thompson letters and the anonymous letters, and pointed out differences Tn them. Any man who is not receiving $25 a day can see differences in them said he.
 This letter. said Mfr. Ross, referring to one of the anonymous letters, is full of T.o11iSyilla and Na ShviIla ra l.