The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-05-05
WIDOW TELLS OF
VISIT TO HOME OF
MRS. DODGE
Mrs. Heath Faces Alleged Stay
er Of Her Husband
PRISONER SHOWS NO EMOTION
Undisturbed Even When Own Dauqh-
ter Is Called as Witness for
Prosecution

~ -hNg W hIh NhC
trial of Mrs. Florence NJ. Dodge.
charged with the muraer of William
Heath of Dalton, N. H., at Mrs.
Dodge's home in Lunenburg, was re-
sumed yesterday the prisoner appear
ed in good spirits, and remained I'M
perturbed, even when her daughter,
Mrs. Ida Bell, was called to the stand
as witness for the prosecution. Mrs.
Bell was on the stand only a few
minutes. She said she went to her
mothers home a short time after
Heaths death. Her mother told her
Heath had shot himself. Mrs. Bell
could not remember any other facts
in connection with the case.
Mrs. Dodge's version of the death
of Heath was told to the court by the
Rev. Albert G. Gregory, pastor of the
Lunenburg Methodist church. Greg
DRY called at the Dodge home about
two hours after the death of Heath.
On the stand he said Mrs Dodge told
him she was in the kitchen at the
time the shots were fred and that
she went into the bedroom where she
saw Heath lying on the floor She
went to him and lifted his head for a
moment, and then went to get some
brandy. Returning, she lifted Heath's
head again and tried to give him the
brandy. Then she laid his head on
the floor again, and tried 10 summon
assistance. The clergyman testified
Mrs. Dodge told him there was no one
l,, 81 ha 81 g
death, except Heath and herself and
that all the doors were locked.
Dr. A. c. Breitling, recalled, told of
a visit to Mrs, Dodge's home after the
shooting when he was accompanied
by Attorney General Sargent and
Deputy Sheriff J. N. Dodge Mrs.
Dodge, he said, showed them the re-
volyer and a box of cartridges. Dr.
Breiting examined the revolver at
the time and found blood on it, but
could not see any traces of putty.
This fact was brought out to contro-
vert the testimony that Heath COM
mitted suicide. Heath was a painter,
and working with putty, and the Gov
eminent attorneys rely on the alb
sence Of traces OF putty on the revolt
yer to show the victim of the shoot
ing did not handle the weapon.
Irving Silsby testified that soon af-
ter Heath's death he went to the
Dodge home and saw Mrs. Dodge,
Mrs. NJ. d. Bowker and Mrs. II. G..
Howard, wife of the Congregational
minister
Either Mrs. Bowker or Mrs. Dodge
asked me If the third bullet had been
found he said Il told them it had
not Then Mrs. Dodge began to cry.
I'll have to 90 up for this! / know
I'll have to 90 up for this! oh, that
poor mans wifel How could be have
done it?"
Silsby also said Mrs. Dodge told
him the revolver had not been out of
the bureau drawer since a year ago
last spring He was asked to leave
the house, he said, and he did as re-
quested.
The announcement was made in
court yesterday afternoon that Dr.
Ernest Palmer of Brooklyn, N. Y,
who was present at the autopsy, had
refused to attend the trial, that he is
out of the State and cannot be pro-
duced as witness.
Attempting to fix the exact time Of
the shooting James Wainwright testi-
fed he was digging potatoes in field
back of the house when he heard
three shots, about a quarter of a
minute after he had heard the whistle
Of the so-called noon train.
The futile securing Of the neighbor-
hood for any possible suspicious per-
son or persons after the shooting Of
Heath, was testified to by Elbridge
Garden, a painter, who lives about
twenty-five rods from Mrs. Dodge's
residence
Mrs Edna Hurlburt of Dalton, n.
H., a sister Of Mrs Heath, widow OF
the victim, stated that, accompanied
BY the Rev. James Richmond, she
went to Mrs. Dodge's residence when
informed of Heath's death and met
Mrs. Dodge. She stated Mrs. Dodge
said the revolver which caused
Heaths death was her property.
The attention of every person ia
the courtroom was then centered up
on Mrs. Heath, the WIDOW, as hue looh
the stand Mrs Heath testified she
was at home on September II last,
the day of the shooting and that
when she received word of the shoot
ing she drove to Lundenberg, arriv-
ing there in the afternoon She did
not see the defendant that day, but
on the following day she visited Mrs.
Dodges home and had a long CONVEX
sation with her. She said she asked
Mrs. Dodge who owned the revolver,
and Mrs. Dodge replied it belonged to
her. Mrs, Dodge told her there was
no one in the house at the time of the
shooting besides Heath and herself.
Mrs. Heath testified that Mrs. Dodge
said all the outside doors Of the
house were fastened.