The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1911-05-13
CONVICTED OF KILLING
WILLIAM HEATH
Heath Met His Death While
Engaged in Painting lnte-
rior ofMrs. Dodge's House
in Lunenburg Last Sep
tember.

Guildhall, May l3.--Guilty of man
slaughter was the verdict returned to-
day in the case OF Mrs. Florence NJ.
Dodge who has been on trial in Essex
county court for the past two weeks
for the murder of William Heath at
Mrs. Dodge's home in Lunenburg Sep
tember II, last. The jury reported the
verdict at the opening of court this
morning at 8 o'clock. Mrs. Dodge will
be sentenced Monday afternoon at 2
o'clock. There is geenral appreciation of
the sentence here. Very few exceptions
We're taken during the course of the
trial, and it is not known whether the
case will be taken higher
Hardly trace of emotion crossed the
face of Mrs. Dodge when she heard from
the lips Of the foreman of the jury that
she had been found guilty of manslaugh-
ter. Neatly dressed in sonlbre black,
the woman sat impassive as the ver-
dict was returned. Then she sank into
seat between her daughter, Mrs Ida
Bell, who has been her constant attend,
and during the trial, and one OF her at
torneys, Harry Blodgett.
Mrs. Dodge was remanded in the GUS
tody Of the sheriff,
Aside from the respondent, her coun-
sci, the prosecuting attorneys relatives
of the woman, court officials and news
paper men, there was hardly anyone in
court when the session began this morn
ing.
The case was given to the jury at s:l0l
last night, Judge Hall having charged
them at 1880. The jury returned at
945 and asked to have the statute COW
ering second degree murder and man
slaughter read again, after which they
went back and were locked up for the
night
In his charge, Judge Hall instructed
the jury that it could not find verdict
of murder in the first degree because
of the absence of evidence to show pre-
meditation
Porter H. Dale, for the woman, said !
he did not want the jury to consider |
the sex of the client, the fact that her
natural protector was in his grave, nor |
did be want to play on their sympathies.
AT this point Mrs. Dodge broke out /
weeping. the first sign OF emotion
shown during the trial The state had /
tried to prove her guilty by play upon /
words and by putting distorted con-
struction on things she said under stress
OF intense mental excitement. He said
it was but natural she should say she
did not know the gun was loaded and
her exclamation that she would probably
have to go up for it was not to be con-
strued as an admission OF guilt.
She realized that because they were
alone in the house at the time-sus
picion would point at her He then took
up her other statements made immedi-
ately after the shooting and showed they
were prompted, not by guilt, but by re-
gret that there was no one present to
bear witness to her innocence.
Attorney General Sargent made
calm, coldly analytical plea. He appar
emily made a strong impression ON the
Jury. He said the defense had aban
doned the idea of suicide, but the de-
Tense objected to this point and he
passed on With fish rod and a re-
folver, he demonstrated that if the re-
yolyer had been dropped on the trigger,
the bullet could not have gone above
the knee He took up the anonymous
letter and showed places where Mrs.
Dodge used two styles of "M's' in sign
ing her name, thus controverting the
claim Of the defense that the letter
could not have been written by Mrs.
Dodge on account of the difference in
the letter M"
The Shooting Of Heath.
The shooting of Heath took place in
bedroom Of the Dodge house, where
he was painting About noon of Sep
tember il Mrs. Dodge was seen rum
ming out Of her house, crying that Heath
had been shot She said that she was
working in the kitchen at the time, and
heard several shots. She entered the
bedroom and saw Heath, she said. and
then she tried to give him some brandy
TO revive him.
When the autopsy was performed,
the doctors reported that Heath could
not have shot himself, as the bullet en-
tered the back and passed through the
heart. coming out in front and lodg-
ing inside the shirt Two other bull
lets grazed the Threshold Heath
was 90 years old Mrs Dodge,
widow, IS about so.