The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1911-09-07
PREFER MILK CART
To YELLOW TOP AUTO


evoke as many smiles as did Dairy
man Roland Sydnor, Of Chesterfield.
yesterday when he testified in the case
of the Commonwealth VS.. Henry c.
Beattie, Jr.
Even now it is difficult to say
whether Mr.. Sydnor was purpoSely
faceIious or whether he is simply in
genuouS. But be that as il may, he
brought smiles into a tense situation
and caused laughter at a time when
some very hot shot was being poured
into the defense of the accused.
Even the prisoner at the bar had
to laugh heartily, while the sedate
Judge Watson, who will countenance
no frivolity in his smoothly running
count, found himself working hard to
keep a straight face.
And the oldest part of II all is that
Sydnor, though humorously quaint in
some of his replies to the lawyers rep
reSenting the accused, held his own
most aStOniShingly with Harry Smith
and put the latter to his trumps i'm an
effort to beat down his damaging tes-
timOny.
The conscientious dairyman appear
ed as a witness for the State and the
evidence ne gave was perhaps the
most important of the day. He said
that shortly after shutdown and Just
before nightfall Of the day Mrs Beat
tie was murdered, he passed the scene
OF the crime.
Within twenty or thirty feet Of this
seat automobile with a yellow top.
Near II in a ditch was q man-eVi-
IDENTIFY the owner or occupant Of the
car-who was seemingly working on
a tire. The individual in question
wore light brown suit and tan
shoes.
In short, the prosecution sought to
convey the impression that the soli-
tary automobiles was the accused
who has a brown top, four-seat car
and who, on the night Of the crime,
wore brown suit and possibly also
brown shoes.
Didn't Identify Clothes.
1t was rather q serious moment
when the States lawyers showed Mr..
Sydnor the clothes worn by the pris-
oner on the night his wife was killed
and asked the witness If he could
identify them.
The cautious dairyman would not
commit himself definitely on this
point. Nor would he, a little later
admit that the accused was the man
he saw on the evening of July 18th
He didn't say he wasn't; he simply
said he would not care TO tax his
memory with SO responsible a duty
as positive identification. But Mr..
Sydnor was positive about the yellow
top auto which he persistently de-
scribed as a four-seat affair.
Naturally Mr.. Smith did not fancy
this evidence. Although the witness
had not testified in a dogmatic way
ne naQ SAID enough raise q pre-
sumption that Beattie was the per-
son he saw. And the accused. be it
remembered, is suspected of having
hidden a gun behind a stump just
about the time described.
So the lawyer proceeded to try
some of the subtle tricks of CROSSE X-
animation. First he induced Mr.. sgd
nor to admit that he was no automo-
bile expert. Then he asked the wit
ness If he knew anything about the
chug-chug machines.
Il know enough to get in and out
Of one" naiVely replied the dairyman
without cracking a smile. And then
he explained that he had come over
from Centralia that very day in one
of the autos running to the court
house.
Mr.. Smith next quizzed the good
man as TO his ability to distinguish
the various kinds of autos, and
sought to know the extent of his
knowledge along this line. Mr.. sgd
nor frankly admitted he was no eX-
pert, but said that he knew a big
machine from a little one" He also
insisted that he knew a four-Seat car
from one containing more or less peo-
pie.
Pressed still more closely he said:
'All 1 go by is those yellow tops
and black tops"
And then he added with childlike
simplicity:
Il usually go in milk wagon"
At this everybody roared with
mirth and Henry c. Beattie, Jr., real
" seemed to enjoy the fun quite as
much as anybody else.
With great adroitness, the lawyer
struggled to induce the witness to ad-
NIT that there were quite as many yell
low top cars as black or red top cars.
But Mr.. Sydnor couldn't and wOuldn't
see il that way. He insisted that al
though familiar, at least, with the
sight of automobiles. he had in his life
seen but few yellow top machines.
The VENDOR of the tactical fluid said
he hated yellow anyhow.
Harry Smith Irritated.
TOwar1s the last the lawyer seemed
TO get very much irritated and he
made some remark intimating that the
witness was attempting to be facetious,
though, as matter OF fact, Mr.. sgd
nor all the time had kept as straight
a face as an undertaken at a funeral.
In order to impress the jury with
the fact that yellow top autos were
almost as common as any other kind.
Mr.. Smith launched out into u sort
of combination question and argu-
ment, at which the court called him
down pretty sharply.
After that the defense dropped the
dairyman as though he were a hot
rotato and the shrewd Chesterfieldian
left the witness stand. Despite the
mirth he created at times, Mr.. sgd
nor's testimony hit the accused man
Magistrate w. A. Jacob, of the
county, a printer by trade, also served
the purpose of the prosecution well.
He corroborated officer farrell, who
earlier in the day had told about see
ing blood on the gun.
Mr.. Smith tried to make the wit
ness back water on this statement.
but all in vain. The justice insisted
that he had seen the blood.
Didn't you know that Douglas
Beattie and several others had han
died that gun before you saw it?'
said the lawyer.
mo, sir" replied the witness.
The Cory Gauntlet.
Then why was there none on the
steering gear?" asked Mr.. Smith.
''I can't tell you" retorted the wit
ness. And then he added: But 1
will tell you this. Mr.. SMITH saw
that glove in the machine. There was
blood on that"
This remark created great excite
ment on all sides. Mr.. Smith asked
for the glove and so did Prosecutor
Wendenburg. Mr.. Smith said he
didn't have it; Mr.. Wendenburg said
he didn't. The latter added almost
in the same breath: eve have been