Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-10-13
WITNESSES FOR PROSECUTION
PARTIALLY sUesrANriArE DE.
FENsE's CONTENTION.
WHETHER RUSH WAS SITTING
OR STANDING CRUCIAL POINT
Sitting When Shot in Crasr to Com
bat Wife's Plea Of Self Defense =
Twelve Witnesses Examined BY State
Up to Noon-Interest Unabated.
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Hampton, Oct. 13.-With four wit
nesses examined. and progressing
slowly and at times tediously, the state
this forenoon continued to put togeth-
er, piece by piece, the fragments of
evidence that as a whole. its attorneys
believe, will prove that Mrs. Rush
deliberately shot her husband as the
latter sat in his swivel chair at his in
strument table.
These parts Of the evidence told of
the position of the movable furnish
ings. fixtures, and equipment of the
station office, as they were found to
be at the time the coroners jury got
there at about dark on Aug. 4.
BY the direction his chair was turn
ed, by the position Of his body, by the
place where the revolver was found,
and by the width Of the room, and 9TH
er lesser details Of the interior. the
states attorneys expect to show that
Rush was murdered by his wife. as he
set and that she fired from near the
opposite end of the room.
Introduce Evidence Of Wound.
In addition to this evidence of the
locat ton and position of the furnish
ings. etc, the state sought thru DR..
John H. Stanton. Of Charlton. who as
sisted in the postmortem, Sept. II. that
the downward course Of the bullet
would could only have been possible
with Rush sitting and his wife holding
the revolver at a higher level than the
point where the bullet entered the sta
tion agents body.
The evidence as to the interior of the
office came from Justice Of the Peace
E. l.. Coldren, of Hampton. who was
acting coroner at the inquest, and two
of his jurymen, A. ]. ironing and w.
r. Yelland. both Of Sheffield.
Witnssses' Evidence corroboratsd.
Their evidence, in all OF Its substan-
tial details. regarding the position Of
the office chair. body, and revolver, Wae
practically alike. However, some Of 1t.
brought out principally in cross-exami-
nation, modified the direct testimony.
In some detail sharply favored the de-
fense's contention that the murdered
man was rushing at his wife when he
was shot.
DR.. Stanton gave it as his judgment,
based on the post mortem and his pro-
fessional experience, that the revolver
was on higher level when fred than
the wound in the body. How much
higher, he could not say. but he gave it
as his opinion that Rush could not
have been in any other position than
sitting down when shot.
His cross examination had just been
begun when court adjourned until 1880,
but the questions asked him by At
torney Andrews IN that time brought
out qualifications to his answers on
direct examination.
Acting Coroner First Witness.
Coldren, the acting coroner. was the
first witness to take the stand for the
state this morning. He said the sta
ton had been locked as far as he knew,
from the time shortly after the mur-
der until about o'clock that evening.
when the inquest was held. Rush's
body, he said, lay face downward. with
the right side of the face to the floor.
The head pointed toward the south
east. The right arm was under the
body; the left extended. The body
was three or four feet from the stove.
The desk chair was facing the south
and an open tissue book was lying
diagonally across the desk, in front of
the chair.
The state proved by Coldren that a
person sitting In the swivel chair, as
1t was found to be facing, would have
his left side in the direction from
which the state claims the shot was
fired by Mrs. Rush. e
Answers Qualified BY Questions.
During the cross-examination Col
dren admitted that the position Of the
office chair and other fixtures was aa
he found them when he went there to
hold the inquest. He said certain
age OF what looked like post cards, and
a letter or two, were taken from Rushs
clothes.
During the examination A. J. From
ing the defense admitted that the re-
volver was not found on Rush, it hav.
ing previously admitted the killing.
ironing, in addition to corroborating
Coldrens testimony, added to 1t that
the body was so close to the chair that
Rush's legs. stretched toward the
northwest. passed the legs Of the chair
He said he examined the poker. which
all three witnesses testified lay with
one end under Rush's leg but he found
no blood on 1t.
Believe Chair Moved in Struggle.
That the defense will attempt to
prove that. during the struggle between
Rush and his wife for the possession OF
the telephone. the revolving upper por-
ton Of the chair was moved. developed
when ironing was asked II any one
using the telephone would not have to
stand close to the chair. He answered,
"Yes."
Yelland, the other coroner's jury
man, who admitted while Liggett was
questioning him that he was friend
OF Rush. and had frequently visited
him at the station office. substantiated
what the other two witnesses had testi-
fled to regarding the condition of
things in the room.
He stated. under cross-exs summation.