Amarillo daily news. [volume] (Amarillo, Tex.) 19??-current, 1912-02-25
QUOTES CA|lD'S PRAYER
COURT ROOM CROWD HUSHES To
LISTEN TO REPETlTtcN OF
WELL KNOWN
PETITION.
HANGER HEARD LAST
Judge Swayne Delivers Lengthy
Charge to Jury-No Verdict In
Case Is Deemed Probable
Before Monday.

Special TO Daily NEWS
Fort Worth, Tex, Feb. e4-W. T.
Mclean, Jr., attorney closing for the
defense in the trial OF John Beal
Sneed. charged with the murder OF
Colonel A. G. Boyce here January
Is. finished his address today with a
child's prayer that the court room.
iammed to its capacity, hushed Itself
10 hear. until only the monotonous
ticking OF a clock was heard.
Mclean bowed his head and said
in a tremulous voice, IF papa should
die before wake. pray the Lord his
soul TO take" This PRAYER would be
uttered by Lenora, the beautiful ten
vear-old daughter OF the rich de-
fendant n convicted. the attorney
declared. and he drew a touching
picture OF her kneelng in a home
ruined, he said, by the erring mother
who eloped with Al c. Royce, Jr.
Senator W. A. Hanger closed for
the state tonight. after which Judge
Swayne read a lengthy charge to the
Jury. The Jury received the case a.
nine o'clock. No deliberations are
expected until tomorrow and no YER
dict Is expected until Monday.
The case has been on trial four
weeks. Mr.. Hanger. in closing, re-
ferred to the defense claims that
Sneed was near God man" or that
he is the only man since Christ who
gave full protection to his family.
He declared Sneed murderer in
mind. spirit and act.
History Of Case.
Colonel A. G.. Boyce. Sr.. was shot
and killed by ]. Beal Sneed Saturday
night. January lS. shortly before y
O'Clock in the lobby OF the Metropol'
itan Hotel. He was sitting talking
with I'd Throckmorton. son Of for
mer Governor Throckmorton, on the
north side Of the lobby near the cafe
door when Sneed entered the Hotel
Snced. with his brother-in-law,
Henry Bowman, Jr., OF Plano. and his
cousin, Attorney " II. Atwell OF Dali
las, had been TO supper at Sam Jo-
seph's after Bowman and Sneed had
taken Mrs. Sneed to the Arlington
Heights sanitarium, from which che
escaped Nov. s. 1911. eloping with
Al Povce, Jr. Sneed and Bowman,
after returning from the Sanitarium'
had met Atwell nv appointment In
the lobby of the Metropolitan. Col
onel Boyce was then there and Sneed
walked on outside while Colonel
Boyce talked to Atwell about white
slave charge Atwell had In the Fed
eral jurisdiction against Al Boyoe'
Jr.. for going with Mrs. Sneed into
another State.
This conversation closed, the three
rejoined and went to supper. About
twenty minutes TO Q o'clock they
left the cafe, according to their an
nounced intention. with the idea Of
going tc the Texas and Pacific sta
lion to get their grips and take the
interurban TO Dallas, en- route to MT
Bowman's home az Plano Bowman
rs thew walked TO Main street. said
he was going 10 the Metropolitan &c
get can OF tobacco. Sneed an
nounced that he too would 60. At
well. according 10 his recollection
was detained on the corner.
Accounts Of what happened after
Sneed and Bowman entered the hote
lobby vary. Tho State claimed thai
Snoed first pcopcd into the lobby anC
then camc in walking toward Col
oncl poyce. and shot him before ID
could Get ont of his chair. The De
iense claimed that he came In ant
started in q direct line 10 the lava
tory az the rear OF tho hotel: that
as he got opposite Colonel Boycc al
cnithet was applied. Sneed turned
saw Boyoe and Throckmorton rising
and began shooting.
Sneed's explanation was that ~
he heard the epithet and saw Colonc
Boyce he knew II came from him
and the whole history OF his expert
ence swept over him. lie also de