The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1913-03-14
BLOODY CLOTHING
AND BILLIARD CUE .
ARE on EXHIBITION
TESTIMONY IN THE TRIAL or
LON Stages ALL IN. FOR THE
STATE At NOON.
sTATEl RESTED AT THAT HOUl
Principal Witnesses Were Will Davis
Who Testified az to Threats and
Ben Davis Who Saw a Portion Of
the Assault.
Tuesdays Daily.)

The interest in the examination q
the witnesses in the case of the etats
against Lon Stages, charged will
numbering Tom Mcdonald on the
night OF Oct. Is, is equal to tha,
shown in the Bats case last week II
the attendance and the attention are
to be regarded as any indication
There are about twenty ladies, rela
tives of those connected with the
case, in constant attendance, among
whom is the widow of the deceased
and the wife of the defendant
Before the beginning of the taking
of testimony this morning there was
a large number already in their seats.
and this number increased for an
hour or more until there was hardly
standing room outside the bar.
The principal witnesse at the
morning session were Will Davis and
! Ben Davis, the state resting a. the
: close of the examination of the lat
ter The testimony of both the Da.
Wis was rather Straightforward and
though subjected to a rigid cross ex.
animation the attorneys for the state
stated that they were we'll satisfied
with the manner of their testimony
and its character.
Will Davis stated that few weeks
before the tragedy he was at the de-
pot and in conversation with the de-
fendant when Mcdonald passed them
and thatthe defendant then made the
statement to him that he, the de-
fendant, intended to kill him. McDon.
aid, the first time he caught him nap.
ping.
Ben Davis was then put n the stand
and testified as to the events on the
night of the assault which resulted
in the death of Mcdonald He stat
ed that in the early part of the even
ing he and Mcdonald had some troub-
le regarding settlement In which
dollar figured, but that this was f.
nally settled and they made friends;
that Claude Craig and Lon Stages
were in the building at the time of
this trouble. and that Craig separat-
ed them. After the trouble between
himself and Mcdonald he, Davis,
went to sleep, sitting in chair; that
he was awakened by a noise which
he discovered to have been blow on
McDonald's head from billiard cue
in the hands of Stages; that he spoke
to Stages lot to strike Mcdonald
again and Immediately started to-
ward him but before he could reach
either Stages or the cue that two
more blows were struck; that Nc
Donald had his head on the counter
when he received the, blows; that he,
Davis, managed to wrench the cue :
from the hands of the defendant,
when defendant said to him to get
out of this or he would get some of t
the same, and that Stages, did
strike him, Davis, before releasing
his hold on the weapon
After having the cue taken from
him, Stages, rushed cut on the
street, calling for the police and cry
ng murder" ssssak@
The state rested and the defendant
vas the first witness put on the stand
after dinner. !:
AS exhibits in the case are the bill
lard cue with which it is alleged Nc
Donald received his death blows, and
he bloody shirts whicn Davis ana
dcDonald wore when they had their {
ght early in the evening.