The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1913-10-30
DEFENSE TO CLAIM
THAT FIELDS WIFE
DEALT FATAL BLOW


DR.. Charles l.. Scudder of Boston, consid-
cred All authority on bone fractures.
During part Of the proceedings DR.
Scudder occupied a chair close to those |
OF the attorneys for the defense ana |
Frequently consulted with them
The first witness of the day was Dr. /
James r. Rudden of Bellows Falls He |
testified that he had seen Field on the /
leycning Of Aug l0 and that lie had /
found a slight swelling on the back of
the head and an apparent depression
there. He saw Field the next morn
! ing, when the symptoms We're more
marked, and he was present when the
i operation was performed ami at the
autopsy. In his opinion medical skill
icould not have saved the life of Field.
On cross examination Dr. Ruddcn
said that the skin Of the scalp was not
broken. He expressed the belief that
the fracture could not have been made
by blow from the fist and was of the
loplnion that ii it had been made hv a
blunt Instrument the depression wouId
not have been 50 sharp as it was. He
thought that there would have been
liberation Of the scalp if the head had
struck the sharp edge of Il board
Or. \. L. Miner Of Bellows Fails
testified substantially as had the pre-
tNious witness. telling OF what ne saw
at the time Of the operation aud ut the
autopsy. He gave his opinion that the
ipatient might have received such
blow as had been delivered and yet
, not have suffered great pain on ac-
count of the concusSion To the brain
, (which would have dcadened his senSi-
e hilities
George T. Lawrence. one Of tho Wit
neSSes for the state. was recalled for
further cross examination and asked re-
: @arding several ~tui mentS it was
; claimed he had made since the muir
der. He denied having made any of
E them
The first witness called for the de
: fense was \. j. McKinnon OF BELOW.
Falls, night patrolman Of the police
D force. He testified tha' lie knew hoEh
Mr.. and Mrs. Field and that he saw
t Mrs. Field two or three times on the
+ evening OF Aug. o. He saw her at 9
4 o clock and again at 9.lj. He did not
. talk with her. lie also saw Field who
+ appeared to the witness to lac natural
\ lie testified that AT 1880 o'clock
Sunday morning, Aug. 10, tic saw Mrs
/ Field standing 1T the screen door a.
a the Field restaurant and spoke to her
j but denied that She mentioned TO hin
y amy injury 10 her husband. Between
e 1870 and ! 'eloci, that morning Sh,
4 called him across the street and tol.
q hun that the screen door had beer
+ broken. lie inspected it and fouut
that the spring had been stretched. q,
O he turned to leave Mrs. Field locke,
al the door
VI Continuing. he testified that rs Il,
# was passing the place Mt = q 'clock ha
- morning he heard Mrs Field say
= Get mp. in strong tones: that IN
Went into the alleyway and locke,
through the window Of the dinin;
;, room and could make ont Mrs. Fiel
+ standing in the dining room; that h
heard Field say: stop, vou
- Is that the way YOU are going to us
5, me, YOU drnkard -; that he could no
:. see Field and the voice evidently cam
I. from the floor.
: He next saw Mrs Field either knee
Is, or sit on the floor, he said, and mex
es heard two sharp cracks which he Il,
If scribed rs resembling the slapping a
. hands together. lie noticed sigh
or movement Of Mrs Fields shoulders 4
$. the same time. Immediately after thH
er she got mp, he said, and pulled the en-
tt tain at the window. The officer this
!, Went to the south side Of the huil,hn
-, and, looking in ut IA window. saw Nh
= Field leaning on the counter, crying.
~ After a lengthy argument over I'll
" admissibility of evidence to show wha
u report the officer had made to r
de chief of the incident, the report v;
X IeXclndee}.
~ On cross-eXamnation hv State : IS
H. torney a. Y. y. Piper. Mckinnon to
III. titled that he had made no effort
Il enter the restaurant as he did not 60
~ slider it was any of his business to &
r ~ He did .opCiIRr hn m tpr ny,
= thing serious and thought that it W;
30 the business Of Mrs. Field, with who
- 10 he had talked twice earlier in II
y evening, to call him if he wished al
he lie also said on cross examination tn;
ro the blows sounded rs If they had hat
tor made by n fist, but he could not tC
oil whether they had been made by stri
le- ing bare flesh or hair.
~ Alfred f. Grow Of Bellows Falls te
= tilted that he was walking along Roe
ingham street on the night Of Aug.
and saw Richards standing about ha
way inside the door of the Field re
son taurant. At first he saw only Fiel
Or- but later he saw Mrs Field. hs
for watched he saw Richards make a ett
ess. for Field and saw Field run back.
its. then saw a woman with her hands
- step in front of Richards and 81
Richards strike her and the woman r
to her knees Richards then helped Il
to her feet. During the struggle
oil tween Richards and the woman he 8.
laT nothing of Field, but later thought
m az saw Field near the rear Of the rests
rant
Grotv then testified that he went
the to the restaurant at 9.15 o clock II
'om evening. when Field was there, a
sial talked with him about supper,
ow Field refused to give him any beca'
ex he had no money. He went out a