Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-08-25

had gone to bed, as there was no light
there, and after discussing the matter
moment they concluded not to call at
Leverton's and turned back, the
nephew getting in the buggy with them
to ride home. On the way they stopped
at three different farms on perfectly
legitimate and necessary business, all
of which was proved by occupants of
these farms, by four witness at one,
none of whom were impeached. and
two at each Of the others, all of whom
| were impeached.
Abb. Held Good.
The state proved by the county sur
veyor, who had given the matter OF
! distances special consideration, that the
minimum distance from Cloves to
! where Johnson's body was found in the
public highway was seventeen miles,
maximum eighteen miles," depending
upon the way one might go. The state,
by the same proof, showed that the dis
lance from Cleves and back to Frank s
| house, by the route they claimed to
/ have travelled that night, was eleven
and three-fourths miles. The undis-
puted evidence is that they were back
home between II and IL O'clock that
night. Franks wife testified that it
when they came in after putting up
the team. This is established by all
of Franks household, hired people and
| others, and by the states witnesses
who claim to have seen or heard a
buggy that night. Taking the evidence
as a whole, it was probably about 1:3O
o'clock. The evidence seems to fix the
time they left Cleves at about seven
O'clock. The stops they made were
four-in the road with the nephew and
at the three farms-aggregating, as
gathered from all the witnesses, prob
ably an hour, leaving three hours and
| a half for the eleven and three -fourths
! miles, reasonable story.
That they were at Cleves the night
Johnson was killed, nobody would have
the hardihood to dispute. 1t can not
be disputed in the face of the record.
If they drove from Cleves to Abbott,
if they visited these farms-and there
is evidence that they did. and not a
word Of proof that they did not-then
no rational person would claim that
they could have overtaken Johnson,
killed him and returned home by IL: 30
o'clock. When they drove to Abbott,
, if they did, they were going in a di-
| rection directly opposite from that
johnson had taken. There Is no evil
dence that johnson stopped anywhere
on the way. Let it be conceded that
they did not make the drive to All
bolt. They how does the case stand?,
1t would have required drive or more
than seven miles per hour, on a night
shown by the state to have been very
dark, and, besides, the murder Of the
victim within the time-7 to IL: 30
o'clock. Pretty quick work and hard,
continuous driving for an old, heavy
farm team. one OF them not having
been able to do but little work for
weeks. Such a team they were shown
by a dozen witnesses to have had at
Cleves.
This is. Of course. considering the
whole round trip. But the case is
much stronger one when considered
simply as 10 the drive from Cloves to
where johnson was killed. The state
proved this distance to be seventeen or
eighteen miles and that the murder
], occurred between s and 9 o'clock Let
| US say at S.: As, to give all the advan-
| tage to the state. Then leaving Cleves
at o'clock they would have to drive
at the rate of ten miles per hour to get
there within the time. Johnson with the
! one-horse buggy would just about have
reached the point where he was killed
say at $3.50, which is farther proof that
| the time Of his murder as fixed by the
evidence was right. 1t certainly seems
hardly to be believed that the RAINS
bargers could have made the drive on
a dark night within the time limited.
State Evidence Conflicts.
The state proved by two witnesses
hot fIoHy he 1oF 40 tc
Eldora, driving south and that they
Several other witnesses said they saw
such a team hitched to buggy going
south that night just south Of Eldora,
but they did not recognize the occu
pants. It may be observed that the
| time fixed when the two witnesses said
they recognized the defendants passing
, thru Eldora was at exactly the time
that many witnesses say they were in
Cleves Eldora is fourteen miles south
of Cleves. One of the witnesses who
said he saw and spoke to them as they
passed thru F,ldora about 6 o'clock said
he had never kept 1t a secret that he
saw them, yet he was present at the
preliminary hearing and at Mates two
trials, but was not a witness until at
Franks trial in March, 1887, two years
and more after the murder. Other
| witnesses testified to seeing and hear
ing buggy going north rapidly thru
Steamboat Rock about II o'clock. This
town is six miles south of Cloves. Il
was shown also that on the night there
was Qualification meeting" in Ell
dora on account Of the election of
President Cleveland, and the testimony
shows that there were bonfires and the
festivities usual on such occasions. 1t
is not unlikely that buggies might have
been seen driving in many directions
that night The only team testified
about by the states witnesses was a
gray, or light colored horse, and clay
bank or mouse colored one. Possibly 1T
may not DE strange that 1t was just
that kind of team that was seen from
south Of Eldora, passing thru Eldora,
and north Of there passing thru Steam
boat Rock. But it was established that
neither Frank nor Nate had any such
horses, but William Rainsbarger, an
older brotlfen had. The only possible
theory then was that they drove from
Cleves northeast to William Rainsbar-
gers house and exchanged teams-his
being q team that travelled fairly well
but this theory meets with trouble, be-
cause It was clearly established by a
number Of witnesses that George and
i Joseph Rainsbarger, sons OF William,
had that team in Cleves that night and
that they lef. town for home with this
team about II o'clock. This may well
be believed, for one Of the young men
was visiting q young lady whom he
shortly after married and her father