The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-04-08
JAIL ONE, FREE OTHER SUSPECT
 IN HALL CASE Merchants Conditionis Con sidered Grave at Bridge
 port Hospital. TELLS POLICE WHERE TO SEEK RESTAURANTS "You Can Find Men at Webber's on Mile Hill,'' He Said.
Especial to The Farner)


 Newtown, April s-'Fwe1l boys if I go, you can find the men who did me at Webber's on Mile HiN.''
 Weak from the loss of blood and fearing that death would soon over take him, Ezra Hall, the merchant plumber of this town who was at tackled and left fnsensibIe after be- night. made this statement to police authorfties of Newtown while on the way to Bridgeport hospital. it was earned today.
 Deputy Sheriff A. B. R1akentan told 9 Farmer reporter this morning and John Thome, the two men who were arrested after the murderous as sauIt The injured man has in formed the sheriff that he knows his assai1antS-
 Balnnger was taken to, the county where he will be held until Halls condition becomes definite At the Bridgeport hospital this morning it was said that he is in a dangerous ticondition and his recovery is mat ter of doubt
 coroner J. J. Phelan is closely watching the case in the fear that Hall may die and an ante-morten statement may be necessary
 Residents of Newtown were indig- | Thome had been released after it had been known that Hall accused him and Ba1Hnger. Criticism or the man ner in which the case has been handled, Is freely made and the ctti- ze1ls are demanding that another possible.
 Ballinger and Thome were ar raigned before Justice of the Peace J. Fl. Mccarthy last evening. Thome was released and Ballinger was held for further examination
 A large crowd from Sandy Hook as well as boroughites flocked around the court room lbutj only those sub poenaed as witnesses and a. few oth- CTS were admitted. Only one witness, | William Conger, was put on the stand, He said that a. little before 8 o'clock, Tuesday night, he noticed a | tall man standing near a telegraph l pole at the bridge in the village, who appeared to be watching or looking 1 fin the direction of the Hall plumb | cfously. In the darkness he thought | the man carried club or stick. The | witness was startled and involuntariIy 1 swerved from the sidewalk towards the street. The man said nothing and made no move Conger was not able to distinguish his features. He was tall. possibly six feet When asked by the court if he could iden- -tify either of the prisoners as the
 man he had seen he said he could not He said he does not know either John Thome or George Ball mer to be an employe of J. F. Web Der of Mile Hill and knew him by sight. He never saw BaIlinger/ be fore he said.
 There was disposition on the ] part of the court officials to put the prisoners Aon the stand, but both lre- fused claiming they should be given opportunity to procure counsel By individual Questi oning the records Eo1 both were ascertained. Thome claim ed to have been in charge of Attorney Sanford's farm in Greenfield Hill fo1 several years and he said he also act ed in this capacity for a Jennings Il family in Fairfield for an equally long time, or about 16 years in all He has been manager for J. F. Web Der of Newtown for more than 9 lyear. BalIinger had been in the U S. Navy and claimed to be the owner of property Both maintained tneil innocence of the crime, Ballinger as sertings that he didn't know Hall
 much less have grievance agains l him. Both claimed to have been al home by 8:3O.
 J. F. Webber, their employer, wa: communicated with and the substancs of their statements given him ovel the telephone He unqualifiedly cor roborated Thome and believed thai T Bal1inger was what he claimed to be
 In their admissions to the officers who arrested them they had at frs denied they had been in the village that night, but in the court, Thomt admitted both were coming to the village together about o'clock Thone called on the young womau il l the case to bring home a pair O shirts which a few days before he ha6 commissioned her to buy for him il Waterbury. After getting the cloth ] 6Continued on Page 8.l