The weekly soliphone. (Paragould, Greene County, Ark.) 1907-1918, 1916-12-15


Skinner.
Prosecuting Attorney T. w. Da
Wis, M. P. Huddleston, retiring pros
ecuting attorney who assisted Mr..
Davis in the conduct of the case,
and judge r. II. Dudley who has
presided over the trial that started
Monday morning, together with nu-
merous spectators are all convinced
that Brandon is innocent of the
charge, and acting upon this con-
viction, backed up by the evidence,
ordered a directed verdict acquit
ting Brandon. This action was
taken after both the state and the
defense had placed before the jury
every syllable of testimony that
could be obtained that had any bear
ing upon the case. When the de-
fense rested shortly after eleven
o'clock Messrs. Davis and Huddle-
ston held a conference with Judge
Dudley,and following this the court
made a statement to the jury con-
Guiding with the announcement
that he would direct them to ac-
quit the defendant. Prosecuting
Attorney Davis also made a state
ment in which he briefly reviewed
the important features Of the case,
laying particular stress upon the
evidence and physical facts that es-
tablished Brandon's innocence, re-
marking that when he read the evil
dence as given at the preliminary
trial he was firmly convinced of
Brandon's guilt, but that since the
case had been completely developed
on both sides in the trial just clos
ed he had come to the conclusion
that Skinner was not killed by
Brandon and that in recommending
to the court a directed verdict of
acquittal he was merely doing JUS
tice to the defendant.
S. r. Simpson, who with ]. T.
Craig, represented Brandon, made a
short address in which he compli-
mented the officers for their dill
gence and their absolute fairness
throughout the case and remarked
that in his entire career as a Grim
inal lawyer Brandon is the first
client he had ever defended in q
murder trial whom he believed was
innocent of the crime.
In his statement to the court and
jury Prosecuting Attorney Davis
called attention to the convincing
testimony and indisputable records
showing that Skinner was murdered
in the cabin north of the city on
Saturday night, July Is. That
Skinner disappeared that night and
was never again seen alive is es-
tablshed by the records kept by
Skinner at Cooper's barn. The last
entry made by Skinner was on
Saturday, July Is.
Cal Ferguson, sewing machine
agent, who had made arrangements
to have his horse kept by Skinner
at the barn, testified Skinner dis
appeared on the night of July Is,
and that Ira Durham, SINNERS
boon companion disappeared on
Thursday night following. Fergu-
son fixed these dates by his ac-
counts with Skinner and by the sale
of sewing machine to a party
near Marmaduke on Wednesday,
July 10. He said he drove from
Marmaduke to Paragould that night,
reaching the barn at ten O'Clock.
Skinner had not been seen since the
Saturday night previous. Dunham
took charge of Fergusons horse that
night. On the following evening
left his horse at the barn he asked
Dunham to feed him early the next
morning. On Friday morning early
Ferguson was advised by a phone
message from Francis Clark that his
horse was loose. near the home of
Alex Stamps. Ferguson caught his
horse, took him to the Cooper barn.
He found the front doors of the
barn open, the lights turned on
and Dunham gone. The rope with
which he had his horse tied in the
stall was also missing. Dunham has
not been seen since the night pre-
vious to Friday morning, July 21.
j. NJ Remley, residing near the
cabin in which the murder was
committed, testified that between