The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1916-11-23

clients plight.
But, being of the bulldog breed,
Davenport would not yield.
One odd feature in the prosecutions
case had impressed him, and while
he set no especial value on it, yet ii
was against this that he begun his
assault.
lie recalled Mrs. Mason to the
stand, and made her repeat her for
mer testimony Of having entered he
date of Roses birth in the family
Bible.
Mrs. Mason" went on Davenport,
"you have testified that you wrote
this entry in the Bible, and that you
did so within three weeks after Rose
Mason was born. How did II hap
pen that her father did not write it,"
"Iie was nc at home" said Mrs.
Mason. "He was In Europe. he had
gone TO Moscow on legal business for
the government. He was absent from
this country for ten months. He did
not return until Rose was nearly four
months Old"
Il see. We will go into that later,
Mrs. Mason, do you know the law re-
quires that n record be made Of every
birth, marriage or death?"
81 did not know"
'Do you know that there is abso-
futeiy no record in the board of health
archives of Rose Mason's birth?-
NO"
'Thcre is not. 7 examined the ar
chives while l was preparing this
case. There is no record there of her
birth. Yet you have said she was
born in this city on September 3,
1898"
"YOur honor" spoke up the district
attorney, that Is readily explained.
Mrs. Mason has said she knew of no
such law. Senator Mason was absent
from home"
"If your honor pleases," said Daven-
port, that is no excuse. The law
does not require the parents to make
such entry. 1t is the province of the
attending physician. Mrs. Mason"
he resumed. turning again to the wit
ness, what physician was in attend
ance when your daughter, Rose, was
born?"
II don't remember" faltered Mrs.
Mason.
You don't remember the physician
who attended you when your only
child was born?" exclaimed Daven-
port astOniShed.
mo"
"Then what nurse did you have?"
Sarah Walters" said Mrs. Mason.
"She was with me from the year of
my marriage until five years ago."
II know the Walters woman" an
swered Davenport, "she is now acting
as h~ousekeeper in my sisters family.
With the courts permission I shall
send for her to"
mo-" interviewed Mrs. Mason fur
riedly. snow that / come to think of
it, Sarah was not with me when Rose
was born. I remember now. She was
threatened with consumption-tuber-
culoSis-and 1 sem her to Saranac for
nearly a year. She returned to us
just before Senator Mason got back
from Europe"
"Then who did act as your nurse
at that timer"
"I-I don't recall"
"Mrs. Masonl !" exclaimed Daven-
port, do you mean to tell the court
that any mother can forget such inn
portant circumstances attending the
birth of her only child? You cannot
remember the name of the doctor or
the nurse? Who is your family physi-
cian?"
Doctor Colfax."
How long has he attended your
family?"
IL don't know. Since my mar
riage, 1 think"
"Then he must have attended you
when Rose was born and he must
have some record of her birth, even
though he seems to have neglected
to make mention Of it in the way pre-
scrfocd by law. l will ask leave to
call Doctor Colfax. He is"
"No!' again broke in Mrs. Mason,
with visibly increasing u
81 remember now that he was not in
attendance"
"Your honor!" cried the district at
torney. noting Mrs. Mason's aspect Of
panic terror, 81 have listened patient
ly to this line of irrelevant, incompe-
tent and immateriui questioning, be,
cause I know my learned opponent
has q hopeless case. But the time Of
the court is being tempered with. !
request to know what the name of
any physician has to do with the fact
that Thomas Fletcher is guilty of alb
duction, and"
Thomas Fletcher has not yet been
proven guilty Of abduction, your
honor" contradicted Davenport. '"Thc
whole question of his possible guilt
hinges on Rose Mason's being less
than eighteen years old. There is no
court record of her age. The date
must be established by contemporary
witnesses and by similar testimony.
The only known witness is' n woman
who apparently recalls 10 detail Of
her child's birth except that she says
che kIrla -,naIy, InSo- ,~.