The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1917-07-13
BLACkWELLS
TOkNOW THEIR
FATE TONIGHT.
Assistant Prosecutor Will
Close for State When
Court Opens Friday.
SPEEDY VERDICT
IS THE FORECAST
Counsel on Both Sides Put
All Their Energies in
Their Arguments.
(By Thomas Ewing Dabneyl

(By Thomas Ewing Dabney)
Crestview, JULY 12.-Friday the
Thirteenth will be the day on which
Bob and viii Blackwell will learn
their fate, for the case will be given
into the hands of the jury before
noon tomorrow and a speedy verdict
is expected. Possibly the two pris-
oners will know before dinner wheth-
er they will hang or go free, but at
the latest they should know their
fate before the sun drops, ball of
blood, behind the western rim of the
earth.
Friday the Thirteenth
Friday the Thirteenth, Either Bob
and Will Blackwell will forever bless
the day that gave them life, or the
people of Okaloosa county will make
an anniversary of it and celebrate
every Friday the Thirteenth, no mat
ter when it comes-the day that
cleared the stain of the most horrible
crime in its history from the county's
scutcheon, and established a warning
to evil minded persons that will make
the homes of the law-abiding element
safer in the future!
Courtroom Crowded
The courtroom was crowded TODAY
thought to be the concluding day of
the testimony. Visitors came from
many miles about; among the Pensa~
colians present were r. A. MeGratn,
Felo McAllister, Mr.. and Mrs. J. T.
Moore, DR.. T. H. Stokes, George
Hall and A. B. Black, At all previous
sessions there were many women
II
looking and others better looking,
and many with babies. Another man
fell out of the window today, this
makes the third.
Argument Begins
With the addresses of H. S. Laird
and w. J. Rice, the defense finished
its argument, using the entire eight
hours allowed by Judge Campbell, the
assistant site attorney Stokes began
his summary Mr.. Stokes had spoken
two and a half hours when court
adjourned; he has three hours left,
but will probably not speak more
than an hour and a half.
COntradicting Defense
Worthy of note is how contradic-
tory the four defense arguments are
with each other.
Will Blackwell for instance de-
manded liberty or death, and Mr..
Nelson followed with an indirect sug-
gestion of life imprisonment.
Mr.. Nelson expressed establishment
at the political motives and personal
feeling that had been injected into
the issue, and yet it was the defense
that introduced this, and Mr., Rice
and Mr.. Laird harped on the politi-
cal frame up, of which they said,
their clients had been made the VIC
TINS.
Mr.. Laird made strong point of
the fact that Sophrinia Holmes
said on the cross, that the telltale
heelprints had been made by a wart-
whereas the footprints followed by
the tracking parties showed that they
had been made by a concave surface,
but Mr.. Rice declared that Sophornia
Holmes was confused and meant that
the footprints, not the shoes, showed
the wart-ike surface.
Mr.. Laird laid particular emphasis
on the contradiction between the tes-
timony of Harrison Davis and Malin-
da Littlefeld, tn former of whom
declared that there was one pistol
shot followed after a slight pause by
two others in quick succession, where
as the latter swore the discharges
were equally separated; but Mr.. Rice
declared he could very easily under
stand how in the excitement and un-
expectedness of it all the little diff
ference of opinion should have crept
in, and dismissed it as matter of
no moment.
Regarding the picture on the wall,
VIII Blackwell said that he didn't
know whether he hid Bob's Woodman
card under the backing or not, but
MIR. Rice declared that he didn't do
it.
At both the last trial and this the
defense moved for a change of venue
on the grounds that it was impossible
to secure 4 fair and impartial jury,
and several days ago, tried to impeach
two of the jurors, yet all the attor-
neys devoted considerable time to ex-
tolling the jury, Mr.. Lizard declaring
it was probably the most honest one
he had ever seen, and Will Blackwell
saying that he felt like shaking hands
with himself at having secured
twelve men so good and true! Mr..