The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1918-02-28
GEORGE VAIL NOT GUILTY
ACQUITTED of Wife Murder by Jury
Friday Night.

Drought IN Dy the jury rEl0dy HlSH
in the case of the State agains
George Vail, charged with the murder
of 'his wife on the night of Angus,
The verdict of acquittal which was
reached after dehberation by the
jury of one hour and ten minutes
was brought in and handed to Circuit
Clerk Maxey at 11:I5. The verdict
read as follows: "We, the jury, find
the defendant not guilty. (Signed>
J. w. Darby, Foreman"
Vail received the announcement Of
the verdict with the same composure
which he has maintained throughout
the entire trial. A demonstration oi
applause started by friends of the de-
fendent at the announcement was
suppressed by the court. Vail ex-
pressed his gratitude to the jury and
to his friends. He was at once dis
charged by the court.
Following is a resume Of the testi-
mony in the case since last Wednes-
day:
Bill Dye testified that at the time
the alarm of fire was turned in he
was in the barber shop and went with
Others to the Vail home, where he
and Mr.. Fryer searched for the
baby with flash light. They saw
Jesse Thornbrugh and John Braden
bring out the body of Mrs., Vail.
2Thornbrugt, he said,y whose bare feet
were badly burned, was taken home
in a car. Said he saw the shot gun
which hung over the window in the
upstairs room, and as he started to-
get it, it fell out the window. 1t was
hot and he kicked ii into the grass.
Did not examine it, but thought it
was single barrel gun. Saw Vail
and told him to take the little girl
away and take care of her
Ed Higginbottom, young boy,
testified that he had carried note
from Vail to Mrs. Anna Harris and
that Vail told him to tell her there
was no use for her to 20 back to
Merwin as there was no work for her
there. Said he was at the Vail home
the night of the fire and saw Vail
run~ing around in his stocking feet
and said Wallis daughter, Vera, was
taken to- the Porter home across the
road
Mrs. Eva Mangold, recorder of the
Amsterdam Royal Neighbors lodge
testified to an insurance policy OF
$1,000 carried by Mrs. Vail with Vail
as beneficiary. She assisted the Tin
dertaker who prepared Mrs. Walls
body. and described the wounds on
the head and the burns on the body.
Said Mrs. Vail was not badly burned,
but was burned on the face. hands,
arms and lower part of legs. The
head was bloody and the hair matted
with dirt. She told of a conversa-
-tion with Vail on the porch of the
Blake home before the funeral in
which he told her that he felt she was
the only one who could sympathize
with him. Said he talked of the
burning of his livery stable and fine
horses which had occurred some time
before and said now that this had
come, mo one could tell you but
that we always got along together.
He wanted flowers sent to the fun
eral by the Royal Neighbors and she
told him this was the custom.
Charles Graham, who is the pro-
prietor of store at Amsterdam, tes-
titled that Vail had inquired about
some dynamite several days before
the fire and that he told him he no
longer handled it, but understood
another would have some in few
days. Vail again inquired about it
the day of the fire and when Graham
told him he'd see if he could get ii,
Vail told him not to bother as he
wanted it right away to blow out
some stumps for his mother.
Deputy Constable Shorty Davis
testified he asked Vail what he want
ed with the dynamite and Vail told
him he wanted to shoot a "hole Of
water for fish" Davis reminded him
that was against the law. Said he
had known Vail for several years and
knew NOtH1Hk against hIul. A~S'SA
heard Wallis name connected with
that of Anna Harris until after the
inquest, although he admitted he had
seen Vail, vi Barnett and Anna Har-
ris talking together near the Pattee
print shop.
Earl Sage, a coal miner, testified
he saw Vail, Mr.. and Mrs. H. Fergu-
son and little child and Anna Harris
1t the mine. Said Mrs. Ferguson
stayed in the engine room with her
husband, who was engineer, while the
others went into the mine. Testified
hat on Christmas eve, 1916, Vail gave
,im a package addressed to Anna
Harris to have hung on the Christ
mas tree.
Marshal Jim Mayes testified Anna
Harris stayed with her sister, Mrs
4. Ferguson, in Amsterdam. Said
The was there until just before the
ire.
Mrs. Will Thornbrough said she
ived two blocks north of the Vah
,ome and heard two shots and cries