New-York tribune., 1919-06-24
Carvalho Testifies Date on
1915 Will Is i'm Hand
writing of Prisoner Ac-
cused of Killing Wife
Doctor on Stand To-day
Will Be First Witness in
His Own Behalf After
Attorneys Opening Plea

Staff Corresponding
MINEOLA, June ga final bid was
made to-day for the conviction of DR..
Walter Keene Wilkins, charged with
the murder of his wife, when the pro-
secution put David N. Carvalho, hand
writing expert, on the stand. Mr.. Car
valho testified that the date of the 1915
will Of Mrs. Wilkins was in the hand
writing of DR.. Wilkins. The signature,
in his opinion, was that of the MUIR
dered woman.
Mr.. Carvalho's testimony closed the
case of the prosecution. After an OPEN
ing statement for the defence by
Charles N. Wysong tomorrow morn
ing, DR.. Wilkins will take the witness
stand.
DR.. Wilkins has consistently declared
he never saw the 1915 will until
March 4, Of this year.. When it was
produced it was found to be worth
less as legal instrument, because at
testation was lacking. Testimony at
the trial had gone to show that it was
state is that when the defendant felt
himself getting into the tolls Of the
law he tore off the attestation page in
order to destroy evidence Of motive
for the crime.
DR.. Schultze Testifies
DR.. Otto H. Schultze, who performed
the autopsy on Mrs. wilkins, described
her wounds. He testified he
had found blood s4ains on DR..
Wilkins's hat and coat, Mrs. Wilkins's
hat, the lead pipe, hammer, loved. knot
pin and watch. He said the spots of
blood on the defendants clothes would
be larger if they came from the hands
of the murdered woman, as DR.. Will
kins has suggested.
Under cross-examination DR.. Schultze
itemized his bill against the county.
He testified to charging $3.50 for the
autopsy, $3.50 for the day spent in court
and SIS an hour for analyzing the blood
stains.
Benjamin F. Kohler, a reporter,
testified that 9. the Lutheran Gene
terry, on the day of the autopsy, DR..
wilkins showed him cheap watch he
was wearing and told him that he had
bought it as a substitute for the valu-
able gold Swiss watch belonging to
Mrs. Wilkins's son Leon, which the
burglars had stolen.
Found Inside Sofa
This Swiss watch was found two
weeks ago stuffed in sofa in the Long
Beach home and is now in evidence.
On other occasions witnesses have
quoted the defendant as saying the
watch taken from him by the burglars
was Waltham timepiece.
Allen o. Myers, chief Investigator
for William j. Burns, was on the wit
ness stand most of the day. He went
over the ground covered by Carman
Plant in the course of his testimony,
and told of the various searches made
through the defendants house imme-
diately after the crime. He said posi-
lively that the jewelry found by DR..
Wilkins in a drawer was not there
when he searched it the day before.
He was equally emphatic that he had
searched the dogs bed thoroughly
without seeing any signs of the $71
found there almost Immediately after
ward by the defendant.
in the bed he noticed what he believed
to be bloodstains on one of the bills,
said Myers. He had Mr.. Friess mark
it for Identification, and he gave him
another in place of it, continued the
witness.
Talk About "Frame-Up"
"Dr. Wilkins said then that he was
under suspicion and that the Long
Beach police were trying to frame him
up" said Myers. "This was in the
presence of Mr.. Friess, who told me
had no right to suspect the doctor,
as there was no motive for the crime
l asked then if there was a will, but
the doctor said there was not and
tn that he did not inherit anything.
Then Mr.. Friess broke in and said he
was Mrs. Wilkins's attorney and that
the only will he ever knew her to
make was one drawn up in 1908, be-
fore she met the defendant
Here DR.. wilkins inte erjected that
his wife had always told him she was
not going to make will and Mr.. Friess
told him to be quiet lest he hang him
self. said to them then that if the
original of the 1903 will could be found
it would be proved that there was no
motive for the crime. Later search
was made and the will was unearthed
by the defendant from trunk that
had already been thoroughly searched.
Finding of 1915 Will
"Subsequent to this" continued the
witness, "the 1915 will turned up. The
defendant said he had found it on
March 4 in his New York house. l
asked him why he did not tell me
about it at the time we were discuss
ing the other will, and he said Friess
advised him not to. He said when he
found it he thought it was a good
will, but his attorney explained to
him that, lacking attestation, it was
not valid. Dr. Wilkins told me en-
phatically that he had never seen
the will before March A, and that he
was afraid to turn it over to the Dis
trict Attorney because things looked
80 black for him that it might in
criminate him."
Myers testified that the defendant
had told him he and his wife had a
net income of from $4,000 to $4,000
on which to live. He said he prac-
tised medicine very little for the last
fifteen years, the witness added.
The court adjourned for short
time. to provide opportunity for the
pasting together of fragments of "The
New York World" and "Lynbrook Era"
found jammed in the lead pipe and
IN various parts of the Long Beach
home of the defendant.