The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-06-20
DETECTIVE ATTACKS
WTLKINS'S DEFENCE
Carman Plant Tells of Futile
Efforts to Find Trace of
Burglars.
CELLAR WINDOWS DUSTY
Doctors Story About Lyn'
brook Newspaper Attacked
in Court.

The purpose of District Attorney
Weeks, who IL prosecuting the case
against DIR. Walter X. wilkins. on trial
at Mineola for the murder Of his wife,
in asking each juryman before he was
sworn IL he knew Carman Plant, a de-
tective, and had any prejudice against
testimony given by policemen and de-
tectives, became apparent yesterday
when Plant was called to the stand az
one OF the States most important wit
nesses.
In the apt phrase of his craft Plant
has Slept with the case" since the night
Of February ~. when Mrs Wilkins was
beaten to death with a hammer in the
yard of her homo at Long Beach. He
arrived at the wilkins house in his Of
ficial capacity as county detective an
hour after the crime, and was one OF
the first to hear DR.. Wilkins's story that
burglars had committed the murder. He
examined the house then and talked to
the doctor. and has inspected the prem
ises and talked to the man q hundred
times between that day and this. He
took part also In the examination OF
the wilkins rooming house in this city,
and has had hand in the running
down Of every clue and circunstan
connected In any way with the murder.
Every witness called heretofore in the
trial has In some manner prepared the
ground for the story Plant told yester-
day, and when he was summoned from
the witness room the defendant and his
three lawyers came to sharp attention.
All the exhibits in the case were set
out ready for his Identification as he
began his story.
he found doors and windows intact. and
the fact that every window on the
ground floor was calked along its frame
with cotton wadding. with dust thick
upon the cotton. made him sure that
none of them had been raised. Then he
had talk with the defendant.
Attacks Doctors story.
He told me-" said Plant. that when
he arrived at the house he opened the
back door and saw two men fit by on
the inside. He said he told his wife
that there were burglars at work. and
as she went to summon assistance he
stepped inside. He was struck down and
held there while his pockets were rified,
he said. and the burglars took his watch
and a bracelet and a pin of his wife's
that he had. When the burglars finally
left him. saying that II he raised an
alarm they would shoot him. he went
outside and found Mrs. wilkins dying
on the ground.
what. II anything" asked Mr.. Weeks
did he say about the burglars having
refreshed themselves at his tableT'
He said" replied Plant, shat they
had helped themselves to drink. and he
showed me three chairs at the table and
three drinking glasses and a bottle.
What was the conditions of the
glasses? What was there about them ~
show that they had been drunk from
Nothing. All were dusty on the in
side. There had been no liquid in them"
Plant with other county officials
searched the house from roof to cellar
during several days after that. turning
out every drawer and ransacking valises
and trunks He paid special attention to
bureau in DIR. Wilkins's room but found
nothing OF value in it. Yet four days
later he said DIR. Wilkins led him TO II
and told him that he had found $7l in
its top drawer.
II looked particularly for a WILL" said
Plant, In every corner Of the house. I
examined every paper that came TO but
there was no will among them"
Did you ever find a will?"
Not until days after that. when DR..
Wilkins found one. He came back from
a trip to the city and asked me II 1
had found the will yet. Then he went
upstairs, called to me to come up, and
as entered the room he pulled a will
out Of a trunk"
Had you examined the trunk be-
fore?"
Thoroughly. There was no will there
at first. The will Dr. Wilkins took out
he said he found right under some
clothes in the top Of the trunk"
JeweIry oddly Appears.
Later. Plant said. the doctor discov-
cred a diamond pin, a diamond ring. a
wedding ring, and a watch under some
old quilts on which his dog slept, al
though the detectives had been all
through the dogs bed before and had
found nothing in or under It
Then Plant told OF the finding of four
pieces of a newspaper. the EeU Era,
published in Lynbrook. and how two
pieces of the paper had been wrapped
about the handle of the hammer with
which Mrs. wilkins was killed. So he
asked the doctor II he read the Neto Era
regularly.
He said he had seen only one copy.
and that that was the only one which
had ever been in the house"
Plant was excused while a Mrs. Hcrr-
man OF East Rockaway was called. She
said she had supplied Mrs wilkins with
copies OF the paper regularly from last
October to February, and that Mrs Will
kins's interest in 1t sprang from it's hav-
ing once contained an account of n bur-
glary at Long Beach. Mrs. Wilkins. the
woman said. had often expressed fear of
burglars.
AS soon as Plant resumed the stand he
was asked to identify two of the pieces
OF newspaper or the parts from which
had been torn the pieces which were
wrapped about the hammer, and TO tell
where he found them.
II found one of them" he said,
stuffed In an upholstered chair In the
Doctors house and the other was found
by Detective Myers in the pocket OF a
pair Of DR.. Vikings trousers.
Various witnesses yesterday told of
conversations with Dr. wilkins and two
members of the State Constabulary told
OF finding pieces OF the Nep Era In his
yard. Another witness was a clerk at
the Hotel Joyce In Baltimore. where DR..
wilkins stopped when he made a sud
den journey there just before he was in
dicted. The clerk was asked TO Identify
DIR. wilkins. and the court called upon
the doctor to stand up.
Yes" said the witness, that is he"
quite correct" said DIR. wilkins, smil-
ing as he sat down again.
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