Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-11-23
alternate SNARLS AND PuRRS
IN FRENCH TIGERS ADDRESS TO
NY. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
JURY PROBE OF HALL
MILLS Staying TO
REST UNTIL MONDAY

Somerville, n. j., Nov. 22--(By A.
P)-The first two important phases
OF the Hall-Mills murder case were
practically finished tonight when the
grand jury which has been listening
to evidence since Monday, adjourned,
after deciding not to reconvene until
next Monday.
Special Prosecutor Wilbur A. Mott
had shown how the bodies were
found. He had established to the
best Of his ability-barring the testi-
mony of two additional witnesses,
what he considers the motive. There
remained tonight only the testimony
Of the two motive witnesses and the
story of the crime, the witness
story to be told by Mrs. Jane Gibson.
the farm woman, who said she saw
the shooting.
Only 13 witnesses were called to-
| day, but all of them were of the first
| Importance. Nellie 10 Russell was
among the first called. She told re-
porters after her twenty minutes in
side the room that she had told the
same story I told you.'
If that is true, Mrs. Russell told
the grand jury that Mrs. Gibson
| could not have seen the shooting, be-
cause Mrs. Gibson was talking to
nT,c lot fnrssc or Of
| the time the crime was committed.
| George Sipel. another pig raiser
| was another of the days witnesses.
Sipel has been credited with telling
Iconflicting stories about his actions
on Thursday night, September a..
| But the one he told today concerned
| Mrs. Russell. According to detec-
tives, Sipel told that he called at Mrs.
Russelrs shack that night to see her
about horse, and had confederation
| to the extent that Theodore Knothe.
! a New Brunswick man, saw him do
| it. knothe went into the jury room
Immediately after Sipel, and, accord
ing to authoritative stories, both said
| that Mrs. Russell was not at home
when they called a little before ten.
According to Mrs. Russell. she was
home from 9.45 until 11-and with
| Mrs. Gibson all that time.
| Charlotte Mills was called and was
/ in the jury room half an hour. She
| was more reticcnt than usual when
she came out, but it was learned
from Official sources that most of
| the thirty minutes were devoted to
an explanation of the manner in
which her mothers private letters
came to be sold to a newspaper.
| As soon as Charlotte left, James
Mills was asked to go in. He spent
more than an hour inside-and was
| the thirteenth witness of the day.
Mills left the jury room pale and ap
| parently weak.
| Captain Michael Regain, of fire
truck number 3, New Brunswick,
and friend of William Stevens. Mrs.
Halls eccentric brother. also was a
witness. Regain was sitting in the
fire house on the Saturday several
hours before the two bodies were
found. willie" came in. excited.
Regain told reporters and said. ac-
cording TO the fire captain Some
! thing terrible has happened at our
house. You'll hear all about it soon.'
| Mrs. Emma Voorhees,, Mrs. A. c..
Fraley, who has been T. mystery wit"
ness, Miss Katharine F'raley. her
daughter. and Sigourney Smith. a
grave digger, gave their testimony
during the morning. All of them
said they had heard shots on the
night of. the murders.
Harry McCabe. bridge tender. and
Norman c.. Tingle, who lives near
the Phillips farm, also told of hear
| ing shots.
Emma Voorhees, told detectives,
they admitted tonight, that about
ten o'clock the night of the murder,
two automobiles coming from New
Brunswick, stopped in front OF her
home, which is one quarter OF a mile
from the Phillips place. Two per-
sons got out Of the second car, she
said, and walked towards the second.
Then, according to the officials.
she heard loud talking and caught
two sentences-"What does this
mean? What are you doing here?''
This was followed by more words,
she said, and then two sharp noises
like pistol shots came. After that,
she said, the cars turned around and
sped away towards New Brunswick.