New-York tribune., 1922-11-29
Widow Hears Statement
i'm Court House After
Vain All-Day Effort to
Tell Jurors Her Story
Faces Mrs. Gibson
I'm Dramatic Scene
Evidence of 68 Witnesses
and IL Week inquiry
Judged in 55 Minutes
Fron, a atnn correspondent


day failed to return indictments
after hearing al the evidence that
Special Deputy Attorney Wilbur A.
Mott and Prosecutor Azariah Beck
man had to present on the dual mur-
der of the Rev. Edward w. Hall and
Mrs. Eleanor r. Mills on September
IA. The case built up by the state
appears. to have collapsed, and the
crime is now as far from solution as
it was when it occurred eleven weeks
ago.
With her eyes narrowed to Sits
in pale, set face, Mrs. Frances
Stevens Hall sat in the courthouse
lobby and heard the foreman Of the
grand jury read a statement to re-
porters which lifted the burden Of
suspicion from fer shoulders. Il
was the elimination of day rich in
dramatic incident.
Mrs. Hall appeared at the Court
House unlimited and unexpected. Be-
ing refused admission to the grand
jury room to give testimony, she sat
for an hour and fifty minutes while
she knew her accuser, Mrs. Jane Glib
son, to be on the stand. She met the
pig woman eye to eye as she came
out. Finally she heard the findings
of the grand jury.
Jury Deiiberates 55 Minutes
After fifty-fve minutes of balloting
and deliberation the jurors walked out,
one of them handing letter to Mr..
Pfeiffer in passing. Then Alfred B.
Gibb- the foreman, summoned report
ers and read the following statement;
''Fos reasons which to them seem
sufficient and controlling the grand
jury took no action on the Hall Mills
murder case and laid the matter over.
This does not necessarily mean that
the matter cannot be taken up again
by this or a subsequent grand jury"
In spite of the qualifying clause it
IS generally conceded here that "finis"
has been written to the Hall murder
investigation and that it will take its
place with other unsolved crimes. The
State took five days to present its tes-
timony and put sixty-eight witnesses
on the stand, which is considered
numerical record in grand jury pro-
ceedings. Every scrap of available
evidence was thrown in Pro~ ,,-.rr r
Beekman appeared to be pleased with
the findings of the grand jufy, while
Mr.. Mott de- cribed himself as being
in state of Suspended animation" so
far IS the case was concerned.
What is your official status in the
was asked after Foreman Glib had
read his statement.
Suspended Animation
well, it's { case of suspended ami
nation" he replied.
DO you mean that you will take no
further part IN the quest for the slayer
or slayers p
81 don't know really; / really don't
know, but | will not say any more
ebout the matter" he said
Has the investigation come to halt
as far as you are concerned 2"
"As far as | nm concerned. | must
repeat that it is case OF suspended
animation
For an hour and fifty minutes this
morning Mrs. Gibson was on the stand,
but her eyewitness story of the woman
in gray and the bushy-haired man ap-
parently did not convince the grand
more than one ballot to be taken. Ap-
plause was heard from the freeholders'
room at one stage OF the proceedings.
Only majority is needed in grand
jury balloting.
It was 3:25 when the prosecutors
and stenegrapher came out and left
the jurors alone. At 3:55 Mr.. Beekman
was summoned.
Here comes the dramatic moment
Mr.. Pfeiffer whispered to Mrs. Halt
and Sallie Peters. All three OF them
were ranged together in the witness
chairs that circle the lobby. They were
facing the door Of the grand jury room.
Indictments, First Rumor
Mr.. Beekman soon came out and
gave some orders. The Sheriff and de-
tectiges suddenly became conspicuous
and the word was whispered around
that indictments had been found.
For moment Mrs. Hall seemed to
catch the fever Of the crowd. Her
marble immohility deserted her. She
paled and paled still more. Her eyes
narrowed, then closed together. The
tension was almost unbeara5ie. The
passing minutes had all the poignancy
of the wait for verdict in open court
when life is 1T stake.
Then the jury room door opened
again, the sheriff and detectives dis
appeared and the jurors sled out one
by ore. Most Of them cast glance
in the direction Of the woman in black:
one OF the three feminine jurors
smiled kindly at her.
The tension was broken, although
the announcement had not yet been
made. Reporters swarmed into the
grand jury room as Mr.. Glib rose to
read his statement. His tones reached
clear TO Mrs. Hall, She was swept TO
her feet, with Miss Petcrs's arm grasp
ing her on one side and Mr.. Pfeiffer on
the other.
Nothing to Say Mrs. Hall
II have nothing TO say, nothing TO
say" she nurmured. The naughty
lock still lay behind her eyes. she
hurried TO her car and was driven
home, with SaIlie Peters flushed and
crying by her side. Her friends and
relatives fiocksd around her tonight 10
congratulate her ON having lesS behind
the cloud that has hung so darkly
over her since the bodies of her hus-