The Washington times., 1923-07-14
Continued from First Page.)

Continued from First Page.)
tons, but never voluntarily had
any conversation with him.
ION the day Grace passed away
Lizzie and I were with her q few
hours before. We were all laugh.
Ing and joking together, and
Lizzie and I were dressing to so
out. We left the house AMI Grace
told us not to hurry home, that
she would take care Of her mother. "
(Mrs. Houck, the mother, is an in
valid and is confined to her feon1.I
Miss Houck then related how
she met DR.. Hendrix in Frederick
and that he told her her sister
was dead. She said she hurried
home and met Kepner as he was
entering the house. KepHer, she
said, told her that his wife had at
tempted to kill herself before, one
time by hanging herself in the
cellar. She continued:
'I went upstairs to my sisters
room, and as I stood in front Of
her bed looking at her as she lay
dead in front of me, I thought to
shot herself I saw where the bull
let had entered her temple; saw
where her waist was open and her
breast exposed; saw q smear OF
blood on her right hand; I saw
revolver next to her hand ON the
bed. pointing toward the mantle
piece, and then I saw where the
bullet entered the wall. Then ]
thought again that Grace could
not have taken her own life.
at looked around the room, and
saw an empty shell, which pick
ed up and showed to Mr.. Kepnef,
who was with me at the time.
"'Here's what did the work.,
said"
"Au the Time Jawing."
Miss Houck said that little later
I'm the afternoon she saw Kepner
downstairs, his head in his hands.
She said he looked UP at her ana
said: Grace was all the time jaw
ing me about sons money that
lest"
TWO days after the funeral Miss
Houck said she fnet kepnef ana ner
sister. Lizzie, in the hail. She sad
that Lizzie called on KepTiSr to hold
up his right hand ana swear that
he had been true to his wife. This
he refused to do, at the same rIlie
denying charges that he was the
,arent az an fyle9itirnate child and
that he ran around with Miss RICK
etts.
About four days after the funeral,
MiSs Houck said, she met Kepnor
in the garage IN the rear OF the
house. She said on that day KEEP
ner had written her q note asking
her to forgive him for what he had
done. She said that during her
conversation she asked him why he
left a. loaded revolver on the mantle"
piece, a razor nearby, ana also
poison within arms reach, an N
Mrs. Kepner's room.
He told her, she said, that its
the kind of a case one can't under
stand"
Asked to Leave House.
In concluding her testimony Miss
Houck said that in the family con-
ferenceS It was decided to ask KEEP
ner to leave the house and live
somewhere else. At one Of her last
conversations with Kepner, Miss
Houck said that Kepner told her
that I'm going to leave Frederick
soon and take someone with me.
The testimony of Miss Lula Rick
etts, a pretty twenty-three-year-oto'
brunette and said to have been
close friend Of Kepner, furnished
considerable amusement 70 the
Jurors, She answered all queS-
lions without hesitation, gn1tl-
ing most of the time. AZ
one time during her testimony,
however, she related an escApAde
at which she, ito her sorrow later"
had a jolly good time, meaning
that she was dragged into the
"I met Mr.. Kepner by chance
about a year ago. He didn't be-
come very friendly, however, I'M
til two or three months later.
We used to take trips TO Balti-
more and once in a while to Ha.
gerstown." -
when did you last see him?"
she was asked.
at was to meet him near the deaf
and dumb asylum on the night his
wife died." she related. However.
he didn't show up He called me
the next day and said he tried TO
reach me to break the engagement.
I saw him the following Monday and
he gave me about $50 or $40"
Ibid you receive love letters from
him." she was asked.
Not exactly love letters; but they
were a little bit mushy," she re.
sponded, laughing.
How were they addressed?"
Dear VI"
How were they signed?"
"Devotedly, B."
She continued her story:
He very seldom talked about
his wife. but he did say that
others in the house nagged him.
He told me once that he was get.
ting damn good and tired of nag.
ging, and that some day they
would find somebody gone.
I'VE went out on a lot of parties
and he always had liquor. Once in
a while there was another girl
along
Did you drink any?"
Eyes. a little" she answered,
smiling
Miss Ricketts, denied that she had
ever had any improper relations
with Kepner and also denied having
worn any OF Mrs. Kepner's rings
In answer to a question, she said
that she got money from Kepner
many times through the mail
Other times, she said, he would
leave IL in an envelope in the res
taurant in which she worked. a
Admits Mistake"
II talked with Mr.. Kepner a.
breakfast one morning sevcra
uaAEd hAF0pa Crann ,snsooA !