San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-08-08
Unable to Trace History
Of Weapon Found Near
Dead Woman.
TESTIMONY CONFLICTS
Two Say Gun Had Been
z Recently Fired-Lock-
smith Said 1t Had Not.

>ment house OF G.. c. Taylor on Car
son ,treet last June, and whether this
.nistol had been discharged recently,
brought on a bitter legal fight in the
trial of TAYLOR in oath District Court
"Wednesday morning. The state rest
ed its case shortly before noon and
'court recessed until ! As when the
defense will begin the introduction OF
its testimony. Jerome jackson, %
year-old son Of the dead woman, took
the stand as a state witness during
the morning.
Four witnesses, Mrs. ID. r. York,
Mrs. C, ?. Outlaw, Jerome jackson
and Mrs. Bertha A. Vanderyeer I'll
testified that they had never seen Mrs.
jackson with a pistol. Jerome said
that his mother never owned gun,
and that she wouldn't allow one in
the house. Mrs. vanderyeer said she
had roomed with the dead woman and
that she had never seen her with
gun. Mrs. York and Mrs. OUTLAW.
who lived at the Taylor apartment
house, both testified that they had
never seen Mrs. jackson with pistol.
Taylor Not Connected With Gun.
Efforts of the state to connect Tay-
Tor with the ownership OF the gun
failed. Barney Williams of Junction,
Tex, testified that he had packed Tay-
lor's effects when the latter moved
from Junction. He had seen a small
.caliber gun, Williams said, but when
defense counsel sought to have him
identity the gun found by Mrs. Jack
sons side, he could not do so. The
pistol he had seen, Williams said. look
ed larger than the % automatic, al
though he said as he remembered it,
ii was smaller than the 40 caliber gun
introduced in evidence as having been
taken from Taylor after the shoot
ing. Further attempts TO establish
the ownership of the gun through the
testimony of Mrs. Philip Luthringer.
OF Roosevelt, Tex. were thwarted
when her testimony was ruled out as
being too remote.
4 Interest in the case also centered
in the alleged bullet hole in the wall
nj Taylor's room. Bryan Mauermann,
investigator in the district attorneys
office, and Mrs. Elizabeth Meyer both
testified to having made careful ex-
animation of the room on the morning
of the killing and that they found
no hole, nor did they find any empty
shells.
Denies Gun Recently Fired.
On the same afternoon. Mauermann
said, Taylor's brother telephoned him
that they had found bullet hole
and he went out the next morning to
look at it. Mauermsnn testified that
if shot were fired. it was fireu from
within the room, as it was impossi-
bic TO see the spot where the hole was
found from the stairway, where Mrs.
jackson is supposed to have been
when she was shot.
Frank Flores, gunsmith, testified
that he had examined the 25-caliber
pistol on the morning Of the shoot
ing and that in his opinion it hat
not been fired recently.
Say Gun Had Been Fired.
That the 25-caliber automatic pistol
found near the body of Mrs. Elizabeth
jackson. had been fired recently. was
the testimony given by Shief of Po-
lice A, o. Van Ripper and Captain of
detectives San Street Tuesday after
noon. 1t had been the theory OF the
state that this weapon, which testi-
Inony showed, was on safety when
found at Mrs. Jackson's side had not
been recently fired.
This small weapon, together with a
10 automatic and a stack of bullet
pierced, blood-stained magazines, and
flattened bullet, all figuring in the
Carson street tragedy, were introduced
IN evidence during the Tuesday after
noon session Of court. Some of the
magazines, charred from having been
placed under a wash pot by a negro
servant, crumbled to pieces as they Law
on the witness chair.
Case Progresses Rapidly.
Rapid progress was made in the
trial Of Taylor Tuesday, eleven wit
nesses having been examined wher
court recessed at 5 80, after havin,
started taking testimony at II o'clocJ
Tuesday morning. The most inpor
tant testimony, from the point of view
OF the defense was brought out OF
eross-examination of the two police OF
ficers.
Chief Van Ripper had Just identifie,
the blood-stained magazines, bearip
what he said looked like bullet holes
These magazines, he said, we're foun
in the back yard at the Taylor apart
ment house, some on table and som
Under a wash pot. He also had est
fled that the report Of 45-caliber w
is much louder than that Of .;
The latter making a noise like g. IA
firecracker."
I'm your opinion, had the sma
automatic pistol found by Mrs. Jacl
sons side been fired recently?" Day
Watson, OF Chambers, Watson an
johnson, leading defense attorneys il
quired.
1t smelled to me as if it had" Chi,
Van Ripper replied, admitting on flu
Their questioning that this is the methC
customarily employed in ascertainir
il a gun has been fired. Firing leay,
only very little trace on a gun of til
caliber, the police chief said.
fa said Taylor lnsulted Her.
Captain Sam Street also testifi'
that the gun ''smelled" as if it b;
been fired recently when he examin
it at the police station following t
killing of Mrs. Jackson.
w. p. Green, city detective, {
first witness of the afternoon, ties
fled TO having visited the Taylor apar
ment house on the night preceding G
killing. at Tsylor's request. He CO
roborated the testimony of Mrs d.
York regarding Mrs. Jackson's clai