The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1923-10-11

lived In the locality OF the Holt farm,
after going to the Are went out crow
shooting and testified that he saw the
respondent, Ellis, going easterly about
ten minutes to five. and said that he
saw Ellis disappear into the woods
toward his home. The same cupped
heel tracks were plainly visible in the
potato field and corn patch and were
the same as seen in the Ellis door
yard, leading to and from the fire.
Mr.. Holt who with his wife was the
owner of the burned buildings testit
fed that Mr. Ellis had hay in the barn
but he was unable to tell how much
furniture, belonging to Ellis remain
ed in the house. He said that he
saw tracks in the door yard of a rub
Der heel with cupped places in it. He
stated that he never had trouble with
Ellis before the fire. He had paid
down $1,000 on the place.
Chester A. Knowles, eighteen, Of
Ripley, who testified to having been
out to shoot crows and to having seen
Mr.. Ellis going toward his home after
the fire, told of searching with others
for the tracks of Ellis and of having
followed them to within sight of the
respondents house. His father, G. Fl.
Knowles, told of picking the tracks
up where his son had seen the
man and Sanford Bailey, first select
man of Cambridge, told of getting
Deputy Sheriff LaBree and a con-
stable and of joining the track search
ing party.
Mrs. Arno told of receiving the tele-
phone call from Mr.. Kittredge and as
the phone was near the window, look
ing toward Ellis she stated that she
saw Ellis going around the corner OF
the house to the barn. Witness tes-
titled that later Ellis came to the
Arno house for milk and was wearing
rubbers such as are ordinarily worn
over shoes. She said she heard Mr..
Ellis tell Mr.. Arno something about
having been in the swamp that morn
, Ing but paid no attention to the con-
yersation. Her husband, John H.
Arno, thought Mr.. Ellis came to the
house after the milk, the morning af-
ter the fire, at about ten minutes of
/ five o'clock in the morning. He said
that Mr.. Ellis in making his errand
for milk known, said that he was 60
ing over to his former home to get
some jars and that they told him then
that the buildings were burned. Ellis
remarked, according to the witness,
that it was queer they had not let
him know about the fire. Mr.. Arno
said that Mr.. Ellis told of having
been in his pasture to milk his cow
but that he couldn't get her, witness
saying that Ellis remarked to him
that while after the COW, he had seen
a man with gun.
Sheriff Mooers told Of investigating
the fire, having been accompanied by
Deputy Sheriff Cook. He noted
tracks in the dooryard of the burned
buildings and after lunching at a
nearby farmhouse went to the place
where the tracks had been seen in
the field and found them to be peculiar
in that they had cupped prints. The
sheriff then went to the Ellis place
where he found Mr.. Ellis working
about a motor vehicle. He made his
errand known and went into the
house with Ellis, going through the
shed where he noted pair of damp
trousers hanging from rafter and
also saw wet underclothing and
stockings, which he said Ellis claim
ed to have changed that morning, ex-
planning that he had been in the
swamp back of his buildings to get
up wild COW. The Sheriff asked to
see his shoes and Ellis replied, ac-
cording to the officer, that he was
wearing the only shoes that he had
but later showed an armful of old
shoes. Finally pressed on the sub
ject of footwear, the sheriff said that
Mr.. Ellis said that he had worn rub
Der boots and had left them outside
The sheriff called for the boots and
Ellis presented pair of laced rub
Der boots which were perfectly dry
and decorated with cobwebs. The