The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1927-06-02
MABEL SWAMI AWAITING
HER TRIAL TELLS STORY
Shooting of Dan Mosser Purely
Accidental, She Asserts-'NOth-
ing Premeditated About It."


shot and killed Daniel Mosser, Keyser,
West Va, on last Thursday morn
ing at her farm one mile north of
Swanton, is in the Garrett county Jail
at Oakland and is calmly awaiting her
trial, which will come up at the June
term of court to convene next Mon
day. She will be charged with muir
der.
Immediately after the shooting, the
Swami woman notified Sheriff Casteel,
and asked that he ''come to her place
and bring a doctor as she had shot
Dan Mosser, but did not know wheth-
er he was dead or not" During her
stay in jail, she has persisted in her
story that she shot in self-defense.
Her Story.
Tuesday evening when questioned
about the alleged murder, she re-
fused at first to give further informa-
ton than had already been given out.
Later she began: st was purely ac-
cidental. There was nothing else to
do. The man broke into the house
through the only door and was rush
ing toward me very fast. l did not
know what he would have done, and
there was no escape. | had to shoot
to save myself. There was nothing
premeditated about it."
Mosser, according to her story, had
no right in the first place to rent her
the farm as it was held jointly by him
and his sister, who resides in Cum
berland. The sister, she says, wrote
her a letter telling her not to pay
Mosser any money until May 80,
when all the family was to gather to.
gether at Swanton for picnic.
The fact that Mosser had heard of
this was given by the Swami woman
as the reason for his attack upon her
home in an attempt to force the rent
money from her.
''Never Touched Moonshine.'
When asked about the corn mash
and moonshine found in her house,
she exclaimed; eff there was any
evidence of liquor in the house it was
put there. The many people of Oak
land with whom l am acquainted
know that never touched moonshine
and never had anything to do with
it."
The Swami woman went on to eX-
plain that Mosser had always kept one
room in the house for his own in
which harness, furniture and lot of
other property was stored. She de-
clared that she had never been in the
room but once and that was after
the raid in which moonshine and mash
was discovered in there. According
to Sheriff Casteel, liquor was found
not only in that one room but in the
kitchen and under the mattress of
one of the beds.
Body Found in Yard
The body Of Mosser, whom she as
serts was shot in the front room of
the house, was found in the yard
about ten feet from the steps when
Sheriff Casteel arrived. A stream of
blood led from the house to where the
body lay.
Came From Baltimore.
Mabel Swami came to Oakland four
years ago from Baltimore and lived
for short time on a farm near Oak
land. She always dressed like man,
wearing knee-high gum boots and
made living by driving a coal or
lumber wagon, as occasion required.
1t was reported by people in King
wood that she had lived in that vicin-
ity for some time, but she emphati-
cally denies this. She said that since
she had come from her home in Balti-
more, she had been around Oakland
and Swanton. She claims to have
graduated from some hospital in
Baltimore as nurse, asserting Tues
day evening that she was not regis
tered nurse but could be if she wanted
to.
She has mother and sister living
in Baltimore, but would not disclose
where they lived, stating that "she
didn't want them to be bothered to
death by reporters and inquisitive
people,"