Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-26
ROBERTSON TIPPING
TEST HIT At TRIAL
Witnesses Say They Sold
Him Machine Two Days
After Mills Staying.
ey a Staff Correspondent OF The Star.

By a Stan Correspondent of The Star.
FREDERICK, Md, October 26.-Two
employees of the r. P. Andrews Co. of
Washington testified this afternoon
that Samuel It. Robertson, who is being
tried here for the murder of Edward
l.. Mills, purchased the typewriter al
legged to have been used in writing the
note pinned to Mills body by the slayer
two days after the murder was COM
mitted.
The typewriter was taken from Rob-
crtsons home by Montgomery police
after Robertson had been arrested in
connection with the murder. The State
has produced experts who testified
that the murder note was written on
the typewriter taken from Robertson's
home.
Date Of Sale Fixed.
The first witness called by the defense
this afternoon was l.. e. Dodge OF
Mount Rainier, an ernploye of the f. 2.
Andrews Co. He testified that he sold
the typewriter to Robertson on July 3,
two days after Mills had been mur-
dered. Dodge testified that this was
the only typewriter sale ne made Ior
the company and that he did not know
whether the machine had ever been out
of the store before this sale or not.
The next defense witness was Oliver
p. Merriam, manager of the store. He
produced official records which stated
that the typewriter was sold to man
known as Samuel T. Robertson, on July
8, 1927, for $65.
The State, during the early days OF
the trial, produced several experts VINO
testified that the typewriter taken from
Robertson's home was the one used by
Mills SLAYER in tipping the note which was
found pinned to the latter's body: Rob-
ertson. however, has contended since ne
was arrested that he did not purchase
the machine until after the date OF the
murder.
used the same photographs which State
experts said proved that bullet from
the defendants gun killed Mills, In an
effort to prove the direct opposite-that
the fatal bullet could not have been
fred from the pistol in question.
This contradictory testimony was
given by William A. Jones, a New York
firearms expert. Pointing out two tiny
scratches on the photograph of the
fatal bullet which do not appear on
photographs of the bullet fired through
the same gun for test purposes, he de-
clared that the revolver taken from
Robertson was not the one used to
kill Mills.
Flaws Are Discussed.
The two scratches. according to the
expert, were made by minute flaws in
the barrel of the fatal weapon. These
flaws, he said, would necessarily leave
their imprint on every bullet fired
through the barrel of that particular
pistol.
Mr.. Jones also charged that the State
experts had not played fair in making
the photographs introduced in evidence.
After examining the shells placed in
evidence by the State yesterday, Mr..
Jones declared that they could not both
have been fired in the same breech
mechanism. The State had attempted
to show that the markings on the shells
found beside Mills body after the shoot
ing were the same as those left on
shells fired in RobertSon'S revolver for
test purposes.
The State had introduced two pistols
in evidence. one of which they say was
used to kill Mills, who was shot to
death on his dairy farm at Hunting Hill
on the morning of July 2. 1927. The
other, they say, entered into the crime
at O. later date, when it's barrel was re-
moved and the barrel of the fatal
weapon attached in its place. Both of
these pistols were taken from Robert
son, but he contends that the alleged
fatal weapon was taken by him from
another man during a scuffle subsequent
to the homicide.
With court adjourned for the noon
Continued on Page 4, Column g.