The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-12-15
Love affair
IS aired IN
PRYOR TRIAL
Witnesses in Poison Case
Tell of Trysts With
Wife'S Cousin.
DEATH HINTS RELATED
Barber Describes Mixing of
Drink Given Victim
for Stomach

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allegedly nourished before death
5talked into his Martinsville home.
claiming his youthful wife, was
aired today on the criminal court
witness stand as the murder trial
moved into its second week.
Jurors heard neighbors and
'riends of the Pryor family tell Of
he secret trysts they said Pryor
lad with Miss Elsie Ham, Mrs.
2ryor's cousin.
Miss Ham, witnesses testified,
lived, at the Pryor home. She was
assistant dietician at the Home
Lawn sanatorium in Martinsville,
where Pryor worked occasionally.
It was for Miss Ham, prosecutors
charge, that Pryor allegedly gave
his wife three arsenic poison
draughts, killing her.
Describes Loving in Ice Box
Details of the 32-year-old alleged
paramour's pursuit of Miss Ham
were told by Mrs. Eva Eggers, en-
ploye at the sanatorium, and
friend of the Pryors.
She told of Pryor's fight to hold
the affections OF Miss Ham, and of
his Directing to zone Forest
Powell's" seeking the attentions of
the woman.
s'He told me that Miss Ham was
too good girl to go with Forest
Powell" Mrs. EggerS testified.
II always suspected Mr.. Pryor."
the witness testified. ''I saw him
and Miss Ham in an embrace in
the large sanatoriun ice box once.
I never said anything.
Pryor told me several times be-
fore his wife died that she didn't
have chance to live. He said
something was going to happen in
August"
Poison Found in Body
It was on Aug. 10 that the child
wife died. Expert witnesses for the
state last week told of finding more
than three grains of arsenic in the
dead wol1nan's vital organs.
Vestal Tummick, next door neigh
bors. of the PryorS, told of CONVEX
sations he had with Pryor about
Miss Ham.
Pryor told me he was crazy about
Miss Ham, Tumnick testified.
He told me once he was going to
get shut of his wife That was
the night before Mrs. Pryor died. He
told me he had spent the night
with the Ham girl
Ray Trent. Martinsville barber,
and key witness for the state, pro-
vided one of the clinching argu-
mentS Of the case this morning.
Took Drink to wife
Trent went to the Pryor home
on the night Of Mrs. Pryor's death,
and said he found Pryor in the
kitchen stirring something in a
glass"
Pryor was stirring the drink on
the stove. 1t was a milk color and
was slow in dissolving. Pryor told
me his wife was sick in her stom-
ach and that he was mixing her
some soda water.
Pryor took the drink to his
wife in the front room. She drank
it almost Immediately started vom-
iting violently. Pryor followed her
out Of the house. He said nothing"
Trent testified.
Later, after the alleged crime was
uncovered and Pryor was held q
prisoner in the Morgan county Jail,
Trent testified he visited Pryor
there.
"He asked me if I had been
questioned Trent testified. 81
told him I had.
Predicted Wife's Death
"He told me T shouldn't have
done that and offered to cancel a
small debt l owed him if I wouldn't
say anything more"
Mrs. Beulah Trent, with whom
the PryorS were friendly, testified
that Miss Ham accompanied Pryor
and his wife to her home on a visit
shortly before the crime.
Pryor said in his wife's presence
that night that she couldn't be ex-
pected to live long. One lung was
entirely gone and the other half
gone," Mrs Trent testified.
DR.. w. j. Sandy and DR.. A NJ.
Sweet. both of Martinsville, who ex-
amined Pryor while he was pris-
oner, we're to appear for the state
in the afternoon session.