The Washington times., 1934-12-17
LANDED GENTRY
SHUNS COURT
SENSATIONS
Early Birds Get Choice Seats,
Bring Fried Chicken for
Lunch, Stay Late
CONTINUED From Page ~

the WHOLE, ldCkcQ IIlG QIdIIld Va
the preceding days. 1t was taken
up largely with medical testi.
mony-the effect of the thyroid
gland on a patient before and
after its removal. That trouble
some ductless gland, situated
somewhere between the cavity OF
the mouth and the esophagus,
the specialists testified, turned
the Sunday School Superintend.
ent from a model husband and
church plate-passer into one not
responsible for his acts.
The medical testimony was
highly technical, and abounded
with such verbal behemothS as
arterio-sclerosis, metabolism, pha-
ryngeal congestion and psychoSis
the young ladies who had
brought the fried chicken dropped
and yawned.
After a while, even Judge Cole
man had had enough technical de-
tails of a strong man smitten in
his prime by reason OF a WayWard
thyroid, for he abruptly adjourned
court until Monday, and sentenced
a photographer to 10 days in jail
for taking a picture in the court
room, which His Honor had ruled
against while he was on the bench.
Mr.. Colognori had set his
camera when Judge Coleman sud-
denly reappeared from his cham
bers, and shouted ARREST that
man." But the 10 days sentence
which the judge at first pro-
nounc ed was later withheld.
The day before it had been
"simply gorgeous" as one Of them
told me. Then the other woman,
young, pretty, wearing raklshly
tilted hat and a brown fur coat
confessed in a soft Groom, Eyes"
the defendant had given her
money. This was almost as thrill
ing as Nurse Jones account OF
the breakfast table conversation,
when Mr.. Bell is alleged to have
said: "You are sending me to the
electric chair" as they all sat
around enjoying their grapefruit.
Brothers Are Contrast
These breakfast-table converse
tions between Mr.. Bell and the
two nurses, in which autopsies,
the electric chair and confessions
of guilt were discussed, beggared
anything in the way of murder
mysteries" procurable at the drug
store book counter or in the local
library.
The brothers Bell had become
something of an old story to the
spectators. They sat together,
but did not exchange a word or
glance as far as this reporter
could see. There is no resem-
blance between them apart from
the horn-rimmed spectacles both
wear. Brother Eddie" as Mr..
Butzner of the defense affection
ately referred to the man on trial
when question his brother Will
liam, has the lean and hungry"
look of Cassius. He has the ad-
vantage of taking mucn more
prepossessing photograph than his
actual appearance warrants.
Brother William is heavier, and
florid, with suggestion of tenn
per which was more than carried
out last Sunday when he sWatted
a newspaper photographer with
a handkerchief-tied collection sS
he emerged from divine service.
The photographer is still in the
hospital, and Brother Williams
trial is in the near future.
Lasts a Brief Time
Edward c. Bell, jr., son of the
accused, waited around the court
room all day expecting to be
called to the stand to testify in
his fathers favor, but he was not
called. The 22-year-old boy bears
a resemblance, much Softened by
youth, to his father.
It was this University of Vir-
ginia student who brought SAM
LleS of the food given to his
mother to the college laboratory
for chemical analysis, IN this
weird case involving almost I'm
believable human impulses.
Irma, the daughter, who has
been ill in New York, was also ex-
pected to testify, but she has not
yet returned to Fredericksburg.
During the morning session, the
early birds found some solace in
a brush between Nurse Hill and
a cousin brought in by the defense
to impugn her testimony as wit
ness. He was a big, rangy chap,
suggesting the great open spaces,
and the type of homeSpun hero
in which Harold Bell Wright and
Zane Grey take pleasure. He testi-
fled that Miss Hills reputation for
veracity was bad.
But Commonwealth Attorney
Bryan, he of the keen incisive
speech, and fine, sensitive hands,
made short work of Cousin Spen-
Ger by bringing out that he was
joblesS. and had been paid $500
a day by the defense for coming
here to testify.
The defense had told him he
would enjoy seeing the country,
and he had taken in $50 miles Of
views in the survey.
Whenever you want to know the