The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1939-01-25

tCOIlbJlucu IIOlu EdSc ollci
! Bat" letter which Mrs. Smith adj
mitted writing to Colling. explaining
/ the beginning of the letter, which
read. Dearest Tom: Oh how I've
been waiting for you to come back
to me, so can hold you again near
to me. 1t seems years since I've
seen you and am just waiting till
can be with you"
Her explanation of the letters
phrasing was that Mr.. Colling
treated me as a decent woman. He
was someone I could talk to. He
was just friend"
The signature Red Bat" was ex-
planned by MRS. Smith, smiling
slightly, as lust an incident" of a
trip on the Tongass when she and
Colling saw the Red Bats" of Pet
ersburg, a creation of Earl Dinners
at Petersburg, with ordinary red
bricks in a box for tourists amuse-
ment.
Asked by Grigsby if she were ever
in Ceilings room alone on the Ton
gass, Mrs Smith said she went
through there once to get some
orange Juice for the baby" and
"once to hang up the baby's clothes
to dry"
Asked whether Colling was ever in
her statement alone. Mrs. Smith
said, BE brought me coffee once. .
No Love Making
Questioned as to "if Colling had
made love to her. on the boat or
at the house on the day of the
shooting, Mrs. Smith said NO
AS the testimony turned again to
the fatal shooting, and the alleged
statement of Smith i've been laying
for you and now I'm going to kill
YOU" Grigsby asked Mrs. Smith who
her husabnd was looking at when
he made the alleged statement.
II don't know" Mrs. Smith said,
1.-The only thing can remember is
his eyes,"
Giving the crowded court room its
third surprise of the morning, Smith
himself asked permission to ask his
wife a few questions and the per-
mission was granted.
Smith asked his wife how she had
found the note he had written with
reference to the taxi drivers calling
to see if Mrs. Smith was at home
one night and Mrs Smith said she
had found it in his pocket when she
was washing clothes.
AS the questioning of his wife
dragged regarding the note, Smith
was ordered to discontinue the note
talk on Folta's objections of IT.
relevancy.
Accusations
Smith then accused his wife of
having been in beer parlor one night
with the baby home alone when
he sent a cab driver out to look for
her and also accused her of chang
ing her testimony in court from
what she gave at the coroner's in
quest.
When Smiths questioning of his
wife reached a discussion between
husband and wife of the number of
cigarettes she smoked and placed in
an ash tray alongside the radio OF
the front room on the day of the
shooting, Judge Alexander stopped
the questioning again with the state
ment that shes not on trial for
smoking cigarettes"
For his parting shot, Smith said,
You weren't sitting on Ceilings
lap?" and Mrs. Smith answered,
No"
Smiths attorney Grigsby then
took over again and asked Mrs.
Smith as to her letter to Colling
in which she said she was thankful
she had Colling and the baby to
look forward to.
He listened to my troubles" Mrs.
Smith said, land was pretty near
suicide"
Go to Dance
Mrs. Smith admitted under GrigS-
by's questioning, that she had gone
to dance in Ketchikan with Colling
and that they had returned to the
boat about three o'clock in the
morning"
Asked if she had anything to
drink, Mrs. Smith said she had "a
glass of beer-maybe two glasses OF
beer, but wasn't drunk"
She said the baby was asleep
aboard the boat that night.
Assistant District Attorney Folta
then uestioned Mrs. Smith on her
reasons for divorce"
Mrs. Smith said. II found out a
lot of lies about him when I was
Outside. I found he owed a lot OF
bills he said he had paid. that I was
his third wife, that the baby was
his fourth child, and that Smith is
not even his right name
Grigsby protested the character
differences and Folta replied that in
substance his questioning was dirt
Z, for dirt"
AS a result, Judge Alexander ord
II arad oil tactiu,opv regarding divorce