Wednesday, 30th July 1913 Three Witnesses Describe Finding Mary Phagan’s Body, The Atlanta Constitution

NEWT LEE STICKS TO ORIGINAL STORY DESPITE ATTEMPTS TO CONFUSE NEGRO Striking Feature of Day's Proceedings Was the Evident Effort on Part of Luther Rosser to Connect Watchman With Crime, or Show He Knew More Than He Has Told. DORSEY SAYS DEFENSE IS TRYING TO IMPEACH TESTIMONY OF STARNES Mr. Rosser Declared, However, That All He Was Trying to Do Was to Test the Memory of Detective Who Was Among First to Investigate the Murder of Mary Phagan in Factory. During the second day's proceedings of the Leo M. Frank trial the sensation for which the morbidly curious have been craning their necks failed to materialize. Nothing that has not been printed in the papers was brought out. The striking feature of the day's proceedings was the evident effort on the part of Luther Rosser to connect Newt Lee with the commission of the crime, or to show that he knew more about the death of Mary Phagan than he has thus far told. As on the previous day, Lee stuck to his original story, and through hours of what would have been acute torture to a man of refined sensibilities he was stolid in reiterating the details of how he had found the body, and of Leo M. Frank's words and actions on Memorial day, when the murder of Mary Phagan was committed. Efforts Fail To Confuse Negro. Seasoned courthouse officials and old reporters marveled at the way the negro held out against the crossfire of questions, all aimed to confuse him. When at a loss to understand a question, he would have it repeated to him sometimes half a dozen times, and then he would illustrate his actions and the actions of Frank by graphic pantomime. A drawing depicting a cross section of the National Pencil factory played an important part in the day's proceedings. Lee was made to point out on this drawing just what he had done and where he had been in the building the night of the murder. The drawing was difficult for an illiterate person to decipher, but Lee was not confused to any extent, and then only for the moment. Trial Progresses Slowly. Only three witnesses were placed on the stand Tuesday Newt Lee, who was testifying when adjournment came Monday; Sergeant Dobbs, of the police force, who went to the pencil factory the morning the body PAGE 2, COLUMN 1 was discovered, and John Starnes, of the Atlanta detective department, who called up Leo Frank, April 26, and informed him of the murder. When adjournment was had Starnes was still on the stand. A sharp clash took place between Solicitor General Dorsey and Luther Rosser during the time Starnes was testifying. Mr. Rosser sought to make Starnes recall his exact words while testifying before the coroner's inquest. Mr. Dorsey claimed that this was an effort to impeach the witness. Mr. Rosser replied that it was only an effort to test the memory of the witness. The crowd Tuesday was considerably larger than that of Monday, and during the afternoon session scores were standing. Frank maintained the outward calm of the day previous. At one time during Newt Lee's testimony he laughed out loud at some sally of Luther Rosser's. Lee Sticks To Story. During the four hours and forty minutes that Newt Lee, negro nightwatchman at the National Pencil factory, was on the stand in the trial of Leo M. Frank for the murder, on April 26, of little Mary Phagan, the negro, although apparently so ignorant and dull that his interrogators had to put their questions in simplest form, and frequently repeat them, stuck literally, word for word, to his statements before the coroner's jury and to officials. In one or two cases the darkey declared that certain portions of the stenographic report of the coroner's hearing was incorrect, and, despite the gruelling and tantalizing crossfire of Luther Rosser, he hung out for what he declared to be the correct version of his statement. That there must have been some discrepancies in the record was also brought out by Police Sergeant L. S. Dobbs, who went on the stand Tuesday to tell of answering the negro's call to the station house, also declared that his testimony before the coroner had been taken down incorrectly in part. Childishly Particular. In some instances the negro made corrections of which only the childish mind of an African would have thought. One of these occasions was when he positively swore time and again (and that was whenever he got a chance) that Leo Frank had never used the words, "Go out and have some fun, Newt." "No, sir: Mr. Frank he said, 'Go out and have er good time, Newt,'" the darkey corrected. Again, he swore that when Sergeant Dobbs was reading the murder notes to him and reached the word, "night", that he interrupted with "They're tryin' er lay hit on me," and not "That means me, boss," as reported. In brief, the story which the darkey told, and hung on to like a loan shark to his victim, was that he reported for duty at the pencil factory on April 26 at 4 o'clock, an hour earlier than usual, but as he had been ordered, on account of the holiday, to do. He said Frank was there, and told him to go out and have "er good time," and come back later; and that he went, despite the fact that he wanted to lie down and sleep. Frank Frightened by Gantt. Lee said he came back about 5 o'clock and found Mr. Frank there, and soon aided him in the difficult task of refilling the time-clock with a tape. After that he declared he was near the front door, when Frank came out and almost ran into J. M. Gantt, and Frank jumped back and appeared frightened. Lee said he thought little of the fear at that time, as the superintendent and Gantt had engaged in a row previous to Gantt's discharge, and he thought Frank was afraid Gantt had come there to whip him. Lee then told of going with Gantt to get the latter's shoes, at Frank's orders, and of being left alone in the building. He said Frank had called him up at about 7 o'clock and asked if everything was all right, and that this procedure was unusual. He declared that he had punched the clock regularly until he went to the basement about 3 o'clock, and saw the body, and, after finding it to be a real body, and not a dummy placed there to frighten him, how he went to the office and called police station, and then tried in vain to call Mr. Frank. Tells How Body Was Found. Sergeant L. S. Dobbs, who led the party of officers to the pencil factory on the Sunday morning that Newt Lee gave the alarm about the murder of Mary Phagan, was placed upon the stand following Lee. He told of his actions from the time that he started out on the call until he had locked Lee up and had conducted Frank to the basement. The police officer declared that when he reached the place that Lee was not apparently laboring under excitement, but that he took him in charge at once and made him carry them to the body. He said that he found the girl lying on her face with blood on the back of her head and with a cord tied so tightly around her neck as to cut into the flesh and that there was also a piece of underclothing tied loosely around the neck. The finding of the murder notes, and reading of them to Lee, were next described and then the sergeant told of his finding the girl's missing shoe and hat and of finding an apparent trace where a body had been dragged from the elevator shaft to the spot where it was found. The reading of the murder notes to the negro was next described in detail, as well as the later developments of the officers who examined the body. Sergeant Dobbs also identified the cord and underclothing found around the child's neck and told of the torn condition of her underclothes and of a black bruise on her left knee and also bruises on her face. Detective Starnes On Stand. Detective J. N. Starnes was the third witness to be placed upon the stand since the trial began. He was called upon Tuesday afternoon and made to tell of the various events from the time he accompanied Sergeant Dobbs to the factory until his testimony at the coroner's inquest. Detective Starnes told of finding the body and to a great extent his testimony was merely a corroboration of what the police officer had told. It was his testimony in regard to telephoning Superintendent Frank and his declaration that Frank was nervous when he arrived at the factory that brought down upon him the gunfire of the defense. So fierce was the cross-fire here that Solicitor Dorsey accused the defense of trying to impeach him. This ruling has been made time and again before, though Attorney Rosser declared he had no intention of doing, however. Starnes was made to go into detail about the finding of the body, the physical appearance of the basement and of the demeanor of Lee, as well as of the superintendent. After Starnes was dismissed from the stand there came an argument over the admission of the chart of the pencil factory as evidence, ending with the judge deciding it could be admitted, if all lettering was removed, and court adjourned at 5:07 o'clock. PAGE 1, COLUMN 2 The Defense Center of the Trial of Leo M. Frank From a photograph and crayon sketch by Louis Gregg. Near the center is Leo Frank, the defendant, with glasses. At his back is his wife, and to his left, near the judge's stand, is his mother all three eagerly facing the jury. Luther Rosser, to the left, looks over the bended head of his associate attorney for the defense, Reuben Arnold, who is taking notes. The lifelikeness of the scene is caught in the attitude of the man with his hand to his ear in the foreground. PAGE 1, COLUMN 3 NEWT LEE MAY GET HIS FREEDOM TODAY Solicitor Dorsey Will Probably Take the Matter Up With Judge L. S. Roan. Now that Newt Lee, who has been held since the morning of April 27, when he telephoned the police of the presence of Mary Phagan's dead body in the pencil factory basement, has finished his testimony, the question has arisen in the minds of many as to what will be done with him. When an attempt was made recently to secure Lee's freedom upon a habeas corpus Solicitor Hugh Dorsey declared that he had no case against Lee and did not intend to ask his indictment, but that he regarded him as too valuable a witness to be turned loose. It is expected that the solicitor will take up with Judge L. S. Roan today the question of giving Lee his freedom and that before the day is over the night watchman will see his first day of freedom since the morning when the murder was discovered. What will become of Lee is not known. If the darkey had his choice he would probably be set down in a watermelon patch, where the melons grow eternal and where the little curlicues on the ends of the luscious fruit sprouted forth ample quids of "bacca." It was for a melon that Newt pined while in jail, and it was for a "chaw of 'bacca" that he pleaded when Attorney Luther Rosser finished his gruelling cross-examination Tuesday. PAGE 2, COLUMN 2 Lee, Dull and Ignorant, Calm Under Gruelling Cross Fire Newt Lee, the negro night watchman of the pencil factory, who telephoned police headquarters of the finding of Mary Phagan's body at the pencil factory, was again placed upon the stand when court convened Tuesday for the second day's session. Attorney Luther Z. Rosser renewed his cross-fire of questions by which he sought to confuse the negro and secure new admissions or change valuable points in his testimony and thus expose a vulnerable point for a concentrated attack upon his entire statement. Mr. Rosser took up practically where he had left off the afternoon before. "Newt, when you raised your lantern you walked forward a few feet. How far did you have to go before finding out what the object that attracted you was?" he began. "I don't know how far it was." "You said so to the coroner?" "Naw, sir, Cunnel, I shore didn't." "Well, say so now. Give your best estimate; was it two, four, six, eight or ten feet?" "Can't tell 'zactly." "How close to the body did you get?" "I wuz pretty far away when I saw hit; I could jes barely make hit out." "How far," said Rosser, "as far as from you to that gentleman over there?" pointing to Attorney E. A. Stephens. "Hit mout er been," replied Lee. "How long is a fence rail, Newt?" "Doan know 'zactly." "A fence rail is ten feet long." "Well, hit must er been 'bout ten feet." Why He Went to the Basement. "What made you go in that direction?" "Which direction?" asked the negro. Then ensued a long explanation and argument in which the attorneys tried to get the negro's mind back to the factory basement so that he could tell clearly what and how he had done, but before it was over the learned white man was almost exasperated and the dull black was coolly fanning himself, worried because he could not grasp the idea, but not fretting about it. "I had wanted to go that way to see if there wuz anything in that part er the basement," Lee finally answered when he understood what he was being asked about. "Ever see anything there before that frightened you?" "Nor, sir." "Hadn't you been told to look into the dust bin and to watch out for fire there?" "Yes, sir; Mr. Frank, he told me that." "Why did you not go sooner instead of lingering a few minutes?" "Ah went jes es soon es ah could." "How far did you go?" "Ah didn't have ter go no further than to that gemman there," said Lee, making a wave with his palmetto fan at Judge Roan, who sat about 4 feet to the right of the witness stand. "Ah didn't have ter go no further then that ter see hit," re continued. "To see the dust bin, didn't you have to go as far to your right as your left?" "Nor, sir, tain't that away," said Lee. More Explanations by Rosser. Then succeeded five minutes of both wearisome and excruciating points until the attorney convinced the negro that when people said "to the right" they sometimes meant in a general direction that way and not exactly and geometrically to the right. Lee proved his literalness again and again in this argument. "Well, the dust bin was on your right then; wasn't it?" the attorney began again. "Nor, sir, not 'zactly to mer right; kinder twixt mer right and mer front," replied the darkey, and court bailiffs threatened to eject a few score whose sense of humor made them forget the dignity of the place. Lee finally pointed out the general direction in which the dust bin lay from where he first paused and the cross-fire went on. "Ah could see the dust bin from where Ah wuz; leastways, Ah could that part er hit where the dust come down," said Lee. "Was there dust around it?" "Nor, sir." "In order to see the dust bin you had to walk as far as to where the judge is, didn't you?" "Ah wuz er long ways from the ladder at first." "How far?" "Doan know 'zactly." After using the position of a bailiff as an illustration Mr. Rosser made the witness admit that he had been about 10 feet from the ladder down which he had come and in a general direction toward where the body was later found. "Did you go that far all the time?" "Nor, sir; I went er leetle way only the yuther times." After more illustrating with concrete objects the attorney got Lee to explain that "er leetle way" on tis examination meant about 25 feet. "So the balance of the night you only went about 25 feet from the ladder but the time you found the body you went 100 feet," said Mr. Rosser. Tells of Terror at Find. "Yessir, an' ef I'd knowed that ar body of that lady wuz there I'd er goed some more hundred feet in the yuther way," said Lee and rolled his eyes as the thought of that spine-paralyzing hour came over him. "Why didn't you get closer to the dust bin before you stopped and looked around?" "Well, Mr. Frank, he said, 'Newt, don't go too close to that dust bin with yo' lantern,'" explained Lee. "When I saw the body the closes' Ah got to hit wuz about that far," said Lee, waving his fan at the jury box. "How far is that?" asked the attorney. "Ah doan knew in feets," said Lee. "Ain't Ah showed th' distance?" "Well, it's about six feet," Mr. Rosser unwillingly volunteered. "Ah wuz holdin' th' lantern out soze Ah could see better," said Lee. "You first saw only the feet, didn't you?" "Yessir." "On account of the projecting wall?" "Yessir." "How far away was it?" "Doan know 'zactly," said Lee, replying to this question as to distance in the same indefinite way as ever before and after during his time on the stand. The attorney by concrete examples developed the fact that it must have been 10 feet or thereabouts. Refuses to Be Exact. Then ensued much talk as the lawyer tried to get the witness to tell the approximate distance from the closet to the body, but Lee never would tell "zactly" how far it was, and finally agreed that it might have been something like thirty feet. "Ah stood there and looked at that body tell ah made hit out and then ah lit er rag," said Lee, shading his eyes with his hand in a typical darkey fashion. "Did you know it was a white girl and how?" "Ah seed her frizzy hair and some white spots on her." "Later you went back with the police?" "Nor sir, ah didn't go wif dem; dey chased me down dere, an' one er dem mens sez, 'She's ges er chile, an' she's been here two or three days,- an' '" Lee was quickly halted as he had rambled off into what someone else had remarked about the body. Then Lee was made to describe how the body lay when he first saw it, and after being repeatedly cross-examined, he said: "Cunnel, you see me er sittin' here; well jes ez shore es I'ze er sittin' here dat lady's body wuz lyin' dere like ah doan told yer." Tells of Meeting Frank. Then Attorney Rosser made Lee go over in detail about how he had come to the factory and been told by Frank not to punch the clock on his arrival, as men were working upstairs and later how he and the superintendent had inserted the tape in it. "An when Mr. Frank come out an' saw Mr. Gantt he jumped back, lak dis," said Lee, and bounced back into his chair. "You didn't tell the coroner that way about Mr. Frank's jumping back." "Nor sir, ah didn't have ter; dey understood widout mah havin' ter jump diserway an' show 'em," replied Lee. Mr. Rosser then read the stenographic report of the coroner's hearing and asked Lee if it was a bad report. "Dunno," said Lee, "reckon dey jes put down what dey tole 'em ter put down, but ah do know what ah said." Solicitor Interrupts. Then the solicitor interrupted with objections to Mr. Rosser's manner of interrogating, and declared that if the cross-questioner was trying to impeach Lee's testimony that he ought to go about it in the prescribed form. "My brother is old enough to lecture me, I reckon," Rosser fired back at him. "I'm talking to his honor, not to you," Dorsey flung back. "This witness can testify as to whether or not he told the things that are in the report," ruled the judge. Mr. Rosser then reread the part about Lee's testimony to the coroner in reference to Frank's actions when he met Gantt. He had to read it over three times, because as Lee explained he could understand Mr. Rosser when he was talking, but not when he was reading. Then Mr. Hooper made the point that the Frank defense must show the exact time upon which Lee made the alleged statement, and whether it was the first or second time he appeared before the coroner. Sticks to Statement. Lee continued to stick to his statement that Frank had jumped when he saw Gantt, and that this was what he had told the coroner. The questioning reverted to the finding of the body by Lee and then there was a wrangle over Lee's description of how Frank and he inserted the tape in the clock. "You didn't pay close attention, did you?" "Nor sir, not special."