Another in our series of new transcriptions of contemporary articles on the Leo Frank case.
Atlanta Georgian
July 28th, 1913
Newt Lee Repeats His Story in Court Room
Negro Watchman Swears Frank Acted Oddly Day of Crime
Here are the important developments in the trial of Leo M. Frank for the murder of Mary Phagan.
Jury chosen at 1:30 p. m.
Mrs. Coleman, girl’s mother, takes stand after recess, at 3:15, and tells of Mary leaving for the factory 11:45 a. m. on April 26.
George W. Epps, boy companion of Mary Phagan, repeats his story that he had an engagement to meet her on the afternoon of the fatal day.
Newt Lee, night watchman at the factory, begins his story of the finding of the body and subsequent developments.
Mrs. J. W. Coleman, mother of murdered Mary Phagan, was the first witness for the prosecution at the trial of Leo Frank Monday afternoon. After answering several questions she broke down completely when the solicitor exhibited the little lavender skirt worn by her daughter when she last saw her alive. She covered her face with a fan and for several minutes could not answer a question.
The first question asked her was:
“What is your name?”
“Mrs. J. W. Coleman.”
“When did you last see Mary Phagan alive?”
“April 26 at 11:45.”
“What was she going to do when she lfet [sic] home?”
“She was going to the pencil factory to draw her pay.”
Not Yet 14 Years Old.
Q. What did she eat before leaving?—A. Cabbage and bread.
Q. What was the age?—A. Nearly 14 years.
Q. Was she pretty or an ugly girl?—She was very pretty.
At this point Mrs. Coleman’s voice began faltering.
Q. Did she have dimples in her cheeks?—A. Two pretty ones.
Q. What did she wear when you saw her the last time?—A. lavender dress trimmed in lace.
Shows Victim’s Dress.
Here Solicitor Dorsey took a large suitcase from the floor and opened it, and laid before the witness the clothes taken from Mary Phagan’s body. It was then that Mrs. Coleman broke down and no more questions were asked for several minutes.
Between sobs, Mrs. Coleman, identified the clothes of Mary Phagan, which were laid at her feet. Deputy Miner gave her a glass of water. Solicitor Dorsey closed his questioning and Mr. Rosser took up the cross-examination.
Q. What trimming was on Mary’s hat?—A. Pale blue ribbon and some small pink flowers.
Q. How far do you live from the car line?—A. Two blocks.
Boy Accompanied Her.
Q. Is there a store there?—A. Yes.
Q. Who kept the store?—A. Mrs. Smith.
Q. Do you know that Mary caught a car immediately leaving home at 11:45 o’clock?—A. Yes, she caught a car in five or seven minutes.
Q. Do you know the boy who was with her?—A. Yes, Epps.
Question About Boy Blocked.
Solicitor Dorsey objected, desiring to know who the boy was and what about him.
“It is necessary for me to know the relation between little Mary Phagan and this boy,” answered Mr. Rosser.
“I don’t know what’s on his mind,” declared Dorsey. “We ought to know if he intends to endeavor to impeach this witness.
“We are simply trying to find how Mary Phagan regarded this boy.”
The cross-examination was resumed.
State Objects Again.
Q. Isn’t it true that Mary told you that she detested Epps—that she didn’t like him?
Dorsey objected again and Attorney Rosser withdrew the question.
Q. Didn’t you tell L. P. Whitfield that Mary told you she detested Epps?
Objection again by the State, claiming that the question was immaterial and was more hearsay.
Rosser said: “I am going to show the improbability of Mary Phagan making an engagement to meet his boy Epps.”
Objection was overruled.
Says Girl Made Remark.
Mrs. Coleman finally replied that she thought Mary had made that remark.
Mrs. Coleman was excused with the intimation that she might again be called to testify.
Following Mrs. Coleman, George Epps was called to the witness stand. Solicitor Dorsey opened the questioning.
Q. Where do you live?—A. No. 246 Ross street.
Q. How old are you?—A. Fourteen.
Q. How long have you known Mary Phagan?—One year.
Q. When did you see her last alive?—A. Saturday morning, April 26.
Q. Where were you?—A. I came to town with her.
Q. Where did you catch the car?—A. At Lindsey street.
Q. What time?—A. Ten to twelve.
Q. What time did you leave her?— […]
ACCUSED CLOSE WATCHER AS THE MEN WHO ARE DECIDE FATE ARE PICKED
[…] A. Seven minutes past twelve.
Q. Did you ever see these clothes before (exhibiting Mary Phagan’s clothes)?—A. She had them on when I left her.
Q. Where did she say she was going?—A. Right to the factory to draw her pay.
Q. Did you expect to meet her again?—A. She said she would meet me at 2 o’clock to see the parade. I left her at Forsyth and Marietta streets at 7 minutes past 12. She was going to the factory then.
Rosser Takes Up Quizzing.
Q. What did she say about Frank?
Objection was made by Attorney Rosser. The objection was sustained.
The State then turned the witness over to the defense. Rosser took up the questioning.
Q. How do you know the time?—A. I saw a clock at Oliver stre[e]t, right after I got on the car. It was about 10 minutes to 12.
Q. When did your mind first get on the clock?—A. They kept asking me about it, and I finally recalled it when I testified at the Coroner’s inquest.
Got Off Car Where He Did.
Q. Where were you at about 12 o’clock?—A. I don’t know exactly where the car was.
Q. How do you tell the time when you can’t see a clock?—A. I tell by the sun.
Q. Can you come pretty close?—A. Yes.
Q. Are you sure Mary Phagan got off the car with you?—A. I am certain. She got off when I did.
Q. What were you doing between 2 and 4 o’clock?—A. I waited for Mary Phagan to meet me at the Elkin Drug Company.
Waited for Her Until 4 p. m.
Q. You said she was going to meet you at 2 o’clock?—A. Yes, but I hadn’t finished selling my papers and kept waiting for her.
Q. You waited at that corner all this time?—A. I never left there until 4 o’clock.
Q. What did you do then?—A. I went to the ball game and finished selling my papers there.
Q. When did you see Mary Phagan again?—A. The next morning at the pencil factory.
Epps was then excused and Newt Lee called to the stand.
Lee Begins His Story.
Lee is the negro night watchman at the pencil factory who discovered the body of Mary Phagan in the basement of the building. After being sworn, Solicitor Dorsey questioned him:
Q. What is your name?—A. Newt Lee.
Q. What was your business?—A. Night watchman at the National Pencil Factory.
Q. How long were you there?—A. Three weeks.
Q. Where were you night watchman before?—A. At the other place.
Q. Do you know Mr. Frank?—A. Yes.
Calls Frank “Head Foreman.”
Q. What was his position?—He was head foreman.
Q. You mean superintendent?—A. Yes, something like that.
Q. What instructions did Mr. Frank give you?—A. He told me Friday to come back at 4 o’clock on Saturday. He said he wanted to get away.
Q. What time did you get there?—A. A few minutes before 4 o’clock.
Q. What time were you accustomed to coming on Saturday?—A. Five o’clock. Saturday at 12 o’clock he always gave me a key and I returned the key on Monday morning.
Door Was Locked.
Q. How did you find the door on the Saturday afternoon of April 26?—A. It was locked on that Saturday.
Q. How did you know it?—A. I took my key and unlocked it.
Q. What did you do after that?—A. I went up to the second floor with a sack of bananas.
Q. What else did you do?—A. I sat my bananas down and said: “All right, Mr. Frank.”
Q. What did he do?—A. He busted out of the office.
Q. Did he ever come out that way before?—A. No, when I went in he always hollered to me from his office.
Q. What was he doing when you went in?—A. He was rubbing his hands and kept on rubbing them. He told me I could go out for an hour and a half, or not later than by usual time for getting there. He told me he was sorry he had told me to come down early and I told him I was sorry, too, because I could have slept some more. He told me to go on out to town and have a good time.
Frank Said Not to Punch Clock.
Q. What was the appearance of his face?—A. I didn’t pay much attention to his face. I offered him some bananas and went on out.
Q. How long did you stay?—A. I came back a few minutes before 6 o’clock.
Q. What did Mr. Frank say then?—A. He said: “Don’t punch it yet, some of the workmen are still in.” He said he wanted to change the slip.
Q. Did you ever see him fix the slip before?—A. Yes.
Q. When he changed the slip this time did he do it slower or quicker than before?—A. He sort of fumbled it.
Q. Do you know how to fix a time slip?—A. No, I never fixed one in my life.
Tells of Seeing Gantt.
Q. Did you see Mr. Gantt that day?—A. Yes, I saw him down at the door a little after 6 o’clock. He said he wanted to get some old clothes.
Q. Did you see Mr. Frank?—A. Yes, Mr. Gantt went in. Mr. Frank came busting out and run into Mr. Gantt. He looked like he was surprised and jumped back.
Q. What did they say to each other?—A. Mr. Gantt said he wanted to get his shoes. Mr. Frank said he thought the boy had thrown them into the trash basket. Mr. Gantt asked what color they were. Mr. rank said they were tan. Mr. Gantt said his were black.
Q. What did Mr. Frank do then?—A. He dropped his head and said for me to go up with Mr. Gantt to get the shoes.
Q. What did you find?—A. We found black shoes and tan shoes.
Frank Called Him.
Q. Did Mr. Frank call you over the phone that night?—A. Yes, he called me about 7 o’clock.
Q. What did he say?—A. He said: “How is everything?” I said everything was all right. He said “Goodbye.”
Q. Did you hear from him any more?—A. Not until Sunday morning.
Solicitor Dorsey then exhibited a diagram of the scene of the crime, drawn by Bert Green, the Georgian staff artist. By this diagram Lee explained the lighting system of the building.
Veniremen Keenly Watched.
Q. What did Frank tell you about the lights?—A. Frank told me to keep the lights on the street floor burning bright so that officers could see in. I always lighted up on Saturday at 5 o’clock.
Q. What did he tell you about the basement lights?—A. He told me to keep it burning bright all the time.
Left Lights Burning Brightly.
Q. How did you leave it Saturday morning when you left the factory?—A. It was burning bright.
Q. How was it when you saw it again Saturday evening?—A. Have you ever seen a lightning bug when you knock him down in the grass? Well, it was just about like that.
Q. What did you do?—A. I went down and turned it up.
Q. What time did you make your rounds?—A. Regular on the hour and half hour.
Q. Did you make them regularly Saturday evening and night?—A. I never missed missed a one. I had a peg I put in the hole and I am sure I never missed a punch.
Knows Nothing of Elevator.
Q. What about the elevator?—A. I didn’t know nothing about that.
Q. What about the street door and the office door?—A. They were closed.
Q. What kind of doors were they?—The kind you pull down.
Q. Was it your duty to close those doors if they were open?—A. Yes.
Solicitor Dorsey here asked Lee to tell the jury in his own words of going into the basement at 3 o’clock and telling what he found there.
Q. Just how did you get up to the body?—A. I couldn’t tell you just how I did get up to that body, but I did get up there.
Q. What did you do there?—A. I called up the police after I tried to get Mr. Frank, who I was trying to get when the police came.
Tried to Call Frank.
Q. When was the last time you punched the clock?—A. At 3 o’clock, just before I found the body.
Q. When did you see Frank again?—A. Not until after the police had arrested him the next day.
Q. How long did you try to get Frank?—A. About eight minutes.
Q. How many times?—A. One time.
Q. Did it take long to get the police?—A. No, they answered as soon as I called.
Q. What time did you see him the next day?—A. I don’t know just what time.
Q. Where were you?—A. At the factory.
Frank Said Nothing.
Q. What did Mr. Frank say?—A. He didn’t say nothing, just hung his head.
Q. Was there an examination of the clock?—A. Yes, sir.
Q. Who examined it?—A. Mr. Frank did. Mr. Darley was standing there.
Q. What did he say?—A. He said it was all right.
Q. What did that mean?—A. That meant that I had made all the punches ever half hour from 6 o’clock.
Q. Did you see a pencil in that clock?—A. Yes, I put it there the second Sunday night I come to work there so that I could punch right.
Q. Was the time slip all right?—A. I don’t know.
Q. You have never been at liberty since, have you?—A. No, sir; they grabbed me and said I did it as soon as I showed them the body.
Q. When did you see Frank again after that?—A. We went to the station in the same automobile.
Q. Did you have a conversation with him the next Thursday night?—A. I don’t know what night it was but they took me out of my cell and said they were going to let me and Mr. Frank have it out. They handcuffed me to a chair before he came. When he came, I told him it was mighty hard to be handcuffed to a chair about something I didn’t know anything about. He said: “What’s the difference.” “Well,” I said, “Mr. Frank, I don’t know nothing about it, except finding the body,” “Yes,” he said, “if you keep that up, we both will go to hell.”
Q. What did you say then?—A. The police came in then.
Q. Were you willing to come back to the factory that Saturday at 4 o’clock?—A. I told Mr. Frank Saturday was my shortest day, but I agreed to come back early.
Q. What was Mr. Frank’s manner when you came in that Saturday afternoon?—A. Well, I never noticed his face, but he was rubbing his hands like he was worried.
Rosser Takes Witness.
At this point the State rested their examination of Lee and he was turned over to the defense for cross-examination. Mr. Rosser lead with the questioning for counsel for Frank.
Q. Did you testify at the Coroner’s inquest?—A. I testified before something.
Q. How many times have you told this to Mr. Dorsey?—A. One time.
Has “Good Recollection.”
Q. How many times did Mr. Black go over this statement with you?—A. I don’t know; there have been so many I don’t know them all.
Q. You have told this story many times, haven’t you?—A. Yes, sir.
Q. Have you always told it the same way?—A. Yes, sir; I got a good recollection.
Mr. Rosser was here insistent to know if Lee told about Frank appearing frightened when he met Gantt. He asked the negro if he didn’t say Frank had said he gave the pair of shoes to a boy. Lee maintained that there were no contradictions in his statement.
“No, sir,” he said, “you got that wrong.”
Q. How many Saturdays were you at the pencil factory?—A. Four.
Q. What time did you usually get there on Saturday?—A. At 12 o’clock, to get paid.
Q. Did you stay there after that?—A. No, I got my keys and went away until 5.
Tells How He Called Frank.
Q. Your sleep was broken at 12 o’clock every Saturday except this one, was it not?—A. Yes.
Q. The first Saturday you were there what was Mr. Frank doing?—A. I don’t know, I would have hollered to him, but he saw me and checked me in.
Q. How many times did you holler at him?—A. Three, Saturdays.
Q. What did you holler?—A. All right, Mr. Frank.
Q. What would he say?—A. He would just come out of the office.
Q. How far away?—A. About fifteen or sixteen feet.
Q. No closer than that?—A. It might have been a little closer.
Q. Isn’t it true you told the Coroner that he had his head bound and was rubbing his hands?—A. I did.
Compares Former Testimony.
Q. Let’s see if that is what you said. (Rosser examines testimony before Coroner.)—A. I can’t tell what you got there.
Q. You said Frank told you to go out and have some fun.—A. That’s wrong; he said have a good time.
Q. You never said anything before the Coroner about there being a place to sleep?—A. I told him there was, but they never asked me where it was.
Q. If the front door was locked, could you get into the basement from the first floor?—A. Yes.
Q. If the office door was locked, could you get into the basement without using the elevator?—A. No, sir.
Q. When you came back the last time, if Mr. Frank was in his office, could any one have gone anywhere in the factory without Mr. Frank seeing him or knowing him?—A. Yes, if he didn’t hear him.
New Line of Questioning.
Q. If Mr. Frank was in his private office, and the front door locked, could anyone go over that whole factory without him knowing it?—A. I don’t know, sir.
Q. Well, you did do it the Saturday before, didn’t you?—A. Yes, sir, I did.
Q. All the shutters in the factory except a few on the first floor near the front were closed, were they not?—A. Yes, sir.
Q. There was a light burning on the second floor near the clock, was there not?—A. He told me to go there every little while to look after the fires.
Q. Mr. Frank thought you went there every half hour?
When Lee did not answer, Solicitor Dorsey interrupted, saying that he did not want the negro committed by silence.
Lawyers In Clash.
“We want silence some times,” said Mr. Rosser; “sometimes its [sic] more powerful. I am asking these questions and silence is one of my privileges. For the prosecution to interrupt is deliberately obstructing the testimony without intending to.”
“I will make him answer,” said Solicitor Dorsey, “when I get him.”
“Yes,” said Mr. Rosser, “I know you will. Probably you can get him to answer better than I can.”
“I want the truth,” rejoined Solicitor Dorsey.
“Yes, we all do in our partisan way,” replied Rosser.
Q. You watched Gantt get away and you knew Mr. Frank was uneasy about him being there?—A. Yes, sir.
Q. They had had a difficulty, hadn’t they?—A. Mr. Frank told me he had discharged Mr. Gantt and he didn’t want him around.
Q. That is why you thought Mr. Frank wa [sic] sfrightened [sic] when you met him?—A. Yes, sir.
Q. Gantt is a big fellow, isn’t he?—A. Yes, about 7 feet.
Q. You went over the building every half hour and into the basement a few feet from the ladder?—A. Yes, sir, except in the basement. I went there every hour.
Q. If you wanted to find whether the door at the rear was closed, you would have passed the body?—A. It was shut when I found the body.
Q. Ddid the police find it open?—A. They said they did.
Solicitor Dorsey objected to the form of Mr. Rosser’s questions and was sustained.
Q. The police got there in about eight minutes?—A. I don’t know. I said all the time I didn’t know how long it took them.
Light in Alley, He Says.
Q. You didn’t get any closer to the basement door than the body was?—A. No, sir.
Q. Could you have seen out of the back door?—A. Yes, if it was open.
Q. Are you positive about the door being closed?—A. Yes. There was a light in the alley and I could have seen if the door had been open.
Q. Are you positive about the door being closed?—A. Yes; there was a light in the alley and I could have seen it if the door had been open.
Q. Did you go as far as the body before you found it that night?—A. Not until 3 o’clock, when I found the body.
Q. Why didn’t you see the hat and shoes as you went along?—A. I don’t know. I just didn’t see them.
Court was then adjourned at 5:12 with Newt Lee still on the witness stand. He will be placed on the stand again when court opens at 9 o’clock Tuesday morning.
Leo M. Frank was back in the county jail twenty minutes after the conclusion of the first day’s hearing in his trial. The calmness which had characterized his appearance all day was still with him and he smiled as he said good-bye to the friends who accompanied him to the Tower in company with Sheriff Mangum.
Newt Lee was returned to the county jail a few minutes before Frank. The negro has been a model prisoner and while kept under the eyes of a special guard all day consideration was shown him in many little things.
All the force of attorneys at the table for the defense watched with keen eyes every man examined for the jury, and frequently referred to a voluminous record, containing the names of all the veniremen and detailed statements of their history and associations so far as these might have a bearing on their desirability as jurors to pass on Leo Frank’s guilt or innocence.
The keenest interest was manifested by those in the crowded little courtroom as the strategies of the brilliant lawyers were revealed during the examination.
State Had Venireman’s Records.
The thoroughness with which the Solicitor and his assistants had canvassed the history of every venireman and had investigated whether or not he had ever expressed an opinion on the guilt or innocence of the accused was demonstrated when W. W. Hemmett, a salesman for the Kingsbury Shoe Company, was being examined as to his qualifications.
“Have you ever said you thought Frank was guilty?” Mr. Dorsey inquired.
“No, I never have,” replied Hemmett.
Here the Solicitor referred to some notes at hand and proceeded to call to Hemmett’s recollection a certain talk he had with acquaintances at a certain time. Hemmett was forced to admit that he had talked of the case at that time, but declared that he had not expressed a definite opinion.
“I only said I would have to hear some evidence before I would believe Frank was guilty,” he told Judge Roan.
He was rejected for cause.
Defense Equally Alert.
The defense showed that it was exactly as vigilant when the next venireman was examined. As soon as A. L. Bellingrath, of No. 91 Milledge avenue, arose from his seat. Attorney Arnold was on his feet prepared to state the objection of the defense. He pointed out that Bellingrath was the brother of Henry Bellingrath who has been employed in the Solicitor’s office during the Phagan investigation and that he was reported to have expressed an opinion on the guilt of Frank.
A shrewd bit of strategy was used by Solicitor Dorsey and Attorney Hooper in accepting the two negroes whose names were among the veniremen.
By doing this they forced the defense to use up two of their twenty challenges if they did not desire to have negroes on the jury. With Jim Conley, a negro, likely to be indicted for the murder in the event that Frank is cleared, the defense had no intention of allowing them to pass on Frank’s guilt and promptly struck them. The two negroes were Earl Davis and E. E. Hawkins.
May Summon Reporters.
When court opened for the afternoon session, Attorney Arnold announced:
“We may want to use some of the members of the press as witnesses. I don’t want to put them under the court rule which would exclude them from the courtroom.”
Solicitor Dorsey hereupon arose and said:
“All right, but I want to reserve the right to do so at a later date if necessary.”
Defense Loses First Clash.
The attorneys for Leo M. Frank lost out in their first skirmish with the prosecution, being compelled to read their list of witnesses against their wishes and their vigorous protests.
They evened up matters by obtaining from Solicitor Dorsey the concession of honoring the subpenas lecus tecum issued by the defense and demanding the production in court of all the affidavits of Jim Conley. After a short passage between Attorney Arnold for Frank and Solicitor Dorsey that the list must be read, the judge ruled, and the list was read by Attorney Stiles Hopkins.
The list included employees of the National Pencil Factory, where the murdered girl worked; members of Frank’s immediate family, and other relatives and associates of the accused man, members of the same fraternal orders, acquaintances who saw Frank on the day of the crime and classmates in college.
Jurymen Chosen.
The reading of the last names came as a complete surprise. It developed that the defense had scoured the country for persons who had known Frank when he was a student at Cornell. They were subpenaed to bring the character testimony in his behalf up to the time he began his business career.
The picking of the jury proved less difficult than anticipated, twelve men being obtained before 1:30.
List of Jurors.
Here are the jurors chosen:
A. H. Henslee, No. 74 Oak street, a travelling salesman for the Franklin Buggy Company; F. V. L. Smith, No. 481 Cherokee avenue, manufacturer’s agent, with offices in the Empire Building; J. F. Higdon, a contractor, No. 108 Ormewood avenue; F. E. Winburn, No. 213 Lucile avenue, claim agent Atlanta and West Point Railroad; A. L. Wisby, No. 31 Hood street, cashier of the Buckeye Oil Company; W. M. Jeffries, a real estate man, with offices at 318 Empire Building; Marcellus Johemming, No. 161 James street, a machine shop foreman, with offices at No. 281 Marietta street; M. L. Woodward, cashier King Hardware Company, No. 182 Park avenue; J. T. Osburn, an optician for Hawkes’, was chosen from the fifth panel to be the ninth juror;
TRIAL OF FRANK MOVING WITH SWI[F]TNESS
Negro Lee on Stand as First Day’s Sessions End—His Testimony Hits Prisoner.
D. Townsend, No. 84 Whitehall terrace, cashier Central Bank and Trust Corporation.
W. S. Medcalf, No. 136 Kirkwood avenue, circulation department of The Atlanta Journal.
C. J. Bosshardt, No. 216 Bryan street, pressman Foote & Davies.
Bosshardt, the twelfth juror chosen, was the last venireman in the last panel that had been called before the court at the opening of court in the morning. He was picked at exactly 1:25 o’clock and at 1:30 the recess was taken until 3 o’clock.
Attorney Rosser took very little part in the selection of the jury, except to interject a suggestion now and then. He evidently was reserving his strength for the real struggle to come.
Shortly before 2 o’clock Leo Frank was taken into a room adjoining the juryroom, where he was served with a special dinner provided for him by his relatives. Frank’s mother and wife were allowed to converse with him while he ate the dinner. He will remain in this room until the court reconvenes at 3 o’clock.
Wife and Mother With Frank.
Frank, accompanied by his wife and his mother, was brought into the courtroom at 10:30 o’clock. The striking of the jury was begun at once.
A half dozen of Frank’s friends interrupted the order of the court for several minutes by clustering about him and shaking hands with him.
If there was any fear in the heart of the young prisoner it did not show in his calm features. He seemed perfectly assured and self-possessed. He nodded pleasantly to the judge and greeted his friends with a smiles.
After the stir had subsided, covering the entrance of Frank, his wife and mother, the trio took seats in a semi-circle just below the bench.
Frank and his mother took a good look at the jurors in the first panel that was brought in. The prisoner scrutinized each one closely as he was quizzed by the prosecutor to determine his qualifications.
Wife Fixes Gaze on Dorsey.
Mrs. Frank displayed no sign of emotion until she suddenly found that she was facing Solicitor Dorsey. Then anger appeared to blaze from her eyes. She seldom removed her gaze from the Solicitor’s face during the forenoon. If Dorsey was aware of the young woman’s scrutiny, he made no sign and proceeded with the case in rapid fashion.
Occasionally Mrs. Frank would turn to her husband and nod toward the Solicitor as though she was ridiculing his efforts to convict Frank. Mrs. Frank was attired in a becoming suit of black and wore a black hat trimmed with black chiffon; also a black veil was drawn up over her hat. A black and white ribbon led to her watch in the pocket of her white silk waist. Two brilliant diamonds shone on the engagement finger of her left hand.
Frank occupied a seat between his wife and mother. He conversed with them alternately, at no time appearing nervous or the least apprehensive. His attitude was noticeably even more calm than at the time when he appeared before the Coroner’s jury.
Frank Aids Attorneys.
Frank spoke frequently to his attorneys, whom he was near, and made suggestions while the jurors were being qualified. When each new panel was brought in he looked intently into the face of each man, beginning at the upper row and shifting his gaze from man to man until he had scrutinized them all.
Not infrequently, when the Solicitor had closed his examination and had said, “Juror, look on prisoner; prisoner, look on juror,” Frank would turn to Attorney Arnold and an instant later the announcement would be made, “Struck by the defense.”
Frank evidently was playing a large part in the striking of jurors by this defense.
The dagger-like gaze of Mrs. Frank seldom was removed from the Solicitor’s face. Frequently she embraced all those at Dorsey’s table in her scornful glance.
Wife Caresses Prisoner.
Chief of Detectives Newport A. Lanford, whose department unearthed much of the evidence happened to be sitting at her right. She turned to him while he was glancing over papers as if she were about to speak her mind to him, but thought better of it.
Once in a while she took her eyes from the Solicitor’s table to lay her hand affectionately upon her husband’s shoulder and draw him toward her to whisper in his ear. Once when she discovered the reporters eyeing her, she smiled mischievously and immediately whispered the information to Frank.
Frank’s mother sat quietly through the routine of examining the veniremen. She spoke to her son frequently, directing her glance at the prospective jurors as though commenting on their fitness.