"SERMON FROM THE DOCK.

Dunstan Times, Issue 3149, 25 December 1922, Page 8

"SERMON FROM THE DOCK.

The Bey, Elliott Padrick, a Metlwi-' dist minister, who is charged with murdering his wife and his mother-ui-law, Mrs AI. B. Dixon, was allowed to preach a sermon in Court at Statesborough, Georgia-, on the text, "Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife." lie also led the Court in prayer for Divine guidance for the -Judge. Padrick. who bad previously confess-' cd to the double murder, declared in his sermon thai modern women are causing Ihe downfall of men. He said:---"Women entice men by (heir manner of dress and play lip to them through the sex appeal. If is difficult for a young man to enter the ministry because of the tempt at ions of modern women." He then, in a slate of great excitement, pointed his finger at his father-in-law and shouted : "You were responsible for me marrying your daughter." Padrick also declared thai his mother-in-law was jealous. "She would often beat her daughter." he said, "because when she went to town she was admired hv other men." He declared thai the hand of Cod caused him to kill Ins wife and his mother-in-law, and began to rave so violently that his lawyers had to pull him to his seal. The prosecution called witnesses lo prove that Padrick was sane, but his mother afterwards testified that he was always eccentric. "He had queer ideas of religion," she,said. "He often sal, up throughout the night studying the Bible." Padrick's father, who also is a minister, stated that his son frequently'wept over the lost world. On one occasion he was compelled to send his son to Florida because of the state of his health. The prosecution, in cross-examina-tion, obtained an admission from the father that another reason why the sou was sent to Florida was because of an accusation of forging the endorsement on a cheque, and because he was about lo be arrested for wife-beating.