12 More Witnesses In One Tree Hill Case

Northern Advocate, 22 November 1947, Page 6

12 More Witnesses In One Tree Hill Case

AUCKLAND, Sat. (Sp.).—Twelve more witnesses gave evidence at the trial yesterday of Pansy Louise Frances Haskell, 49, who is charged with murdering Mrs Gladys Ruth Rusden at One Tree Hill on June 5. i ~ . , Public accommodation was taxed throughout the clay, and women were again in a majority among the spectators, who ran for the best places in the galleries as soon as the doors were opened. , , , , Two women, who interrupted with laughter, were ordered from the court by the police.

Trevor Spat ling said he had acted as Mrs Rusden’s solicitor. On March 25, 1946, she brought him the envelope produced in court. It was one of five letters she handed to him that day. Mr Robinson: Would it be correct to say that in 1944 deceased instructed you in connection with domestic unhappiness? Witness: Yes. Mr Robinson: Accused was in no way involved? After being told by His Honor that his professional conscience could be at ease in answering the question prudently, witness replied: “Not at that time.” ALLEGED CONVERSATION Details of conversations with accused were given by, Clara Aitken, married, of Newton. Accused, witness said, had told her that she expected Rusden to get a divorce so that she could marry him. She looked forward to the divorce coming off. and when it did not eventuate she became very angry about things. Accused had said on one occasion that Mrs Rusden was going into hospital for a serious operation and she hoped she would not come out of it. There was also an occasion when accused said that a “homey'” woman had made trouble for her by suggesting that Mrs Rusden should visit the house in Newton on a Sunday afternoon. Mrs Rusden had done so and accused said she had told Mrs Rusden that she could divorce her husband now. Mrs Rusden had said she would never divorce him, and accused stated that she had replied that Mrs Rusden would have him over her dead body. ASKED ABOUT RAZOR “On the occasion when accused told me about the ‘homey’ women, she asked me if I had a gun to shoot that Mother Rusden through the trees at the back," continued witness. “Then she asked if I had a cutthroat (razor) or a good heavy spanner. “Accused stated: ‘lt is worth £2OO to you if you will help me to kill that . Mrs Rusden.’ I said the money w’ould stink. “Then she asked me if I knew anybody who would do it. I told her I did not mix with that type. Then she said: ‘lf you hear of it being done you will not say anything, will you?’ I replied: ‘Don't let it happen or I W’ould have to squeal cops.’ “Accused also told me that she would sneak out to the Rusden house in the early hours of the morning wdth a shopping basket and hang around the gate; nobody would know her,” witness added. QUESTION OF REWARD Answering Mr Robinson, who suggested that Mrs Rusden never went to accused’s house in Newton Road, witness said this was what accused had told her. She was only going by that. Mr Robinson: You know, of course, of the £SOO reward?

Witness stated that he had seen fires on the premises to burn rubbish and he remembered a lot of stuff coming from a house at Howick, which stuff accused said she was going to burn. “TURNED AGAINST 1IER" Mrs Lilian May Fry, of 133 A Newton Road,’ said she saw a fire in accused's yard on the morning of the murder. She noticed an old tyre and some carpet on the fire and later she saw accused digging in the remains in the garden. Accused told her she had burned a moth-eaten green dress and a pair of shoes. “She later said she wanted to say good-bye, as she would not see me again,” said witness. "When I asked her why, she said because there was too much evidence against her and that Rusden had turned against her.” Answering Mr Robinson, witness stated that she could not remember accused ever mentioning to her that she intended to give up Rusden. Mr Robinson: You knew accused was frightened of Rix? Witness: I never .knew until after the date of the murder, when I told her someone was hanging around the gate. Did this man look like Rix?—No, not a bit. To Mr Meredith, witness said she went outside and told the man off, and after that she did not think he would come back again. Any suggestion that it was Rix who was around was all wrong. The hearing will be continued on Monday.

Witness: That does not worry me in the slightest. There was no reward on the Thursday night of the murder. I read about it in the newspaper. Mrs Cynthia Eleanor Callaghan, of 133 Newton Road, said she was living at her present address when accused was there. On the evening after the murder accused showed her a newspaper and asked her to say that she saw accused on the morning of the murder. Witness agreed and made a statement to this effect to the police. After thinking the matter over, witness went to the police and said she had not seen accused that morning. There had been nothing to make her think that accused was not in her bed on the morning of the murder. Accused had spoken about having brought some things to Newton Road from a house in Howick, witness added. RUBBISH FIRES Ernest Cyril Wagstaff. builder, said he was living at 133 Newton Road, and left for work between 7 a.m. and 7.15 a.m .on June 5. He did not see accused that morning. On the Sunday night, after accused returned from the detective office, she asked Mrs Callaghan in witness’ presence i| she had told the police that she had seen accused at home on the Thursday morning. He had remarked that this might put Mrs Callaghan in a tight spot. Cross-examined, witness said accused had spoken to him of Rusden on two or three occasions and about a week before the murder she said she had not seen him for some time. Witness replied, “Why don’t you leave the man alone and give him up?” She said, “I am doing so.” Accused had never mentioned Mrs Rusden or spoken to him about murdering her.