POISONED SWEETS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22194, 22 August 1935, Page 13

POISONED SWEETS

ACCUSED GIRL'S STORY former iover blamed EVIDENCE' OF PARENTS THE DEFENCE CONCLUDED ADDRESS to the jury r ß y TELEGRAPH— OWN COHRESrOXnENT] NAPIER, "Wednesday The en so for the defence of Phyllis jeslie Tui Marshall, aged 18, who is charged with attempting to murder Aliaa Lorraine Keith, of Hastings, by sending her poisoned chocolates by t or alternatively with attempting totalise her to take poison, with intent to injure her. was concluded in the Supreme Court at Napier to-day, before Mr- •Listice Reed Accused's counsel, Mr. C. G. Harker, jj/d just completed his address to the jury when, tho Court adjourned until to-morrow. The case for the Crown :s being conducted by Mr. H. B. Lusk. In continuing; her evidence th s morning, accused said that Masters cave lier a tin of arsenic, which she jLt until the police came to interview her. Shu recalled one Sunday when in Masters' presence her mother ws s using arsenic for making flypapers. He asked Mr. Marshall, who was also present, about it. "I don't remember Ins exact words," said accused, "but I think he asked my father if iit ws.s deadly. My father said it would kill anything." The next tine accused saw the jj r of arsenic that her mother was using was when Jack /Masters had it in his hand when he was in the storeroom 1o C et some spurs, as he said. Accused thought it strange that lie should want" sptij-s. but he persisted that le did, and she pointed out where they vpr'e. The arsenic was kept at the ether end of the store. Writing of Note Accused said she wrote the note four d in'the packet ojf chocolates, reading: "Will write to-night and explain, if 1 can .—J." She wrote that as the result of a conversation with Masters n which Masters said ho could copy hor writing better than she could wri :e herself. She replied that he was not the only one who could copy hanlwriting.' find she copied the postscript of a Tetter Musters had written :o r her. She next saw the piece of pap»r she had written on when Detect i'-e Farquhanion produced it. Mr. Harker: Why did you deny that - you had given a parcel to Hooper, the inail contractor, to post?— Because I wanted to find out how much the police knew. I thought if I denied it, that would be the best way of finding out. Why did you say to the police whim charged. "Very/ well, I suppose 1 will have to carry it off?" —I had done mv best to convince the police that Ja*k had given me the parcel to post, and i made about as much impression as. if I was talking to a post, so I lest my temper, and said, "All right, I did it, if it pleases you." 1 Accused; Cross-examined Mr. Lusk then began his eroisexaminat on Accused told him that /; Masters knew there was no hope of marrying her {it least until she was of age, because her parents disapproved of Masters. Mr! Lusk: Can you give any reason why Masters should want to poison ''Alma Keith, when he knew he couldn't marry you for three years?—He tcld me we would never get anywhere the way we were going. Were you in love with Masters ? —Y ;s, I was. Were you jealous of Alma Keith: Ko, I vjisn't. I had no reason to be jealous of her. , Accused said she had suggested to Masters that he should drop Almi Keith instead of' taking such drastii action. She suggested that Mast;ri. should stop writing to Miss Keith, but:, he said he could/not on account of bi:> father wanting him to marry Alma. Mr. Lusk: When you took the mat:er seriously, did you take any steps tc stop Masters from sending Miss Ke tli the poisoned chocolates? —I told him not to be a fool. When Masters came to your house and said he was ill, do you suggjs':. he was shamming?— Yes, I do. The Slip of Paper You wrote those words on that slip of paper, you say ?—Yes. Where was this? —in the breakfis'', room oni! night.. Did you leave Masters in the room that night?— For about five minutes. ' I set. Just long enough to allow him to tear off the dip of paper from Iho note pad. What's your suggestion;'— The only logical suggestion I can ;ee is that ae toire off the slip of paper / to put ill the poisoned chocolates. Did you split- any chocolates with a blade lazor?—So, I didn't. It's quite easy for you to get you:!' father's razor if you wanted to? —Yes., quite eaiy. Why didn't you write the address on the,parcel?—Because it is my custDin to firint addresses on parcels. I suggest that you did it to disgt ise '[> your handwriting?—l did not. Right up to May 22 you were still •on good terms with Masters? —Not on the best of terms. He still wanted to marry you?—-Hi! didn't t( II me so. You hadn't quarrelled?—l was pretty *ild with him. I understand you considered he liail Strayed you and was a rotter of tin; first type?— Yes. Threat Suggested Do voi suggest that this man actuflll.v threatened your life? —Yes, I d> surest that. Accused hacl three reasons, she sfid, w hy she did not want to give Masters away to the police. The first was tiat she was frightened of hiin, the second that she did not want the police to Masters, and the third that she lost her temjier wbl/the police because t.iey *oukl not believe her true statement. . His Honor: Have you any code to justify you in telling an untruth? — nell, when anyone won't believe you when you're t;ell,ing the truth, I think you're justified in telling an untruth. Mr. Lusk: You read a lot, I supP ose- ' —Yes, a. great deal. All sorts of books? —Mostly historical books. Have you read "The Borgias"?— Yes, when 1 was at school. Do you remember what the.v were famous for?— Yes. For poisoning People. Do you read Jane Austen, too? — I5,H ' Ldgar Wallace sometime:!. The next witness for the defence ,vf s the accused's mother, Edith Lilian AlnrshaJl. Witness did not approve of |he int mate friendship between the although she did not take it \erv Seriously at first, because Phyllis wits .VO'ir g. She tried to discourage the TTk iP* ' was successful, then had been arsenic at the place "rsone 15 years, added Mrs. Marfan. It was kept in the storeroom. She recalled making fly poison on Apri J 2 sua again two days later. On the latoccasion Mr. Marshall, Masters arid nyllis were in the kitchen part of the I "Masters asked me what the ■"iff was in the bottle, and I sai 1 it was arsenic." she said. . r ,

Mrs. Marshall recalled a quarrel between Phyllis and Masters on the night of a dance. They never seemed to be so friendly, afterwards. At the time when the poiice came to interview her daughter and for some days afterward Phyllis' behaviour was very strange. Sir. Lusk: After Masters left the house on May 22, you say, your daughter appeared to be upset? Yes. She appeared to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I take it that if she had sent poisoned chocolates to someone, that would have caused her to be upset? Y r cs, if she had sent poisoned chocolates. David C. Marshall, a farmer, near Tikokino, husband of the previous witness and father of accused, said in evidence that he introduced Masters to his daughter in August of last year. Up to the following November they were very friendly. "I did not approve, and 1 advised Phyllis to have nothing to do with him," said witness. "She did not take my advice." Mr. Lusk: Do you think Masters was shamming when he said he was ill."' — No. but I don't think he was very ill. Why do you suppose he came to the house* then ? —To get a little petting, 1 suppose. " Saw Masters in Storeroom " Bryan David Marshall, son of the previous witness, said that one Sunday last May he accompanied Phyllis to the storeroom. He saw that Jack Masters was there, and Masters told witness to get out of it. Witness saw Masters at the further end of the store, "where the arsenic was kept." He said the spurs were kept at the other end, near the door. John Ernest Parkinson, farm contractor, of Tikokino, said that about May 16 or 17, at the time of the Price murder trial, Masters had stated to witness that if Marshall was not careful he would find himself at the next sitting of the Supreme Court at Napier. Margaret Helen Ann Buchanan, farmer, of Tikokino, said she had known accused since she was a child. A\ itness testified to the bright disposition and good character of accused, saying that she had never known her to do or say a mean or spiteful thing. She was a clever girl and was fond of writing. Jack Masters, recalled, denied that when he and accused were in Marshalls' sitting room on one occasion he was imitating accused's writing and she his. Ho also denied being seen in the storeroom with a bottle of arsenic in his hand. Address to the Jury In his address to the jury, Mr. Harker submitted that had accused posted the chocolates knowingly she would have shown some emotion during the days following. The jury had to ask themselves whether Masters wanted to go to the police with tho poisoned chocolates, or whether Mrs. Keith insisted that he should go. He submitted that Masters had deliberately led accused into believing that he wanted to marry her. Mr. Harker referred to a letter written by accused which began, "My darling boy—" and was signed. "Always my love. —Phil. Another portion of the letter cstab lished, counsel said, that it had been written by accused somo time before February 13. Producing the brown-paper wrapper and box in which the chocolates were placed, Mr. Harker invited the jury to consider whether the indications were that the parcel was wrapped up by a girl aged 18 or by the clumsy hands of a working man on a farm. Counsel referred to the state of mind of accused at the time she was arrested, and said it was not unlikely that she would endeavour to save Masters from trouble if she could. He said that that frame of mind ceased to exist only after she had thought tho matter over and realised her duty to her mother and father.

"If Masters set out early in May to get the poison, then you will see that he was deliberately preparing to get accused so implicated as to be useful as a defence for himself," said Mr. Harker. "Tho whole of this case turns upon the credibility of the witnesses you have heard You have listened to both stories, and which has the greatest ring of truth?" At, the conclusion of Mr. Harkcr's address the Court adjourned until tomorrow morning for Mr. Lusk's address. His Honor's summing-up, and the deliberations of the jury. CASE IN BLENHEIM WOMAN'S CONFESSION POSTED THEM TO HERSELF [BV TELECRAI'H —PRESS ASSOCIATION ] BLENHEIM. Wednesday A Blenheim poisoned chocolate mvsterv had a remarkable denouement in* the Magistrate's Court this morning when Alma Evelyn Hose, a married woman, residing at Springlands, confessed to having dosed sweets with strychnine and posted them to herself. She could offer no explanation of her act, which Mr. T. E. Maunsell, S.M., described as "a morbid yearning for sensationalism." The formal charge brought against the accused was contravention of the postal regulations, which require that poisons which have to be sent through the post must be packed in special covers. The police stated that they had been put to considerable expense in investigating the matter. Accused was placed on good behaviour fcr 12 months.