THE ST. LOUIS MURDER Maxwell repeats his carefully studied story of Preller's Death. A DOSE OF CHLOROFORM DID IT.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 159, 3 July 1886, Page 5

THE ST. LOUIS MURDER Maxwell repeats his carefully studied story of Preller's Death. A DOSE OF CHLOROFORM DID IT.

Maxwell makes an Adroit Use of his smattering of Medical Knowledge— A Minute Rehearsal of Circumstances of the Killing.

St. Louis, May 26th. FaitntIiKuoy, for the defence in the Preller case, commenced his opening 1 address to the jury this morning. He stated that ho wished to impress them with the fact that no one knew how Proller caino to his death except the defendant, and he proposed to disclose to the jury all the circumstances attending it. After stating the manner in which Preller and the defendant became acquainted, and the closeness of their friendship thereafter, he stated that the defence intended to pi-ovo that Preller was suffering from a stricture and that the defendant foolishly undertook to remove it. Defendant was unwilling to perform the operation alone, but Preller did not wish the nature of his ailment to be known, and insisted that Maxwell should perform it. To lessen the pain he administered chloroform, butm too large quantity and death resulted. Maxwell then cut the clothes from his Mend's body and attempted to resuscitate him, but failed. He said the defence would prove that Preller knew that Maxwell had no money, and had promised to pay his expenses to Auckland. Robbery, therefore, could not ha\ e been his motive tor causing his friend's death, which was, at any rate, accidental. The remainder ol Fauntleroy's speech was devoted (o a description of his client's actions atter the death of Prcller. Maxwell was then placed on the stand. He showed little evidence of feeling, though there was some degree of nervousness both in his face and hands. There was a rustle through the Court-room. The .Judge in a brief speech demnnded absolute quiet in the audience. Witness then, in reply to questions by Kauntlcroy, stated in substance as follows : "My full name is H M. Brooks, i am twenty-five years old ; born iri Hyde, Chester, England. T commenced to study law with Brown at Stockport, near Iljde, in 1S7S, and remained there four years. I am a lawyer by profession. 1 also studied medicine and surgery at the Collegian School at Manchester but amnotalicenscd physician. IlirstmctPrcllor at the North we- tern Hotel at Liverpool, but did not get acquainted with him until 1 met him on board the steamer " Cephatonia." I also met Warren on the steamer. Mr Preller and I were both Englishmen coining to a strange land, and ou- acquaintance ripened into a warm friendship. We told much about our plans and purposes for the future, and our acquaintance and iriondship continued after our arrival.

PRELL22R AND MAXWELL IN ST. LOUIS. "Tn this country," contimicd Maxwell "we reached Boston on February 3rd, and after three or four d.ys Prcller started on a business trip. 1 had conversation and correspondence with Prcller about going to New Zealand. We agreed to moot in St. Louis and go there together. 1 told him about my financial condition, tolling him m a letter that I had 100 dols., all told. 1 treated Preller several times medically in Boston and by letter. lie acknowledged having received decided benefit trom the treatment; he know that I never had practised medicine regularly; I never used any deception with him in tins regard. The witness then described various events— about Prcller leaving Boston tor Canada • about his own an i Preller's arrival in St. Louis and stopping at the Southern Hotel; that he had fifty to sixty dollars when ho arrived here ; how he tried to pawn some ot his things before Preller came; his visits to Furnow's drugstore and his conversations with Furnow ; his purchasing various articles of him, among them chloroform and carbolic acid, which in combination he used himself in treating a bad tooth that troubled him ; that Preller anived on the Friday prior to Easter Sunday ; how they went together to try to sell Ins magic lantern and slides and various other occurrences which took place between Friday and Sunday, all of which i & familiar to nearly ever} body. The Court then took a recess. Alter the rccsss the examination of defendant was continued. " We, Mr Prcller, and I " he said, " made two trips between the Southern Hotel and the Union Depot, where we attempted to discover the cause of the detention of the trunk which contained the lantern, and we were told by the baggage man there that it was probably detained in Port Huron, Canada, by the Customs oflicer. Visited an optician, in the endeavour to ascertain if he would buy the lantern and slides when they should arrive. From the time that Mv Preller arrived in St. Louis down to Easter Sunday avc saw a great deal ol each other. We were, as the former witnesses have stated, almost inseparable. We visited his room several times; but when we were not looking around the city or playing pool, we spent most of our time in my room. We played pool a great deal, and whoever lost the game paid for it. We played about even, so that the expenses were equally divided We drank some, but not much. He paid for most of the drinks."

ACCOUNT OF THE KILLING. "Prcller was accustomed to call at my room early in the morning," said Maxwell, "and we would go down to breakfast together, return to my room, converse and smoke tor a while, and then so down to the I'otunda. On Easter .'Sunday before I went to the drug store he and I had a conversation about the performance of the operation heretofore alluded to, and also a dav or two betore. Sunday Mr Prellcr described to me his symptoms, and I concluded that ho was suffcing from stricture, and that the best method of treating him was passing a catheter 1 took my authorities on medicine and read to Mr Prellcr the directions as to the proper method of administering chloroform, and refreshed my own mind as to the precautions to be used These are marginal notes on the pages treating on the simplest and safest method of using the drug, but T made (heso some twelve months betore I loft England. After this conversation witit Mr Prcllcr I went to the drug store and purchased four ounces of chloroform and a quantity of absorbent cotton. On this same day Preller and I had gone to another drug store the one under the Southern Hotel, and made some purchases which he said we must have, and could probably not get on our journey to Auckland before avo should arrive at San Francisco. " It had been understood between us till that time that T was to sell my magic lantern and some other things in order to raise money for the trip to San Francisco, and that ho was to pay for my passage to Auckland, with the understanding that 1 should refund to him the cost of that passage. While in the drug store I ordered and diank a mixture of bromide of potassium and valerian to quiet my nerves. I drank this in the presence of Mr Preller, and he paid for it, as ho did for tho other things purchased there. We thpn. returned to the hotel, and on our way up to my room stopped ol a cigar stand and purchased a box of cigars, for which my companion paid. We then wont up stairs, and after smoking a while and discussing the proposed operation, Mr Preller went to his own room, returning shortly after and having removed his waistcoat and replaced Iris coat with a dressing 1 gown. Immediately thercaCter lie began to make preparations for the operation. Preller removed his trousers and drawers and laid down upon tho bed. I placed a four-ounce bottle of chloroform on the -\\ ashstand aud poured out the fluid. 1 put a gramme of the liquid on a piece of lint, which I folded three times, then walked to the bed and held the lint about six inches from my patient's face, so that the vapor from the chloroform might become mixed with air and produco

NOT TOO VIOLENT AN EFFECT. "It all evaporated in a few miimtes, and I turned around to get more and tound that the bottle which I had placed on the washstand had fallen into the basin, and a large portion of the contents had ilowcd out, so that not enough was loft to produce insomnia. I then went to Fernow's drugstore to get more, letting Fornow know I had spilled what I had first bought, k wanted four ounces, hut he only had two, and I took that. I then returned to my rooni. I placed about a gramme of fluid on the lint a second time, and again held it about six inches from his faco. T continued this some time until X thought unconsciousness, or rather insensibility to pain, had

been reached. I then took up the catheter and proceeded to insert it. Mr Prcller made a peculiar noise, wincing as if he felt pain. I came ta the conclusion that I had not administered & sufficient amount of tho chloroform. I poured a gramme or a gramme and a half of chloroforrr* upon the lint, which I again placed before hia face. Almost before I knew it Mr Preller'a breathing became very laboured, and I at once suspended the administration of chloroform, forI knew that his condition was serious. I seized a pair of my surgeon's scissors and at once cut Jus slnrl and undershirt from his body and tried, all the means of resuscitation with which I was familiar. I slapped him with wet towels on the chest and neck, dashed cold watei on his" chest* ami endeavoured to restore respiration by moving Jus arms up and down." The witness proceeded, with a voice impressivcly husky : "I continued those efforts to revive my friend for over halt an hour, but it was u&cless, entirely useless. Shortly tfter, mjr mend ceased to breathe and his heart stopped beating. There was no breath on the mirrorwhen I held it to his lips. Even after I was satisfied that he was de id T continued my eflqrls with him. I did not leave and call assistance. AM my efforts were to restore him because when chloroform takes hold of a man and he sinks, in a few seconds the man is dead. 1 ho time 1 tli ought had better be occupied! m efforts to restore him. I was convinced that lie wab dead, but I continued to dash cold wateron his chest. I finally decided that he was dead and past all hope. Then I hardly knew what to> do. My first impulse u as to notify the authorHies. Imagine my feelings! I did not know what to do. 1 was in a strange land. I did not, know that a man could make a statement in his own behalf ; I thought the same rules prevailed, here as in England, and that T would not be allowed to make my statement and thought I would go away." The prisoner then proceeded to tell the storv of putting (lie body in the trunk in a wild and dazed sort of way, scarcely knowing what he did, and saying that he was so wrought Tip that ho could give no connected aci ount of his subsequent sayings and doings. He tried to drown his (error mdrink, but he concluded that ihc only thing to do was to get away. He. took Prcller's money, 500 or 600 dollars; purchased a number ot things, including a railwayticket to San Francisco ; placed a paper, reading' " So perish all traitors to the great cause," inth© trunk with the dead man; and shaved off his moustache to puzzle the authorities till after tha autopsy, to gam time. He also cut a gash on. Prcller's breast with a scalpel, but could assign, no reason tor it. He asserted firmly that he had no intention of harming Prcller. The rest of the testimony was taken up with his subsequent jourribyings.

FURTHER TESTIMONY BY MAXWELE, St. Louis, May 27. In the Preller murder case to-day Maxwell' declared that the statement of Detective McCullough was an infamous lie. He also stated that his ottoi ncy had received a letter signed " Strataton, oilering to prove that a dead body was taken into the hotel on the day of Prellcr's death. This was declined, and was believed to be a trap of the prosecution. Witness then withdrew with the understanding that he should be allowed to testify again should it be found that; any important points had been omitted. The prosecution then took the witness and. proceeded with his cross examination. In repljr to a question the prisoner stated that he introduced himself as W. H. Lennox Maxwell tQ Prcllcr on board the Cephaloniasoon after leav~ ing Liverpool, but that was not his name. He added: "I assumed the name almost immediately after leavuig Hyde. I never told anyone why I left, notSeven~my father and mother! lor J wanted to come to America, and 1 knew 1 they would oppose my going. I began study** ing physiology, anatomy, chemistry, and medicine when I was 12 years of age, and I attended lectures and one ot the hospstals irt. London and came proficient in these branches ol science. I also studied privately.' Further features of Maxwell's testimony today were his admission that his statement in. his letter to Preller, saying that ho held certain^ medical degrees, was a he ; his contradiction; of his former statement that he wrote the marginal notes in the " Vade Mecum " about ths best method of administering chloroform be* fore he came to this country ; his admission, when shown a forged diploma of the Royal College of Surgeons oi London, that he wrote, it, saying that it was simply to keep himself upv in the practice of penmanship, and his plea of! intoxication as a means of accounting for otb.ee peculiar statements and contradictions.

THE MURDERED MAN'S BODY EX- ( HUMED. r| lie " Po&t-Dispateh" this evening states thafe upon an examination of Preller's remains^ which were exhumed for that purpose, throq; cloctois will testify that the presence of no such: disease existed as that Maxwell claims to have troatcd.

Maxwell Becomes Moody ana Uncommunicative. St.- Louis, May 30* The Maxwell trial will be resumed to-morrow notw ithstanding il will be a holiday. Maxwell is \ cry much broken dow n and bleeps but verylittle, lie had three firm friends in gaol prior, to the trial, but these men will note now' speak 1o him, and he seems to feel! that e\ erybody lias abandoned him to his, fate. Hit, vanity has been entirely destroyed and jis that was what chiefly bus ained him he has nothing left to buoy him up. His manner; has completely changed. Front better loquacious he has become gloomy and uncommunicative, and for the lirst time feinee the commencement of his case, he rcfus s to talk with leporters and refers them to his: attorneys. When asked to-day about thej bell-boy who cut a mysterious figure at the; Coroner's inquest, but ot whom no information, could be obtained, cither by the Coroner or bv the Chief ot Police, although he was known to haA'c been in Maxwell's room on the day of the; murder, he lefused to talk, and. referred his quosticmeis to his lawyers. The jurors had free mo\ ement to-day through, all the upper rooms of the Court-housc'and were allowed to look at the morning papers, but were not permitted to read anything about the trial.. Thry then turned to baseball, and discussed the: playois' averages tor a while, and were subsequently taken out to the park for a walk 1 . The physicians who recently examined. Prcllor's body to ascertain whether he had. the disease describe i by Maxwell will testify-to-morrow in rebuttal. There has been some, talk of introducing the organs taken from the> body by those physicians in evidence, but it seems to have been decided to-day by the prosecution not to do so, except under an order of/ Court.

MEDICAL EVIDENCE REBUTTINCt MAXWELL'S SfORY. St. Louis, May 31.— In the Maxwell trial today counsel for the Stale introduced evidence, in rebuttal to the prisoner's testimony. The. first witness called for the prosecution was. Morgue Superintendent Ryan. He testified: that lie, in company with Drs. Hewett and! Nidlet and Mr Clover, of counsel for the State* visited, last Friday, the cemetery in which Prcller's body had been interred, and exhumed! the remains. A post mortem examination wasj made, and certain organs rclerred to by Maxwell in his testimony as diseased were removed! and taken to Dr. Brokow. The body at th& time was in good condition, better, if anything, than when it was buried. ' The defence objected to the testimony at this point on the ground that the defence were kept in ignorance of the occurrence, and they had net representative to see that the body from whioit the organs were removed was really Preller*s The Court overruled the objection and an ox ception was taken. The opportunity, however w as afterward given counsel to argue the qucs^ tion, and Fauntolroy of the defence SDoka against admitting the testimony. After considerable discussion the Coiirt decided to admit the testimony. Dr Hewett was then placed on the stand. He testified that thet parts which Maxwell said -\vcro diseased were found to be in a normal and healthy condition* A. V. A. Brockway, assistant to the Chair of Surgery, and Demonstrator of Anatomy in thet Missouri Medical College, was present at th& dissection of the organs referred to. He testified that he made a uers- nal examination: of. them, but failed to find evidence of any disease or stricture. The Stale then announced thev had no further evidence in rebuttal to offer, Mr Fauntelroy of the defense asked the nrivilcgeof having the parts of Prellcr's body in. possession of the State inspected by the exnertafor the defense. w Mr Clover of the prosecution wanted tha names of the experts submitted to him, and was willing to give them to any reputable surgeon, or physician except the medical adviser oftke defense. The defense refused to accept this csnditional pfrcr, and the testimony was then declared to. bo closed by both the State and defense.

THE JUDGE'S CHARGE TO THE JURY. Judge Van Wogonor of the G°SnS C^uit* read his instructions to the jury trying the Max* well case this morning. The Judge said if the jury should find the defendant did kill and ffl £! dcr Preller in the manner and form charged ia either of the counts of the indictment thesr should return a verdict of guilty of murcUrc in the first decree. Tf, however, the ovidenca showed the defendant undovtook to treat or operate on Prollev for disease, and administered! chloroform so negligently, earclesslee and reek [ lessley as to cause his patient's death, hut withi put intent to kill or do bodily harm, they shonM. bring in a verdict of manslaughter in the fourth decree. Ihe Judge father instructed tho jury that if it had been shown tlmt Preller desiieaB. the defendant to treat him for tho disease , .indicated in tho testimony, and submitted. Mnx^

■Solf volnntarily to such treatment, and tho defendant administrated chloroform in a cautious, careful and pudent manner, then a "Verdict of not guilty should bo returned, and that should acquit the defendant. The Judge Also informed the jury that a verdict of guilty ■could be returned upon circumstantial evidence Tfcione. At tho conclusion or the Judges speech, council for the State began his spoech.muking It is expected the caso will not be given the jury before Thursday next at noon.