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Show ELKON, Md.. Dec. 20 Charles Hal-wardt Hal-wardt Johnson was acquitted by a jury tonight of the charge of murdering Major John R. King, Brooklyn, N. Y., 1 supervising engineer of the Aberdeen proving grounds. The jury was out two hours and fifteen minutes. Johnson shot Major King in the Johnson home on the night of July 17 last. Counsel for the defense contended that the shooting shoot-ing followed a struggle in which Johnson John-son claimed that the army officer had him down on his knees with his hands on Johnson's throat. Johnson had been cashier of the National bank at Aberdeen. Last year when the government's proving ground was established near Aberdeen, Johnson obtained a position posi-tion in the accounting department. He became acquainted with Major King who subsequently rented a room at the Johnson home. For some time the two men seemed to be fast friends and it was said that King used his in -; fluence to advance Johnson up in po-! iSitlon, because he recognized his abil- j ity. During the early part of July last' trouble between the two men developed, devel-oped, the cause for which was not even clearly brought out at the trial, and Johnson ordered King to move out. The major replied that he had rented the room by the month and would not move until the time was up. On the night of the shooting Johnson John-son ordered the major to leave and the altercation followed. Mrs. King and her daughter and Mrs. Johnson and Miss Esther Osborn, the ward of the Johnsons were in thecourt room during dur-ing the closing argument but Mrs. Johnson was the only one of the women who remained to hear the verdict. ver-dict. Holla Ogden, president of the New York Evening Post company, and General John W. Bubb of Wilmington, Wilming-ton, Del., when called by the state to 1 testify to the character of Major King with whom they had been acquainted for years, were only permitted to testify tes-tify as to the major's physical condition. condi-tion. I " |