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Show mm Duel to Deatfe Between Women II $ ill MART ANN POWELL. SLAYE1 JELLS Awful Battle io Dark :p Garret. I Mrs, Poweil Describes in i ll Court How She Killed ' 1 1 Estella Albln. - U Clutches Attorney by the Throat in j, Reallstio Portrayal of 'tho ill Tragedy. ; I ' 11 i 'l Special to Tlio Tribune. DOVER, Del., May 10. Imprisonment :l for llfo was tho sentence pro- ii nounccd upon Mrs. Mary A. Pow- ' l ell, convicted Saturday night of the i murder of Eatella Albln. Tho trial was K i f ' i Bl In progress one week and the jury dellb- crated two hours. ': ' Estolla Albln lived with Mr. and Mrs ffk Alfred Powell at Bower's Beach, near )',, 'M here. She waB found murdered In tho at- m tic of the house February 3. Mrs. Powell h was arrested and confessed, but declared I that the act was committed In self-do- f fense. Tho evidence showed that Improper re- L '!; latlons existed between Mr. Powell and if Miss Albln, and the prosecution endear- u j! ored to provo that Mrs. Powell killed tho J girl in' a jealous frenzy. v,. Mre. Powell's self-posses3lon has aimost .j1; deserted her. A week spent between those i droadful speax-symbols, one meaning Jj blood and the other death, haa told ou her j ' ner"cs. ('; She wept llko a child whUo Mr. Davis 'j f summed up her case briefly and heaped i 1 the blame upon tho big. strong man who it J! was tho causo of dissension in the Powell ;- ' home. I Thrilling Scene in Court. j Tho dramatic recital of the desperate t; struggle and tragedy In tho half-darkonod ; if garret of the Powell homo, hy the defend- f ant. was one of tho moat tense and thrill- P s inp scenes ever witnessed In a courtroom. 'j- When tho murdered girl was found in y " the garrot thero was a gash eeven inches J, lonK In her throat and in nil 170 cuts and bruises on her bod." ; fc When Mrs. Powell entered the court n S room Thursday she wore tho same black "J dress and hat as on her other appearance f In court. Sho came In visibly nervous , and her drawn face and sunken cycB gave f silent confirmation of lhe report that she fij- had spent a restless night, , Mj InBtead of walking to her seat with her J eyes fixed steadily In front of her. ah' ' . shuffled between tho rows of zeatn v.'lt'r. I I her face shifting furtively from side to side, as if In Inward alarm. ;ji 'j Her face was damp with pcr3pfrafior t t before sho was called upon to trstlf !),?' With a small linen handkerchief he ' touched the swolllng drops from her fore- ,;i head, and frequently sho looked pleading- , j ,.' ly at Justice Spruanco. i u f She Took tho Bible. , Her hand trembled as sho reached for 1 the Bible to be sworn, and a court ottiCer .i f stopped forward at sight of her cxtvpnv- i;! j norvoufiness and assisted her to a scat In .j.t tho wltner.a chair. i ( At sight of tho wide range of uptunW j ; faces ahe fixed her eyes on Mr. Rids!; I! if hex' attorney, and until sho had told her ri is cntlro story her gar.o never shifted from Jj1! him except when she turned on two ocxa- lf; slons to reply to questions by the court. ' She talked In monotons, rtrald to ratf ,1 f her voice lest her suppreseod cmotloc tj , should cause her to break down. Then , her couraco left her, nnd putting her face M In her hands she wept In anguish. . , There was not a woman in t.c ccur- ft i. room, but a large audlrr.ee el men sat ntlll In horrified nmazemj t at Mr3. Pow - i( ell's testimony, their feelings Intensified : . by tho puggcstlon through It all of th- U motive that Impelled th wom;ui of r years and tho girl of 20 to such brartlesn '(, combat. .Jjli Told of Her Fricnflnhip. Before she began her account of thr ,j strugglo In the parret Mrs. Powell told of , V u tho frlendHhlp that had existed be'.v.-for V j her husband and Estollo. She said she haa , sent the girl away twice- . ;i Sho told how nho aroso almost with tlif j ,;, Jlrst streak of dawn. prcparel breakf i 1 ;;j and thon wont about tho work of waMi l lb lng catsup bottles and fruit Jars. jl If Sho told how she saw Erftelle- watching j r hor as If filled with wrath; how the girl T: 'i followed hor to the garret and of thn l,l' In y ; ! ' Hj-f light which began when tho girl gripped j 1 ! !ier by tho throat. , HlflrSf.; Back and forth, from wall to wall of i r I ' ' Ihc dismal hole the two struggled. Mm. j ilh , , I Powell believed the-battle would cad at .J i jl ( i the cost of .one llfo or tho othor and pno I. 3. ! ff ' I asserted that alio was determined that net I. 1 M llfo would be saved. ( !-J Y ; .tf I !; "I arose about 5:S0 o'clock," eald Mrs. I 1 'Mid'. 1 Powell, "and alter breakfast did my J '',! ', housework, putting on meat to boll for the W 1 ii", fllf- I dinner and making tho beds. After that I ? R HHlfl thero wcro somo catsup bottlca and fruit l!' ' f Jars standing on the dresser In tho sum- : III .1 .: , nor kitchen, and I went there to get ' J Is f 1 them. " l .M; Saw tho Girl Watching. . J ! S ! ''When I was In tho kitchen I saw Esslo I M " . l . , standing- In tho wash house watching im . iU She looked angry. I wont to the slttin, ! ,1 ... W,l loom and Essie was Btlll looking at me. I U If .! UiU I started up the front hal stairs toward tho i S 1 ' : garret with tho bottles. I opened the gar- ,, ji i r : ' ret door and closed It after me to Wep ' , ',h, tho'mlco from going down to the sleeping ,t ii I 1 roomy I , ' : S "I had just nut down the bottles wlwn I I !i 1 V ' .heard tho door open. Turning, I saw Esio. . t rind I said: nVh;U do yon want? Then i'l 'i ! Ahc rus.W at mo and caught me by tho '.,'!'" I throat. When she caught me I hit her ii 1 with tho catsup bottle, and sh fell and ! ):'; ' I fell with her. She kept choking me. it , U ' ' I and I hit her again. She still choked me. I I I I tried to get up. bur sho was still Jlght- I ii 'T ! !ng and trying to choke me. 1 ' l ! ' "She put hor knees on my chest, and il l. '! took 'olt her npion. which was hanging , Jc ! Ill i ii, a orrnirfrlo nllil Irlod to Stuff II ll T ! J It Into my mouth. I knew she was trying 1 ', ' I to kill mo, I had a pocket-knife in my I '.,!'! pocket, which I used In ripping Bowing. , 1 ! i nnd I reached down and pulled it out. I Then we fought for the knifo. , S 1' J i "1 didn't want to kill her. and I shut It t,1 1 ' I up. Sho kept on trying to choke ino with ' (L ' ' the apron, nnd again sho fought for tho f I'. . 1 knifo, Sho bent back my lingers." and i . '. holding out her hands. "Seo you can seo ' .. i I ho marks of where she bent my fingers 1 , back until they were almost broken. I 1 1 moved the knife over to my left hand, and . ; , - . then I cut her. T felt something rush over I ' ' ine. and she got weaker, and then sho lay still. I got up, and then I said to myself, I ' 'What In the world will I do?' ' f i To Make It Suicide. 1 1 , "My dross was all stained and I could . . , hardly walk. I staggered to another roqm i ' j . ind sat down and said, 'What can I do?' . 'j , a thought struck mo, nnd I said, 'I'll ( i ' i tnako It a suicide.' I went back, I don't i i ' : know what made me. and put the knifo In i ' J, hor hand, and then I went to tho kitchen ,t V and got a rag and some water and washed i . J 'A' myself." , Mr. RIdgely steppetl closo to Mrs. Powell , ,! i jj and n!kcd her to illustrate. how Estcllo at- i k ' tacked her. The woman half rose fro-n her 1 , i! rhalr and caught the attorney by tho I' ' ' ,i!J throat and for several minutes Impcrson- . i HJ1 ated the girl in her mad efforts to ovcr- I i ''Af; come her foFtcr-mother. ii i'i J Mrs. Powell showed the position she I' r ! ) lierself was In when tho girl first entered, i ' ij , ' I and she slowely went through tho different I lit i 1 j J positions pho assumed before sho went I i 1 ,i 1 staggering from tho garret. The plcturo ii i j I. ,)l of the awful tragedy was followed with , 1 I I 1 , intenso Interest by every one In tho court- i , , ' l room. " J Tho Impression made by Mrs. Powell j 1 I j was profound. On cross-examination At- ! " ill forney-Gcnoral "Ward mado Mrs- Powell ' j ; go throuch tho terrible recital again, and ' i 3 :i; It was moro than the woman could cn- ' . l dure, il j. "How long did you fight before you cut i ". iter?" asked tho prosecutor, n ' f' . "Well, I was losing strength, and I knew I, ' !l) she was going to tak my llfo." said Mrs. I, i, , ij Powell, her volco faltering nnd her head i '1 going forward slowly on her breast. "I felt t , that all my strength was almost spcnL I1 , T " Sho could go no further. With .I . i :': Ijer face In htr hands and sobbing', she l i cried: "Oh, I didn't -nean to do it; ln- i deed, Indeed I didn't." |
