Mabel Oakes, Daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Geo W. Oakes of This City, Made the Victim of the First Homicide in Alva - Coroner's Jury charges N. L. Miller With Crime

The blackest page in the history of Alva, will be written in the circumstances surrounding the death of Miss Mabel Oakes, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Oakes, of this city, aged about 23 years, whose lifeless form was found about three o'clock Wednesday afternoon in the southeast dressing room in Justice N. L. Miller's old opera house. Mr. Miller was the first to notify the father of the unfortunate girl, where her remains lay.

Mabel had left home about 10 o'clock a.m. to go down town and expected to return soon, but as she did not come back to dinner, the parents were somewhat uneasy.

The next time the parents heard of their daughter, was the information above stated. The girl was found lying on her back, on a piece of carpet on the floor of the room, with her hands folded across her breast as though her body had already been straightened for the grave. Her scarf was wrapped three times tightly around her neck and suspicions as to the cause of her death were at once aroused.

Miller's connection with the affair was so plain that Judge Lawhon told him that he would either set a guard to watch him or send him to jail for safe keeping, and Miller said he preferred to go to jail. His request was granted and Sheriff Hugh Martin placed him behind the bars, where he remains at present.

Miss Oakes had for over a year been clerk and stenographer for Justice Miller's court, but her parents some weeks ago, thinking that the position was not a proper place for her, had persuaded her to quit the position.

The body was still warm when found, but it was the general opinion that life had departed some three hours before.

The officers took charge of the remains, but owing to the suspicious circumstances connected with the girl's death, the physicians of the city were called and instructed to make a thorough examination of the remains, in order to learn if possible the cause of death, and an autopsy was held. The following is a list of the coroner's jury impaneled by Judge Lawhon, acting coroner: T.B. Roby, J. T. Herold, G.W. Crowell, R.B. Dugan, C.R. Moore, W.M. Goebel. The jury adjourned until nine o'clock Thursday morning to await the report of the physicians.

Soon after nine o'clock Thursday morning, Judge Lawhon began holding the inquest in the district court room, which was filled with spectators. County Attorney McCrory conducted the inquiry and examined the witnesses. Sheriff Hugh Martin was the first witness and he testified in substance to what has been above stated.

Doctors Bilby, Templin and Grantham, who made the autopsy, testified briefly and agreed on the following points: First, that death resulted from strangulation, caused by the silk scarf being drawn so tightly about the neck that suffocation followed: Secondly that the victim could not have caused her own death and placed her hands across her breast as the body was found: Thirdly, that another person or persons had evidently caused the death of Mabel Oakes.

The physicians all agreed that the heart and other internal organs were in perfectly healthy condition. All agreed that the victim would have been a mother in the course of four or five months if she had lived. No other evidence of violence than that produced by the use of the scarf, was found that could have caused the death of the victim.

George W. Oakes, the father of the victim, was placed on the witness stand and testified to very damaging evidence against N. L. Miller, in regard to the victim's condition. C. O. Green testified to having seen N. L. Miller enter his office between noon and one o'clock on the day on which Mabel Oakes' body was found in the opera house adjoining.

At the close of the examination of witnesses, Judge Lawhon adjourned the inquest until one o'clock.

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