Archie Collins, who had previously testified about Beverly Park, was then called to the stand to tell of the trip to Everett and the trouble that resulted. Prosecutor Black displayed his usual asininity by asking in regard to preparations made by Verona passengers:
"What were they taking or not taking?"
"There might be two or three million things they were not taking," cut in Judge Ronald chidingly.
Black's examination of the various witnesses was aptly described by Publicity Agent Charles Ashleigh in the Industrial Worker, as follows:
"His examinations usually act as a soporific; heads are observed nodding dully thruout the courtroom and one is led to wonder whether, if he were allowed to continue, there would not be a sort of fairy-tale scene in which the surprised visitor to the court would see audience, jury, lawyers, judge, prisoner and functionaries buried in deep slumber accompanied only by a species of hypnotic twittering which could be traced eventually to a dignified youth who was lulled to sleep by his own narcotic burblings but continued, mechanically, to utter the same question over and over again."
During this dreamy questioning Black asked about the men who were cleaning up the boat on its return trip, with a view to having the witness state that there were empty shells all over the deck. His question was:
"Did you pick anything up from the floor?"
Instantly the courtroom was galvanized into life by Collin's startling answer:
"I picked up an eye, a man's eye."
The witness had lifted from the blood-stained deck a long splinter of wood on which was impaled a human eye!