Litchfield enquirer., 1830-08-19
TRIALS AT SALEM.
From the Salem Register, Aug. 5. J

H1 TRIALS AT SALEM.
 (From the Salem Register, Aug. 5.) J. P. Saunders, Surveyor, testified to tho accuracy of plan of Mr. Whites house anc neighborhood, which was exhibited to tht jury ny MT. Webster.
 Benjamin White. servant of Joseph White i testified to the finding of MT. w. dead in bed on the morning of the 7th April, and numer, ous particulars as to the situation of the house and family, Sc. ... --.
 Miss Lydia Kmball, domestic in Mr. Whites family, also testified to nearly the same particulars as last witness.
 l Here it was ruled by the Court that all per sons who had beenssummoned and expected | to be examined as witnesses, should be exclu- ded from the Court room during the examin- l atiOn of any witness. Dr. Johnson testified to his being called on the morning the murder was discovered, and related the particulars of the state of the body when he first examined it, &c.
 J. J. Knapp, Jr. was then called by the Attorney General, brought into Court, and placed on the witnesses stand. The Attor- ney Gen. asked him if he would be sworn He answered, No. The Attorney Gen. then said the Government had made q pledge to the prisoner if he would testify-he had re- fused, and now the pledge was recalled. He had forfeited the preferred pledge of the Gov ernment. Knapp was then carried back to prison.
 Benjamin Leighton, of Wenham, young man l8 years of age, was then called, and testified in regard to a certain conversation overheard by him, at Wenham, between J. J. the murder of MT. White. This young man underwent l0AFh Af s6s eSss then. adjourned to Nssa..-..--ss~.. 4 as oours A. M. :. The Rev, Henry Coleman was called and sw orn-on heinz questioned, objections were made to his testimony by the prisoners coun- sel, and much discussion ensued. The Court, | (a majnrity, Judge Putnam dissenting) ruled, | that confessions made to witness by the pris- Oner, under the circumstances stated. were inadmissable as evidence. He however tes- tifed to certain facts, relative to the finding of bludgeon, &c. l John R. c. Palmer, of Belfast. Me. (who has been for some time in our prison, having been arrested at Prospect, after writing cer- tain letter which fell into the hands of the Salem committee) was called tO the stand and testified to various conversations and cir cumstances in relation to the murder. His examination and cross examination occupied
 
 leased from his arrest.
 William Henry Allen. of Salem, was the next witness called. His testimony related to two visits to Danvers previous to the mur- der in company with the prisoner, Sc. AL so, to conveying certain letters to the Post Office at the request of prisoner.
 William Osborne testified to furnishing of horses for the prisoner and the last named witness on the occasion alluded to.
 several other witnesses were called and ex- anined. Their evidence related principally to the possession of certain description of silver coin by one Of the prisoners, the pass ing of similar pieces by others of the pris- Oners, &c.
 s. 0. Phillips was callet--but his testimo- ny being objected to by the prisoners Coun- sel, the Court adjourned (at about 2 P. MI before deciding upon the admissibty of his testimony.
 Salem, Aug. 6.-Thursday morning the Court met, agreeably to adjournment. Judge Putnam explained that the former decision Of the Court, (that the evidence ought not to be published as given,) was intended to prevent the publication of the substance, and indeed of every part of it, at present. This construction is more strict than the sense in which it has hitherto been understood bv the newspaper reporters, who will, however. we presume. make it their rule of conduct during the remainder of the trial, leaving for fa. ture opportunity discussion of the question whether the public ear is not more abused by the garbled statements which pass iroa mouth to mouth. than it would be by an elaborate, authentic report of the proceedings of the Court, published in newspaper.
 | Twenty-six witnesses were then exam. ined. tsg a@,, ss.s11s .7 -,
 No witnesses have yet been called for the defence. The trial proceeds slowly, on ac- count of the great number of witnesses. and It is entirely uncertain when it will terminate !; the best judges think, not before the begin. ming of next week.-GGz.
 On Friday the Court met according to ad- Journment at o'clock. Several witnesses were examioed--among them John R. e. Palmer, who was called a second time. The examination occupied till about n o'clock, when motion was made by Mir. Webster, in behalf of the government, that an argument be heard by the Court in favor of admittinr the evidence of Rev. Mir. COlman, againsf which the Court had decided on WedneSdav.