The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-05-31

But II u urged, In behalf Of the defence, thas
the accused was not merely intoxicated that she
was. IN fact, insane. II this be so-if by tho
visitation OF God she was 20 bereft Of reason to
be unconscious Of tho character Of the act she was
committing there 10 an end Of her accountability.
But before you can allow this ground OF defence to
prevail you must be satisfied of its existence by A.
frmatiye proof: Every person IL presumed to be
proved. The presumption Of sanity must be over
come by satisfactory c0untervaling evidence. Upon
this branch Of the case Is your duty to examine
the facts in the case with the most diigent care
And here the question Of motive may be well con-
Ndered. 1t has been urged by the counsel for DO
fence that there could have been possible motive
for destroying the lives of flanagan and Miss Luoee
and that the absence Of motive furnishes q ss r
ground for inferriDg that the act must have been
committed in state Of insanity. The existence or
wantof motive to commit the crime alleged Is always
legitimate subject OF inquiry In cases depending
upon circumstantal evidence IT Is sometimes OF vital
Importance But it is never indispensable to con-
yiction that motive for the commission of the
crime should appear. The law impntes malice to
the act so that the very proof OF the killing FUR.
vet while the prosecution is relieved, by this legal
presumption from proving an actual motive for the
commission Of the offence the absence of such proof
is often an important consideration for the jury In
determining the effect to be be given to the other
evidence in the case. But it Is commended on the
part of the prosecution that there proof of state
Of feeling which, considered in connection with
the state Of mind exhibited by the accused at about
the period in question: relieves the of this obec-
ton. 1t appears that some time during the spring,
there had been a dance at Lanagans. Though not
one party, the accused went there and became
engaged in an alteration with one Smith, and
angry words and loud conversation ensued. III il
be true, as has been assumed throughout the trial,
that the accused il Of gentle birth, and has once
moved in the higher and more refined walks Of life,
what painful illustration she presents Of the rapid
descent which woman makes to the lowest depths
OF degradation and vice, when she once consents to
take leave of virtue and innocencel Here we have
this fallen woman, who is described to as possess
ing high accomplishments and lady-like manners,
voluntarily mingling with the parties to grocery
dance, engaging in brawl with one Of the party,
and carrying the quarrel 80 far as to present her
revolver and threaten to shoot him. To quen the
and finally Mrs. flanagan led her home. This
occurrence seems to have stung her pride, for.
one or two mornings after, we find her returning
to the grocery, before flanagan was out OF bed,
abusing her, saying that she was very mean wo-
man to keep set Of rowdies about her house to in
suit her when che came there. Her language was
so loud and violent that Lauagan got up and coming
into the grocery, ordered her to leave, which she
fused to d. until Mrs. flanagan again nterfered and
Induced her to go home.
The result Of this quarrel was, that she did not
again turn to Lanagan's for some three weeks.
alter which she again renewed her visits 1t is
ghe theory of the prosecution, that these occur
rences left sting ranking in the bosom Of this
woman, which needed but the excitement Of
which she was the subject on the 25th May, to
solve upon the destruction of those who had be-
come the subject Of her resentment. Certainly,
these circumstances would furnish to sound
mind but a slight motive for the commission Of
n. I'm thAxr
an il1ascible temperament like hers, when greatly
excited by stimulants, and perhaps other Whaling
carses, it is for you, gentlemen to judge There is
another feature of this case, which may have some
bearing upon the question under consideration, to
which would direct your attention. lis the man.
ner in which the deed was accomplished. We see
no outburst of passion, but everything Is apparently
cool and orderly First, the proposition to drink
tie beer and that insisted upon, then obtaining the
sugar, the arrangements to mix the poison with it
while the glasses being lled then the refusal
of the accused herself to drink, and her efforts to
prevent any Of the contents Of the glass from being
perhaps shcd more light upon the state Of this wo-
mans mind at the time. There is another
class Of evidence bearing upon the question
Of insanity, to which you will not fail to
] allude to the conversation Of the accused
q short time previous to the 25th of May.
This evidence is found chiefly in the testimony OF
tine 1u1s sM9g b May sasn p r be-
stimony Of Anthony Goodspeed belongs TO the
8 me class. will not recapitulate this evidence.
It cannot but be fresh in your memories There
certainly must have been in the statements made to
Miss Dillon strange commingling Of truth and
falsehood; the latter predominating Whether the
tales she told were the vagaries Of distempered
imagination, or the inventions of her fancy designed
to amuse her youthful and newly acquired friend
is for you to inquire. There was, too, something
exceedingly strange at times in her conduct-espe-
cialy when in the morning she came in her night
clothes to the residence of Miss Dillon and borrowed
her Dress Hw:lbc your duty to satisfy yourselves
to the state Of mind to which this conduct Is to be
attributed. 1t certainly was not strange that the
accused and this young girl should be mutually
dent temperament which demanded society, was SO
situated that she was compelled to live alone She
had sought companionship among those who had no
tastes or sympathies with her own, and whom she re-
her solifarness, therefore, to meet with Miss Dillon
IA young, artless, imaginative girl, with whom
she could at least talk There was much, too in the
air and manner and romantic stories OF the accused
girl seems to have possessed. She says she was
pleased with her conversation, though she admits
that her was sometimes offended by expressions
both of profanity and obscenity. How far the tes-
tmony Of this girl tends to establish the Defence Is
for you to consider It is upon this testimony,
supported as it is, by some other kindred but less
Important evidence that the counsel for the defence
chiefly rely. The theory Of the defence is that the
about to be abandoned by one who had been her
friend and supporter, and that this apprehension
operating on her nervous, excitable temperament,
with the recollection Of her own former position,
from which she had so sadly fallen, had unhinged
her mind, and that the eccentricities which marked
her conduct about the period TO which inquiries
relate were but the outbursts Of ncipient madness.
To sustain this theory, the testimony OF Mr..
Brownell was introduced, to whom, 1t seems, early
in May, the accused had described her griefs and
apprehensons. Thus far / have only noticed the
testimony which relates to occurrences which hap
pened before the arrest of the accused What her con-
duct was afterwards is only important as it sheds
light on her previous condition. Her conduct after
she was committed to prison was indeed strange.
How far this conduct was produced by the enormty
Of the charge preferred against her, and sense OF
the condition in which she found herself-and how
far by being suddenly deprived of the stimulants in
which ehe had evidently been induiging 20 freely
or how far by disordered intellect-are questions
which suggest for your consideration. In this con-
necfinn ton IL will be nrnler To consider the min.