Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1859-04-25

S,ue 1he O11 were John Mitchell, Esq Milton
whitney, Esq, State Prosecutor of MaryIand
GENERAL Churchill, u. $. A, and others attracted
uOuOuess by the prospect of hearing Mr. Brady
Al ten O'Clock the jury entered, looking in un-
uSual good spirits Indeed, general air of cheer
iulness Peryaded the courtroom. induced doubt
ness " Ihe prospect Of speedy conclusion to this
Judge Crawford announced, on reaching his
seat, that he found a letter on his desk for Mr.
Hopkins Juror
No objection being made, the letter was given
10 Mr.. hopkins.
At half-Past 10 the prisoner was brought In and
the jury called d.
MI Brady then rose, amid profound silence,
and, after expressing his Of the kindness and
CIurtesy he had met with in This court during his
presence here, proceeded TO speak in favor Of the
prayers asked for by the defence.
Mr. Brady said that he should confine himself
To ground not touched upon by his colleague He
claimed that the instructions asked were not of
purely abstract natnre had been asserted on the
other side.
lie proceeded to comment upon the openiny Of
the DstIlct Attorney, especially in his description
oil MI Slckles proceeding ne u walking magazine
70 meet Mr. hey, an urarmed man, knowing him
to be unarmed-a description, he said exaggera-
ted and unsuStained 90
In regard to what was the exact province Of the
jury, he expressed hope to hear further from the
Llsulct Attorney and from the Court. He quoted
from state against Croteau, 23d Vermont Reports
T. 70, To show that jury in a criminal trial have
the legal isht to judge the law well the fact
the whole matter in issue. In Massachusetts he
admitted the contrary was determined, and also
thai the counsel are not TO argue the Jury in this
respect he referred also To page . Of Herberts
case, where this Court had accorded TO the Jury
the right to judi to certain state Of facts also
ca pages 20 and 30 to the same effect
MI Brady commended against the Insignificant
sphere OF duty allotted TO the jury under rulings
To the contrary. Turning his attention to the
fatal sunday, and looking at the relations be-
tween the actors, both personal friends both law
ycrs; IN view of the fact that Mr. Sickles had
shown SO many acts of friendship to Mr. key no
one could suppose that Mr. Sickles could have
walked out OF mis- house in the broad light Of day
10 commit an assassination upon that friend
SO long rs the earth exists this trial would be
remembered, and all the actors in it, What were
the undiSputed facts 10 this meeting, They are
seen together in loud conversational tussle en-
sues In the course Of that encounter Mr. Sickles
draws pistol and fires a number of shots but
now many, or what the position Of Kew seems to
I've In doubt key is taken away, and afterwards
an OPERA glass IS found upon the spot and a Der
ringer pistol. W hose pistol this, No wit
ness testihes that Sickles had any other than
revolving pistol u is an absolute presumption of
law that that pistol belonged to Mr. Key and was
used by him. lie called attention to the fact that
not witness of all Keys family, friends or asso-
Clates Las dared to say, has been asked or per-
mittcd to say that this pistol did not belong to
hey.
In reference to the first instruction that there
Is no malice presunable in this case, there being
alienation, he quoted from United States apt
MingO, Curtes. C. e. Rep first case i'm the VOL
unie, where Mlngo gave three stabs 10 Johnson
with sheath knife. Is there any witness here to
the first words Of Sickles their meeting and,
nrst throwing away the opera-glass which he had
drawn for another purpose, draw this Derringer
pistol for purpose more deadly,
Another view Of the case. The bullet produced
In this case does not hit the Derringer pistol but
the revolver Where the bullet from that fresh
P 6Gargrd Derringer pistol He quoted from
where IT was held that the burden of the proof
rested on the prosecution, and that IL incum-
bent on the Government to prove felOnous kill
NOT sa1 H.
present one. That gOod-looking young witness
(Mr. Delaheldl persisted in testifying directly to
the contrary Of all the other witnesses in this
The speaker never saw Mr.. Key but once. He
supposed no one who had ever seen Mr.. Kew. or
who knew him. would doubt that he would fight,
and the inference is that he ready to do so on
this occasion Quoting again from Mingo's case,
who was acquitted, he proceeded to the case Of
Day, where the Court held an exception to the
ruling that the burden Of proof must fall upon the
prisoner.
Again the fact that four shots are proven in this
case, and only three from the pistol OF Mr. Sckles
Another circumstance showed that the gentlemen
understood the thing as he did, and that was that
when the personal friends of Key came to where
key was lying and heard from Sickles the provo
cation lac had, they allowed him To pass away un-
molested. no one calling for an officer, or crying
shame or murder. -
Now, on the Subject Of provocation, as connect
ed with the fifth instruction asked by the defence
The speaker thought this instruction embodied
those decisions Of this court which had been made
IN previous similar cases. He supposed that upon
the whole evidence the defence had in this case
adhered strictly to the law, as previously laid
down by his honor. The case of Ryan was one
directly in point, and was the on which this |
nth instruction had been drawn.
The defence had been comPlimented by Mr. |
Carlisle for the adroitness with which they had |
drawn up their instructions. Dsclaiming the |
compliment, Mr.. b. thought that for adroftness |
and sagacity his friend, Mr.. Carlisle had su- |
PeriOr. |
The idea that cooling time was a question to be |
determined by the Court, stated by the prose- |
cutOn. was, with great Difference to them totally
aud entirely incorrect, for the same authority |
Which made the decision on this point, stated |
that II was wholly with the jury to determine the
extent Of cooling time. In that connection this |
point must be considered thoroughly and Impair |
TALLY by the jury.
As to the waving Of the handkerchief-a hand |
kerchief the color of which with the most savage
tribes Of earth had always been held as the emblem
of purity, hospitality. and truhfulness the speak
Proceeded in eloquent figure TO say that had the
deceased been actuated by the same feeling with
his noble father, he would never have shown such |
vile substitute for the glorious folds Of the 'Sar
Spangied Banner.' (SensatiOn This raised up |
before US that question Of adultery and its conse-
4uenccs ii brings us to the suggestion Of Mr. |
stanton that the common law Of this District was |
the common law best suited to the wants and |
habits Of the people here
Here the speaker read an abstract Of what he |
s1td might be called the law Of humanity upon |
adultery, which he stated had been furnished him
by gentleman whose name he was proud to use |
in such connoction-that of Prof. Dimitry.
been the punishment allotted to adultery by all |
nations during all previous time. |
While the defence had been compelled to use |
the name of Mrs. ;. in this trial. IL was not wrong
that there should be some lingering hope that she
WAS not entirely lost
IL was a redeeming feature Of the prisoners case
here. that amid the agony of his mind in that |
dreadful hour, when stayed by the officers from |
going 20 his wife's room, through fear that he |
would Use some violence towards her. that he had
that sense Of hum7n fOrb~arance about him that |
enabled him TO pledge himself that no further
harm should come near her
The suggestion that the party thus injured must
fall back an action for damages, was one which
had excited disgust In the mi nds Of the most illus
trOuS writers that had ever lived To illustrate
this idea, Mr.. Is. read from essay Of Judge Tai
fHurd once sergeant Talfourd, afterwards a dis
iinSuished judge on the English bench. This
brought the SPEAKER 10 the sixth proposition Of the
defence, that II Key WAS shot by Sickles while in
criminal Intercourse with tue wife of the latter he
(Sicklesl cannot be convicted OF either murder or
Ins nslaugbter.
Mr.. b. read from the Of Sherlock; also ss
some reference had been made in leading news
paper 10 the law I'm France, from u which &C.
cured in France in IS57-the case OF I.oufarie,