Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1865-07-20
LOCAL NEWS.
THE HARRIS TRIAL.

Scenes in the Court Room Yesterday.
There has been so much discrepancy of state
ment in regard to certain remarkable scenes in
the court room yesterday, that we subjoin an
accurate verbatim report thereof:
Mr. Darlington said: There are four questions
submitted to you, gentlemen of the jury, for
your decision. 1st Was this homicide charged
IN the Indictment committed by the prisoner at
dction of this court; 3D. If 1t was, is it 6. case
of excusable homicide upon the ground of
insanity or any other reason; 4th. II not excu-
sable homicide is it murder or is 1t man.
slaughter! l propose to consider these ques-
tons Seridtim. ! will consider the first two
propositions together; and in doing so have
only to briefly recapitulate the evidence.
The curtain rises the scene is laid at board
ing house in the city Of Chicago. The heroine
OF the bloody tragedy makes her appearance.
A good, sprightly. black haired girl She was
without either father or mother at that time
1t is then she forms the acquaintance Of Louisa
Devlin, another beautiful charming, and ac-
complished lady. Louisa Devlin invites her
to go to her millinery establishment Prompt;
ed by an s'insane impulse she accepts the in.
vitation. [I4aughter.] What sort of a milli-.
merry establishment was 1t a! l wanted to find,
out, and in the most courteous and respectful
manner, for NO one is more courteous to a lady
than myself. / asked her how many young
ladies she had in her employment; She threw
herself back on her dignity and said, ssThat is
my business, and none of yours" There is
Mary Harris in millinery establishment, the
character of which the proprietress is ashamed
to describe.
Judge Hughes.-May it please your Honor.
l dislike to interrupt counsel, but where in a
closing argument the evidence is clearly mis-
stated, an interruption is not only tolerable,
but it is the duty Of counsel, whose client is
affected thereby, to so interrupt. There is no
evidence here whatever as to the character of
Miss DevIin's house. 1t is true the District
Attorney did ask her how many persons she
employed in her house, and she replied ''That
is my business" An appeal was made to the
the question, but discussion springing MP at
the time, the question was lost sight of, and no
answer was given.
The District Attorney.-May it please your,
Honor, did not interrupt counsel in their ar
gument and hope they will net in mine. If I
misstate the evidence, which your Honor
knows 1 will not do Intentionally, have no.
doubt You, sir, will correct me. Il
The Court.-A counsel in the closing argu.
ment, knowing that there is no one to come after
him, ouhgt to studiOusly keep himself within the
prescribed limits, unless he wants to be inter-
rupted at every stage. He ought not to pervert
or misstate the evidence-I do not mean to say
that You have done SO in this case-but do
think that there is nothing in the refusal of
Miss DeYlin to answer that question to Justify
the suspicious which have been inferred by
the counsel.
The District Attorney.-Is that question of
law, your Honor
The Gourt-twith emphasis.)-It is ques-
The District. Attorney Gentlemen, after the
attack, which has been made upon DIR. Bur-
roughs- as tg., II
1Ue COurt- very earnestly. ~ on snail not
retaliate upon Miss Devlin for an attack upon
Dr. Burroughs. You must conflne yourself to-
the legitimate application of your remarks to
the evidence of the Miss Devlins. 1t is an
abuse of your position to make such an attack
as that upon such grounds. Il
The District Attorney.-What had said
may ii please your Honor. Il
The Court.-You know, sir. Il
The District Attorney.-You had not heard,
sir, for had not completed the sentence. What
l intended to say was this: That after the at
farlr nh; oh had hnan ad ,yNn Nv
roughs by the learned counsel, had 1 not a
right (they justifying that attack upon the tes-
timony of the Misses Devlin,) to attack her tes-
timOny
The Court.-You shall not retaliate upon the
Misses Deylin. You have perfect right to at
tack the Miss Devln's testimony as to Its in
consistency, either with itself or with the 9th
er evidence, but to launch out in such lati-
tude of inference as that you were going upon,
in regard to the character of the house OF the
Misses Devlin, whose reputation has not been
attacked, either for truth or in any other re-
spect, cannot permit it in a closing argu-
ment.
mind, gentlemen of the jury, that did not in-
terrupt the learned counsel. You heard the
attack upon DR. Burroughs, of which shall
have something to say hereafter. You know
must not dare to lay my fingers on the Misses
Oevlin. 81
The Court-The Court did dot say so. will
the witnesses The Court has given you ex-.
press permission to comment upon all the evil
dence given by the Misses Devlin, and COM
pare it with itselfand the other evidence in the
case, and sift it to your hearts content; but
upon the mere refusal of one of those ladies to
tell you how many clerks she had IN her place
of business, the Court will not permit you to
launch out IN the great latitude OF inference
you We're going upon.
The District Attorney-With the permission
Of the Court, and you, gentlemen of the jury,
I will say that do not think any witness con-
tradicted DIR. Burroughs. They justify their
attack,upon him from inferences drawn from
what he said. thought had the same priv.
lege, but bow with due Difference to the de.
cision of the Court. In this case, as In every
ether, intend to discharge my duty in the
tear Of God, and without the fear Of man, No
man can say with truth that was ever seen
to cover or TO falter in the discharge of my
official duty. 80 sffEh3
The Court. Wen. youshaii not 60 on In that
way. The Court will not permit controversy
between you and 1t to be decided by this jury,
You shall not utter another syllable on that