The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-07-19
THE TRIAL OF MISS MARY HARRIS.
District Supreme Court-Criminal Term
ELEVENTH DAY.

WASHINGTON July Is, 1855.
The court convened this morning few minutes past
ten O'Clock, tremendous crowd being present to hear
the argument in the Miss Harris did not enter
court during the time the Judge nstructng the
jury as 70 the prayers
Judge Wylie said Gentlemen Of the Jury-The conrt
has had submitted 10 by the counsel both sides
tain propositions, called prayers had intended TO
write out my views all the questions on which il was
proper for The Court 10 give s views this most i'm
porant case such has been the Of business
that am compelled to restrict myself Insanity is the
defence which has been set this case AZ person
but person Of sound mind is responsible in courts Of law
IN these days very plain from the evidence in the case
here that the prisoner at the bar guilty OF wnl mur
der, or else she is not guilty at all Wfnl murder is
where person Of sound mind and discretion unawfully
kills any human being in the peace of the government
with malice aforcthought implied Judge Wyie read
from Sir Matthew Hale With these preliminary observa
tons, to which am compelled to limit myself, pro-
In the He first took the prayers on the part OF
the defence In the of the first prayer for the de-
fence the Court will grant that instruction striking out
the words ''with and Judgment The sec
ond prayer is granted the third prayer is not granted
Whatever may be the individual opinion may entertain
this question: which do not wish to be under
stood as conveying any ntmatonsI may be convinced
the law not as expressed in this prayer On the con-
rary the Court nsructs that the defence set up in
this case must he made out afirmatively, beyond
reasonable doubt by preponderance or evidence
There TO be found some authorities in this country
which would sustain the prayer and admit the
tendency OF the courts to have set in that drecton
wv ,'o Mesn. VI ano''.y ~ SUN on .c o'ne' sue, anu
this question: by the decision in Foley and Case made
by the late Circuit Court of this District in error to the
nrosocn,ion is M, arantad for reasons on which
the Court has already granted the first and
a, snroo pnyg,h on ~ ,h; 'u ;, hs -oannS s n",
granting H. He referred to several authorities to sup
The aci tho marty Iaborng nndcr an imnnise
nrodnced bv ebor nbvsicai or moral cause smaicont
ttn de,hroyyo hnr P"y;d yn;nd VI ar 10 Trersv haH
r,o,nted ba tbrone og reoaon so s for tho ti,c q, do
throne eason Tho marty vas insane The second nraver
10 cranted y;th thie nsoacation m no added. .r vac
impeIed 10 the act bv an insane impulse produced
either nv condition or nv moral causes
operalinq on dseased sate Of her svstem sngng her
10 madness and for tho time disnIacno reason from s
seat Tho third nraver 10 moi granted If the act in
question was commtfed while the prisoner was insane
IN rho sense alrnadu a,nonad che canno, no made rc
ons,h s ''sIy - Ky a rn, s"' dro ou n hoh
vior on occaons when her mind was under the
government of her reason The fourth PRAYER was
donbt that The prisoner was not morally liable TO the in
sane attacks referred 10 INT that the act in oueson was
Committed by her while She was actually possessed and
rressby controlled by the presence and power OF one
of them The nth PRAYER Of the prosecution is refused
The plea in this case simply guilty and the act of
Congress does not require the ury TO state upon what
reasons thev are 20 ind their verdict
Mr. Bradley said he arose TO express the qualification of
the counsel excep as 10 the third PRAYER He desired
the Court 10 note an exception
A recess of half an hour was taken by the court
Mr. Wilson, Assistant District Attorney on reassem-
Hing commenced his argument for the prosecutiop He
argued nj length against the line of defence adopted by
the prisoners counsel contending that they failed 10
establish such state of insanity on the part of the
prisoner as TO relieve her of the responsibility OF her
acts Until some five minutes after she committed the
fatal deed she evidence Of any which had
actlated her 10 do IL She shot at him the second
time and then deliberately walked away attempting to
make her escape into the street What is there about
the commission of the deed to make YOU think she
insaneY DR. Nichols saws one of the reasons for his
opinion is that She did not take the first opportunity to
cpmmi, the Act Is that evdenreY Is there any eyi.
tha
position where she could shoot him She threw herself
upon her knees, tore her hair and weptS Is this
Evidence of neanyY What Is woman 3 nature made OF
that such nm act as done there that dav would not call
forth the greatest horror We come down TO the time
thai she was confined in oil The some Inconsistency
did not den,rt from, her n, that time We have
had very natbo,,c eeppentaI and aectng account of
her conduct in jail by one whose Kindness of heart
things which wold make ne feel for her but She said
nothing 20 convince yo that She was insane or subject
10 naroxvsmaI Gts NJ insanv The counsel have yerv
inaonousIv endeavnrJ ,o nnt ma in nosition sntago
nstic 10 the brt wc would moi accept H. He
aro"ed ,ha, gha as . ov"d w have hesn snb,ec, 10
INSANITY hui only 6ts of hvsea and that her act was
caused Nv icaousv ARISING from disappo n,ed love Mr.
Wilson'S argument occupicd abou, two hours in It's
deIiverv and be Concluded "a foows Won know gen.
tlemen thai in almost every nature there "a 6ery pas-
sion of hatred and revenge which sometimes almost
threatens no hroaI s h,rrc,s m n The fear of punish
meni that mat"s he halfway Of soeiev secnre II is
for YOU 10 see ,bnt be laws are executed and Justice
satisfied Though there NAV be sympathy for woman
hood and pitv fr her youth there mpst be punishment
for her crime '
Judge Hughes made the openjnc argument for the de-
fence ccunvipg abont two hours and half in its de-
Iyery He argued that the defence had clearly esab-
lisbed the Innocence of The accused as her insanity
absolved her from any moral or legal responsibility for
her act He said The accused s a woman IL was the
pleasure of the attorney 10 comment on that
aspect He warned YOU against sympathv even against
mercy he warned Won that this partcular female was
female so black with crime that She was excluded from
ali claims TO sympathy. he with great emphasis pro
nounced this the most airocious murder on record II
not because the defendant IL woman that we expect an
acquttal at your hands She has neither wealth, nor
station nor knsfok-nothing 10 make her friends xcept
her misforupes and her good conduct Her parents
have been from her through the acts OF til
unfortunate man whose life she took IL is not
for that we ask YOU 10 acau her. but we ask YOU to
quit her because she Is innocent with that little ps.
tol she was the instrument OF punishment In the hands
of God She shall answer 10 Him alone for what she
has done and not To human laws Ceutlemeu of the