The Portland daily press., 1871-02-13

i aoNO uO uOuDb aU Sucu blu1eS, VI "hSH 49,
tiers OF Mrs. Miller were at her house, that zen
Shepley, when he went down town or return
| ed, or OF an evening when ne caIeu 10 pia
| whist, was frequently seen by wright an'
Putnam and all the Mlliers, gong anu conn NJ y
| from the house; and when the sisters OF Mrs
| Miller was at her house have no doubt Gen
| Sbepley called frequently, and the defendan
| claims that thay were there every summer
Gen. Shepley was intimate with the family o
| her father He had for years known Charles
| Paters-he was an office mate of John A
Peters.
He was interested in the whole family; ht
knew these sisters of Mrs. Miller. They came
to his house; and suppose Gen. Shepley did
fiud their society agreeable and called at theil
| houses when he came down town on these
| summer afternoons? Suppose he was there
during evenings and did occasionally, or fire.
| queptly, play euchre when this man was al
| home or when other friends were in,was there
anything in this from which you or the world
have the right to say in the slightest degree
| duplicates him in this infamous crime? You
| are not to take rumor-thousand tongued and
| curious; you are not to take common scandal
propagated in low groggeries by this husband
himself; you are not to take artiul malice with
| its double insinuation as proof of this crime
Ii it is proved at all it should be proved by com.
| petent evidence, and not by deductions of an
| evi, imagination or by mastery argument
Take the tact as it is proved and make all of il
you fairly can, and if you can convict him or
her upon such testimony no man or woman is
| sale for single moment You NAV take auy
man aud calling his friends to testify that he
has been in and out often you may convict him
| of crime. -"-' u .--t : -+-
have no doubt gentlemen that Gen. Shep-
ley and others of this mans neighbols were at
| tracted to this mans house in part from the
| sympathy for the condition of this plaintiff.
| They knew that when they were present they
| depressed his drunken violence and for the
time beguiled her of her grief and it is the fact
l that her friends have come in that they now
seek to turn to her injury, to vilify and defame
her character. In the first place she was taken
/ here, away from her own relatlons-a stranger,
| and when Mr.. Miller objected that she should
| have the society of her own sisters, when she
/ was subjected to his drunken violence, because
| her neighbors Mrs. Fox, and Mrs. Stephenson
and including Gen. Shepley, came frequently
| to her house in the evening, it is charged
against them as a crime. The same testimony
could DO produced against others of his friends
entirely and equally innocent as is produced
against Gen. SLepley. But it happened that
the same circumstances did not exist so far as
Mr. Miller knew or rather his advising spirit
believed that it would not answer the same
purpose to charge this crime upon Stephenson,
Fox, Emery or Wood and that it would to
threaten it against man occupying high ju-
dicial position. e
1t was not expected that to charge any other
| person would operate to prevent the woman S
| insisting upon her aimony out of the Miller
| property. They say there are other facts be-
| side, by whom are they proved? BY this Miller
family that Mr.. Dyer tells you this defendant
told him not four weeks ago were pressing him
| to continue this defence against his desire to
| drop it. They come here upon the stand with
minds oblique with prejudice and biased by de-
| sire. Now take everything they say and put
it all together-rake over the whole life of this
lady from the time of her marriage to the pres
output on to the stand her husband, who
comes here SO filled with prejudice that after
allowing this charge to be made allowed it to
| stand upon the record of this court, and then
| asks you to send her back to him. say scru-
| tlnizing her conduct under the unfavorable
testimony of these witnesses, and you will find
| that they have proved nothing, absolutely
nothing, that can approach criminality or i'm
peach her chastity. But few of us, gentlemen,
| could have our lives canvassed for the last
twelve years under the light of untriendly
criticism, from biased and poisoned witnesses,
| could have about us a set OF people to scruti-
nlze and scan our actions, not TOR the purpose
| of warning us of danger but for the purpose OF
| gathering something against us to crush us; l
say there are but few of us that could pass
through this fiery ordeal to which this woman
has been subjected, and SO little could be found
/ against us that our character should be sc
blameless and innocent when it comes out be
| fore the public as is the case of this woman.
There is no domestic circle, not even ouI
| own, but what there are either acts done and
things said thoughtiessly end without any in-
| intention of criminality, and if they should be
| taken and spread before the public or a Jury
| and viewed with the eye of an unkindly criti-
| cism, with gloss given upon them by cum
| ming council, they would be made to appear as
casting some reflections upon us. But without
| word upon my part, should be willing to
have you take this testimony. and then take
| the ingenious criticism of my brother, and put
it all together, and should have no fear that
she would stand here blameless and guiltless
before you. Why, what trifes. What straws
-
the guilt of these parties! Take Statira Miller's
testimony, take the carriage that she spoke
| about, then remember that in the same breatf
Mrs. Miller invited her to go home with her
suspecting, as she would have you understand
| that there was some meeting expected between
herself and Gen. Shepley. If there was any
such meeting, why should she take this jeal
GUS suspicious woman to be witness to it.
Then they say there were Whispering
when Miss Statira was present. Thi
shows you her jealous character, she com
| planned that somebody had whispered to some
| body else at her brothers. house, and she feared
it might be about herself Well, gentlemen
| L have whispered, l suppose you have whisper
| ed at different times, but never suppose that
because of it we should be accused OF adultery
| 1 believe it is not considered very polite to
whisper in company. Gen. Shepley, when be
found this sensitive woman had taken umbrage
at it went like a true gentleman as he is, and
made an apology to Miss Miller, and that is
brought in here and spread out before you, as
| evidence of the crime of adultery against his
wife. Shame! upon such fimsy testimony
| when offered to sustain SO grave charge up
on such evidence.
Another act of politeness is paraded here a.
| evidence of crime. Gen. Shepley has been t.
| Mr.. Miller to make call. Miss Miller wa
| there, Statira Miller, will not call her State
although believe that is the usual appella
ton by which she is known in the circle O
acquaintance, Miss Statra Miller was pres
ent, Gen. Shepley got up to leave, and Mrs
Miller as it was her duty to do showed him t.
the door. He forgetting that he had not OF
fered to escort Miss Statira to her house tolt
Mrs. Miller he wished she would 60 back All
| make his offer to her, and knowing the jeal
| ousy of this woman thought that was not sui
ficient and said to her himself, II will escor
her home" Common politeness and crue t.
upon his part to this sister of Mrs. Miller
just as he leaves. My brother draws a infer
ence and makes an argument, and asks you
to find these parties guilty of adultery, agains
the declaration of his own client, agains
every fact in the case. He undertakes to pu
gloss upon this thing which in my judg
ment the testimony does not authorize, AM
he talks to you sneeringly about her not tax
ing the sugar coated pill and makes grea
circumstance of the fact that he called he
state instead of Statira. Gentlemen, sine,
| l have listened to this trial have felt the full
force of the familiar quotation, that "Trife
| light as air are to the jealous confirmation
strong as proof of holy writ" There are NJ
circumstances in this case but that are trif1e
/, | lighter than air.
What time have they charged this act Q
, adultery? There must be some time and plac
, | or some occasion upon which it was committed
When d. they show it? What testimony d
they offer here which authorizes you to find
man guilty of such an offence? Is it on the got
day of March, when an inference of that kin,
; is asked because General Shepley called, as
stated, by Sarah Miller? Let us see. Their
5 was party of friends at General Shepley''
house, it was the occasion of his daughter
marriage. presume Miss Miller may hav
felt offended because she was not there. Sh
states that it was on the 10th Of March, the da
of his daughters marriage; and he states
, you further that it was in relation to that mar
riage that Mrs. Miller wished to see him, sh
; having been at the church when the ceremon
took place; consider the fact that he stoppe
but moment and then went away. Gen
temen Of the jury, if that sister had believe
, there was any danger of Gen. Sbepley's seduc
| ing her brother's wife what do you think {
her conduct in getting up when he came i
and leaving as she did? What sort of ssterl
care world that be which could thus expose he
t brothers wife had she believed there was dan
ger? cast it out, as one of those "trf1es ligh
t us air." upon which they rest this grave charg
in this case. s.r
Let me call your attention to another Gil
, cumstapce. In almost every instance that it
j testified that Gen. Shepley was at Mr.. Miller
: house, under circumstances exciting the su:
4 | picion OF the Mllers some other person wa
| present at the time, aud in most of them, thes
5 | they accepted the escort of this very gentlema
| that they now charge and would have you bt
lleve they were then Suspicious of, as bein
, | guilty OF the cri pe Of adultery. Accepte
his escort in the evening to their own hous'
Was not this little singular it they believe