Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1872-01-06
Handwriting and Crime.
AN EMINENT EXPERT.

Of late years a new and curious profession has
come into vogue. We allude to that of sex
perts" in handwriting. These gentlemen's ser
vices have for some time been repeatedly called
IN request in England, especially in disputed
will cases, but they seldom made much impress
SION either on Judge or Jury until there arose
a case which occurred a few years since in the
London Probate Court that this gentleman was
brought into the first rank of his very limited
profession, of which n Mr.. Netherclift had up to
that time been the chief. The ground of dispute
was in relation TO the will OF a wealthy old yeO-
man. One side claimed that the will was genu-
inc, the other that il was a forgery. When the
turn came for Mr.. CbabOt' evidence to be given
the counsel for the will gave a centemptuOuS
smile as the expert assembled the box. and
my Lord leaned back in his chair IN
much this sort of testimony is worth"
BY degrees, however, matters underwent a
change. Counsel against the will became par
ticulaTly assured in his bearing. Counsel for
the will hdgetted in his seat, and, what was
IN re important, my lord aroused himself and
began to take notes. When Mr.. Chabot de
scendC d from the witness box he had broken the
will. The Judge, in summing up, said that he
must confess that previous experience had not
dsI osed him Ia place much reliance on testimony
OF this description, but the present case was an
exception. MIR. ChabOt's evidence was certain
| most remarkable. The point to which the &C
conplished gentleman drew special attention az
I &c fact that he had examined page after page
of writing which was admitted by either side to
that of the deceased, and in no case had he
found the vowel 80" connected with the other
letters in the word in which il occurred; wher cas-
in The dOcumf mt alleged to be forged, 40" some
mes stood alene, sometimes was joined on to
the neighbOTing letters.
Mr.. Chabot's services are now in constant
demand, and he ought to be making a very large
income. The Tichborne case must alone have
put great many pounds in his pocket. Quite
recently he has been employed in two notable
| suits. One of these" Firebrace vs. Firebrace
! and others is a divorce case. A maid-ser-
want, a. often happens in such suits is a prOm-
nent witness. She, it appears, kept diary, in
which size recorded suspicious circumstances in
| her mistress conduct. This diary the mistress
got hold of, and, the servant alleges, interpola-
[ ted passages which reflect sadly on the morality
OF the servant herself, and are thus calculated
! 70 weaken the effect OF her evidence against
/ Mrs. FiTebrace. Mr.. ChabOt is OF opinion that
the alleged interpretations are not in the hand
WI ting OF the servant.
Tie other case was one of libel, in which A
/ lacy named Dilks plaintiff, and Mr.. Shep-
herd defendant. In January, lS10, Mr.. Birket,
to whose son the plaintiff was engaged, received
a letter imputing to her improper conduct. On
the 18th February, Valentines day, plaintiff
herself received two letteTs-one containing
some indecent verses, and the other some lines
from Chaucer. The experts differed strongly in
regard to the similarity of the writing with that
OF Mr.. Shepherd. In summing up, the lord
chief justice pointed out that the great merit of
Mr.. ChabOt in such cases was that he gave CO.
gent reasons for his conclusions, and was not
Content III ,rely To state that he was of such and
such an opinion. The jury found for the defend
bear upon the vexed question of Junius, and has
helped to strengthen the already overwhelming
evidence in favor of Sir Philip Francis author
ship OF the famous letters.