New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-02-14
THE COURTS.
The slMMoEs MURDER TRIAL.

terday 40 the Simmons murder trial. and to-day contrary
TO the usual custom the Court will st and hear the do
fense The line of deense N pretty we'll known, win
be Unsuitable homicide and the attempt win be
made TO prove that Duryea struck the 1rst
blow, afterwards knocked Simmons down, and
that emily then. 10 absolute solf-defense, did
Simmons draw his huife The testimony yesterday
was very interesting bringing out the particulars
this horrible and bloody not particularly dramatic
story Some Of the witnesses Illustrated by action tho
progress Of the struggle and the final result OF the
terrible blows, of which there were II or u.s. Peter
Duryea, nephew of the murdered MAN, waa examined
late In the day and 1t was generally thought injured
much he helped It by his attempts
At wit. his offensive attitude toward the crossexaminer
Col Fellows and his marked evasion Of certain ques
tons
The ease was opened for the people by the District
Attorney who prefced his address by reminding the
jury that they to sit In Judgment In case OF no
ordinary Importance, and they we're there not to be
sympathe.e but 10 be just for in strict Justice was
found the ruest mercy. He then recited the eircum
stances of the fatal meeting and tho arrest OF simnous
He said the defense would set the claim Of justa-
be homicide but while the law Of nature and the Law
Of the Common wealth justified killing In selfdefense,
yet neither the law Of God that Of man justified the
seeking of an alteration under cover OF which al ad-
versarys life had been taken Nor man justified
In using deadly weapon In reply to blow from the
fist Moreover after having ms adversary at his feet,
| no not justified 10 continuing TO use deadly
TO finish toe horrible work. In conclusion, Mr.
Phelps referred to the advantages which the prisoner
would have In the way OF wealth ingen"ty OF counsel
the sympathy Of troops Of friends. He was not
poor riend,ess cruua aud while lt was right that he
should have these advantages 1t WAS also urgent that
ne should Do judged justly and wltnout any weak sym
| patty. 80
Ign, doing busness at No. Pnest. In December 1874
his place OF business was at No. 81 Liberty st. near
rug the store and two cellars He was asked where he
| last saw Daryel, and 10 this Mr.. Graham objected,
the witness replied that ne saw him on the morning. OF
THIS also oisvIed TO, and tails time ruled out
ny judge Brady. The witness added tnat s'nmonss
| pace OF business WAS over the store.
Eugene sherman IT, butcher in the employ OF Jonn
yy SG % ,aa sa 10 M %. w .en e 10
the Posi-Once On DC 10, and Was returning throuSn
iana- restaurant, when he about hyc nen looking
AZ two others who were on tn5 north side OF the street
| 0ne was a stout, well-built man the other
slender and little taller The witness continued IN
| own words l stopped and heard the stouter man
say, 81 will swear against you" lhe younger
man SAID "DDnt you pull anything on me :"
tnen the younger man struck, and they Dotn
pnt s,ier second or Two NO came nppeTh1sI n I
| body; ran To tue get an officer; 1 turned
DacK and the elder man get ~ and staggor, ana
somebody ran out OF tho restaurant and heiped him
| over; was the younger man saw strike AT me head
VI tue other he did nnt knock hun dovL don't know
how they fell Tue witness here went On his knees and
illustrated the mo,sou. According u him, the motion
| ward.
ga tho cross xamination the witness, In answer to
Questions slated that he nsd Cold all tue words he heard
Richard j. Hogan Of No 1s3 Henryst testified that he
clerk AZ No IL ENehange-paco, ~ December 1872
aud Lived at No 60 LDertyt happenings Dc on I'll. nrrt
or at UcIoek on eveDnk homicide, and hear
INK noise. be ran down 10 tDc street aud saw t"o men
by sight very Well, Oh top, and ms r.lsed MIN
| self Hte, aud "jabocd" the otner man with some
thing that gtCered IN the 2n AZ tue prisoner got up
inc cied Nov nave got .ne asst OF yodP w1Ile saJ
rug TINS the prisoner tpped up ny his foot becOu
iuY
nte the gutter ext the deceased Wneu he goL up uSan
| ne exclaimed, II have broken my aualr"
The irst witness called after the Charles g.
Anderson, CLERK IN the PostOhce. Az o'clock Oh the
evening oi the murder he starred up Nssaust the
Office, Crossing IAbery-, HIS attention. stiracte,
by CREE OF P0hoei Murderl" lie saw Two mer lying
Oh the ground and che Top partly
turued aud eli excilmiug 81 have Drokon my ankle,
| He WAS heiped Dto "a Restaurant ny man named
"Stry Ker" The witness saw TINS man subsequently b.
fore the Coroner AZ the Inquest H5 Thought, also, that
| the mlu other sand to ne officer. 4"
am law-ab.dnR citizen" He Also communicated some
tnng 10 stryker WHOA the witness did uot hear rhe
witness started " tell wni strykr sud Bat It oD-
Jeced 10 tno prisoner Was NOT Ia Condition Thea u
what vas going ON around hIIn. Judge Brady al
lowed IL after asoertaIung tnat It was said M u loud
tone The witness t,n said tna some one asked nat
| matter, and stryker sad Two men were goug
Gown the street and somebody tlei to rob them AND
Knocked tlem down.
The object of drawing this testimony to i'm
stryker who id understood. Will be brought
| the stand u witness for tho defense
Dr. Wooster Beach. who made the postmortem exami
nation Duryea's Dody described 70 the jLry the situa
|
severed the carotid artery OF the neck, w"s iat.l
another was probably 80, three or the WOUNDS were
| serious. aud there were many Others some mere
| Officer Weber described the arrest OF Simmons and
| the finding OF the tip VI sheath wnicn n'ted me
broken found the body or Duryed. Ine knife
| was found IN the sub-cear OF he restaurant.
William Heaton, WHO stated that ho rad just come
| from tie Workhouse, where he mad been five week,
described the terrible scene III simple manner but
with such apparent fidelity illustrating by gestures
or moluus W in0cao the various positions OF the two
men, kicks OF Duryea, and his slitening out alter
| his testimony was OF great interest. Col.
| Fellows in crosse xamining Nun, took him to
task severely for several statements. The DsttictAt
torney had asked Hea,on " hook over tue CeurlIoOm
see II he could Identity the prisoner Heaton win
great grin his sOld features, began 10 look over
the but could mo- see tue prisoner wno was directly
| opposite him. Wnen Col Fellows came 10 erosnexamln,
ne repeated ques ton, Dut tins time Heaton looked
straight Mr. sparks tho clerk am, very much 10 that
genial oic,as confusion, designated him AZ one who
looked most ike the "mdu IN top" This caused great
| laugh at the expense OF the cerH. ia
| in relation 70 threats made by Simmons against his
unco's life. lie was talking with slmU9ns about ak
ST., and Summons made tue remark LIS too bad that
Mex is taking all the business away from me and sub
sequently he added that he would mn the root OF OF
Duryea's head himself or IL he did not he d get some
one who would The Witness advised MS uncle TO arm
| did go armed. Questions were asked In refer
euce to the estate of Duryea, which this witness
| had a good deal 10 do with, but objection being
made, Col; Fellows stated that they hey, proposed to
drawn S Sutiof the business by the widow who repre-
the deceased or the attorney who represented
stead 10 days This to di,proye the evidence of
the witness that Duryea had only IN the business
10 days before his death Judge Brady refused to admit
the evidence. 49,.
Frank Leroy Satterlee, connected with the Police
Courts Surgeon described injuries mich Simmons
received In the ankle aud Matthew Maher. police ON
testified TO riding Ia the cart to the staonh house
with the prisoner, and asking him how the fight
Cured, aud TO the prisoners replying that two
struck hun In the face and tried 10 rob him. The wit
qualified this afterward by explaining that IL
Stryke who made the first part OF the remark, whe
simmons added, and tried TO rob me-"