The New York herald., 1875-12-14
An Involved Case Of Insol.
vency and ReceiVership.
How Judge Lawrence Cuts
the "Gordian Knot"
THE $4,000 LACE DRESS IN COURT
Arrangement and Plea Of Charles
L. Lawrence.

Al the sitting Of the Supreme Court Circuit Part1 be-
fore Judge Donohoe yesterday in pursuance OF notice
previously served upon the District Attorney, MI Will
lam r. Kintzing and John o. Mott IN behalf OF the
negroes, William Ellis, Charles Weston and William
Thompson now under OF death for the murder
81 Abraham Weiburg in September last, in Lydg's
Woods, and whose execution fixed for the nth inst
made application for writ OF and stay OF pro
ceedngs order case into the Court or
Appeals for final review Following the trial, VIII
be remembered application made to the Court or
Dyer and Terminer, before Judge Barrett, in which
Court the prisoners tried. for a writ or error
which refused. Subsequently application was
made to Judge Davis At Chambers OF supreme
Court, by whom q writ OF error was allowed
and as the General Term of the Supreme Court was
lhen in session the writ made returnaeie forth
with, before full Bench, Judges Davis, Brady and
Daniels being the bench Messrs Knitting and
Mott argued accordingly once the appeal on behalf OF
the condemned asking for the reversal OF the judgment
OF the Court OF oyer and Termner in consequence Of
certain alleged errors occurring upon the trial. DIS
Attorney Phelps and Assistant District Attorney
Rollins, who appeared Tor the people, arguing against
the granting OF a trial After careful consdera
tion Of the points raised IN the the Court refused
grant new trial. and affirmed the Judgment of the
Court below, Judges Davis and Brady delivering the
opinions Of the Court Ii from this affirmation Of
judgment that counsel sought yesterday TO remove the
case to the Court OF Appeals and pending
the decision of which Court stay Of proceedings
asked Before Judge Donohue called the civil
calendar Of the Court TO see what cases were ready for
trial. MessrR kingzng and Mott asked the attention
Of The Court To their notion notice Of which had been
served upon the District Attorney. Judge Donohue
promptly suspended the calling OF the calendar, and
said that he would at once hear counsel upon their np
pcaton Counsel for the prisoners then proceeded 10
present the grounds upon which tney based their pres
application Ii contended thai Judge Barrett
had erred In his rulings upon the trial first In over
ruling the special plea interposed challenging the array
OF petit jurors, the same having been drawn by Thomas
Dunlap instead Of by Douglas Taylor, the Comnis-
Of Jurors the removal of Douglas Taylor being
claimed Illegal second that IL TO refuse
upon application OF prisoners to appoint iriers upon a
challenge to favor, and, third, that the
Court acquired no jurisdiction to try the
indictmenL the having been found
in the Court OF General Sessions and transferred the
Court OF oyer and rermner in opposition to the wishes
OF the prisoners in the transferring OF which indictment
they lost certain privileges which they would otherwise
have acquired had they been tried in the Court of Gen
eral Sessions Counsel presented substantially the
same Arguments upon these points as they did at Cen
eral Term. They claimed thai a case of this i'm
porance where the lives Of three human beings were
At stake II ought to be reviewed by the Court Of Ap
peals before they executed and that the points
iaken we're not frivolous, but OF Importance.
Assistant District Attorney Bell replied upon behalf
OF the people strenuousy opposing the allowance OF
the writ He contended that the prisoners had been
fairly tried and certainly ably defended There was no
defence upon the merits The murder was
atroclous or the guilt of the
prisoners there could be doubt they each openly
confessed it The points presented for the application
were purely technical and however erroneous may
have been the rulings OF the Court it could
posed OF men Of their selection the verdict
rendered the only the facts would warrant He
said, further, that four judges had already examined
into the points and found OF them tenable and
not only that but The had had the bene6t Of
review Of their case by the Supreme Court General
Term and Judges Davis and Brady, who delivered the
opinion Of The Court had examined into all the points
and decided adversely 70 the prsoners There was he
insisted, committed upon the trial, and he
thought The points raised by prisoners counsel
not of such character as would justify this Court
interfering.
Judge Donohue took some two or three hours to
anime the points raised and authorities cited favor
of the prisoners He finally rendered decision deny
ing the application. The grounds Of his decision
that there claim that the prisoners had not q
fair trial and he could that any had
committed by the Court, and further, that the whole
had already been reviewed by the General Term.
The above application will In all probability, ter
inmate the enors OF Messrs Knitting and Mott to save
from the gaows their unfortunate clients, for whom
certainly must be said they have exhausted every
possible hope Of staying the dreadful passed
upon them. As the case now looks the law must
It's course, and the unhappy criminals Friday
explate their atrocloos crime on the gallowa