The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1877-04-14
Court Proceedings.

The various Courts of Car1On County cOnven-
ed at O'Clock on Monday afternoon. Hon. S. 5.
Dreher and AS ociates presiding. The uuavoid-
able prelmnaries connected with the organiza-
tion of the CouIt, required considerable time
but at half past o'cock the Grand Jury were
briefly charged and had retired for deliberation,
and in n few minutes thereafter Thos p. Fisher
and Patrick McKenna were brought into lhc
Courtroom. as theirs we're the first cases TO be
acted upon. Both, as will no remembered, had
been found guilty OF murder at previous
session OF oyer and Terminer-the former of
murder IN the first degree, and the latter in the
second degree. FISHER beng an applicant for
new trial. the reasons ASSIGNED for such by his
counsel Will, OF course, be argued Mt length be.
fore the COURTS decision Will be rendered, but
McKenna. not being an applicant for new
trial, Will probably be sentenced without much
ado. The prisoners look comparatively well,
and apparently as cheerful as individuals in
their peculiar situation may be supposed to look
and feel. Fishers wife and sister are seated
alongside of the prisoners, and are the only re.
presentatives of the fair sex in the courtroom.
Counsel are properly Ouped, and the aTgu-
ment is about TO begin.
Mr. Fox now Ilses and refers to the nine Tea-
sons assigned by counsel for the defense he
alludes TO the tuTys verdict as the strangest
thing that had ever come TO his notice-uniusti-
fable because not at all warranted by the evl
denge. How strange that they should have
made n distinction in favor of McKenna! One
ana the other they tlud guilty of murder in the
second degree Why, 'hs preposterOus, your
Honor a thing never heard u Then we claim
that these men were uujustly convicted on the
testimony ol two Infamous witnesses--llulher-
r1n and McHugh. He also refers TO the injus.
tice done the PRISONERS at che bar in the adunis-
sion in evidence OF the letter addressed by FI-h
er TO alr. a. W. Leiscn1ing; claiming that its
r5 tLlug mast have hau very prCiuuiClal mflu-
eaee upon the minds of the jury, and probaDlr
induc, d them 20 render the verdict they had
The rest of tine objections are principally level
led at the Judges clarge IN the case winch of
course wasn't at all III accOrdaure with the
speak er'S idea Of justice. Your Honor by per
mlttlng the reading Of that letter, and directing
the jury's attention to it IN voul charge,yOu per.
mitIed them to draw Unauthorized inferences
therefrOm. Decidedly sol We. therefore, OBJ
iect TO that part Of the charge wherein your
Honor neglected to properly instruct the jury
as to what disposition to make of lts contents,
ETC., in other words, the jury used that letter az
evidence of guilt WHEN, IN TACT there was moth.
ing III it to Criminate the prisoner Fisher.
clam, was found glilty on constructive evi.
dence. But wnv follow counsel through what
evidently promises to be a lengthy argument,
and vet for al futile attempt at proving that
twice two are not fOurl Besides, we have al
I eady sufficiently indicated the tactics Ol the
defence. Al ten minutes past five o'clock Gen.
Albright rises TO reply, does it in n mastery
manner, and succeeds very well in demoiishlng
the all castles OF Nj. Fox. During the evening
session Mesars, Rvon and Hughes continued
the arFument OF the case. Decision reserved.
TUESDAY, April lO.-rhe tOllrnp of the Court
House bell remlnts us that It IL O'Clock and
1
tice. soon. aud before the cTer mas yet mad
time to open Court, two gent emen spot esslv
arraYed, enter the Court room, OF, rather are
ushered in by posse OF COnl and Iron Police,
but for which we would hardly have recognized
in them the two Moilies-Patrick O'DOnnell
and John Nal who are 10 make legal battle
for Ile Both OF these, as viii be remembered,
are arraiGneC tor completely in the Morgan
| Powell murder.
MIR Ka,btus OF once moves for separate trial
| Of the nlsOners, which appears to lnuicate that
O'Donnell VIII be tried first, he (kaiDfus) being
O'DUnuePS counsel, and MallOy not represent,
| ed but II subsequently, turns out that his client
| does not insist On beng tried separately. Mr
| L'Vel!e, the roputed counsel for MalOy, IS vet
| absent There is now little hubbub in Court
| us the prOthOnOtary Is unable to find q certain
| petition OF Nlaloy,s which, according to the
minutes, mad been filed on the 10Th OF January
But Mt last the Court requires the prisoner ".
| DOnneil to be arIaigned, against which O'DOn
| nell demurs Dy counsel and applies Tor a change
| OF venue on the grOuNd that far trial could
not be eXpec.ed by him in Carbon county
| which fact Is disputed by the Commonwealth
although the point appears to have been vel
taken Mr.. Bnl1us argues the point. and
| argues 1t well indeed, he flr once has plausi
| bic cas-. O'Donncn, who Is 0 One-eyed man an
| parently some forty years o! age, ana does moi
at a ! appear Ike murderer. follows the argu
| ment closely. His daughG r. a rather prepOs
| sessiug young lady, is at his side
Mr. uralg follows Kalbfus on the part of the
| Commonwealth, cOntending that II far, impar
| ull trial could be had, 9nd insisting that thu
trial should proceed. Application for change o
vehue denied ana arrmgnment ordered. rht
| of me Indictment .Oy the District Attorney
| pleads mot guilty" The tclai VIII thprrfoT,
proceed The Jerk of The Court then addresse
| the prlsOner, asking him how he wishes to b
tried, and admOnisues him to attend TO his chal
| lenges
From among thlrtyiOuE jurors called the lOl
lowing were acceptedi
| l. Adam AeCkes. l. Simon Walk.
! 2. Peter krum, s. owen LrarCn
| 3. john HuusiCker. 9. John E,ser
4. +. a. LhcesmC. 10. Thomas Behrens,
s. Chgs, GTeenwalt. u. Butter Cortright.
lheY were then sworn, aud Court adlOurnel
until p. IN. Notwithstanding the many chal
lenges luterpO ed, tiis jury was more duickr
obtained than any heretofore impannelled III
AFTERNOON sEssIoY Court convened at tw
o'clOch, and shortly thereafter Hon. A. Graf
9Deheu A. 'aSe 70 tle Jury on the part Of "a
what Ss SS faSsSSS ON si'qss i W
place = prisoner INTO n very uncOmfOrtabl
tN, perhaps on the giDbot hut nous UeTrOns
AT the Ulme we entered the Court roOm W
were not little nstOllshed 10 perceive the Il
nous Little squealer occupying GEN Charlie
| ADJ tights accustomed seat, r. ght IN front {
the bench. but this was soon and fully explain
ed to our satisfaction, when Gen. Albright
with the concurrence of the District ATTORNEY
moved iht discharge o! kerrgan which was i
once granted by the COart and MIR. James Kel
rlgal let che NOurtlOotn, happier, If not
better man, chan he'O Deen during the last
months or ever before James was neatly
not nObblly dressed, and he departed trcI
the seat of Justice 1t was with the ar of on
John MAllOy-hIew prisoner In 1871 also Jnj
DOuOhue, Mathew DOnOhue. James Mulhepr
, an PntncK Mckennn. They were all member
OF the Iuscarora Division Of the A. o. II. q
Molly Magulres. Heard of the meliitated raj
upon co cram, whom they intended TO Oeat b
cause he was living with another mans wife
John DUnOnue VINO was bldv.master OF tine d
vision, hrSt Informed me OF this remumDf
Their ATTENDING cert in meeting OF the dlvlsiO
when this subieUt-the xii ng uf PoWell-vyi
discussed, Mchugh, Fisher, Campbell, Nj cKel
ma ana others were there when the SUNNI
Hill matter was brought up, l think O'Dnnpe
was present he favored me idea OF returuiu
The compliment paid them Dy the summit M
fellows by killing Morgan POwell; lie srid IN,
it wOu Il be DONG Campbell a favor; don't lno
exactly nOW long TINS was before Inc killing {
rowe l. heard Of the killing first through JOll
DOnOhue Mathew ana JOnu DOuuhus wei
uOm IuscJrOfa 60 do The deed O'Dumel a
lowed ne would be Wi lug 70 90, in other wUr,
he vOtunt cred hls services.
Cross.eNalnined-TOld Hugh TOan Of this
, think, nttle over year ago John DOnOht
, | invited m3 10 attend The meeting lt WAS he
, ON Sundayi O'DOnnell sald tbat thc Old Mn
] men hau come over 10 get men tn kiI Powell
accommodate Alex. Campbell was never mt
, | meeuhS Whele Mu.heatn requested Ihc duaI
| | OF O'DOuneu was initiated by Jack Kelle. nj
. | first meeting ever attended WIS hpld ut Tlu
, | aqua mere was nothing m particular tran
acted u was merely sOcuble Gathering at
4 eLutu IN niue Spi Ce; most OF the time we uu
| met " pay oar dues am not a member OI Il
l ! order now; lett it about two and halt Yea
| | ago wOuiu have ava ged tins long ago hud
: not ueen afraid OF being pot out ul the Way d
l ! It, was never AFRAID Of ueing arrested; alIyai
1 | stood my ground thinking thai il the authO,
, | ties wanted me, they might send tor me ueVl
assisted aI Ouihng unYbOdy's property la,
I | never kept myself secreted aC h.ne was a WI
ness az the ttlul Ut tho Major Sc at POttsVill
. The Commonwealth unW fflpr IN eyi4a,,a9 Al