Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-07-13
THE POOR WITNESS.
Tho Manner in which Direct Testimony is
Distorted.
lCairo Bulletin.l

| DistUT tous
lCairo Bulletin.l
The manner in which attorneys
question witnesses is exasperatine
TO the INTELLIGENT listener beyond
expression. The great purpose ol
the average criminal lawyer, for in
stance, is to draw from the witness
all the facts in his possession, tx.
cepting the facts touching the case
under ccndsideration.
A countryman, chopping down a
tree, stops his work and buries his
ak up to the eye In the brain of his
brother.in-law. The witness who
saw the whole bloody transaction
is brought into Court, and his ex-
animation runs about thus:
"You say that the prisoner was
chopping tree down. Now, will
you please tell the Court and jury
where he bought the axe?n
"YOu don't know; very we'll, sir,
wei see about that"
snow, sir, look at the jury
don't stare in that helpless man
ner at me-now, sir, do you say
upon your oath that you don't
know that the defendant stole that
axe before he left Paducah?"
"You do say so, ah2 Well, now
mark me, sir. How many feet
was it from the tree the defendant
was chopping to the nearest gtist
mill? You can't say"
"Was it ten feet?p
"Certainly a good deal more"
dwell, then, was IL q thousand
miles?"
80, certainly not"
"rhe Court and the Jury will
please etaerve the siubbornness OF
this witness. IL is manifestly his
purpose to keep from the jury the
facts they ought to know"
"Now, sir, who owned that
mill?"
The witness innocently inquiries,
"What mill?" but soon repents it.
"rhe jury will please observe the
exasperating contumaciousness OF
this witness, his evasion and his
manifest purpose TO confuse your
minds as to the facts involved in
this terrible murdei"
SNOW, sir, look me in the face.
You have solemnly sworn that the
man was chopping near mill.
Will you now dare say-look at the
jury, sir-that there was no mill
within LOCO miles of the tree the
defe ndant was telling ?"
II don't say anything of the
kind"
The jury will please note that
answer
"Now, see here, my friend-we've
had about enough of this. You
first declared that there was no
mill, and now you brazenly avow
there was a mill near the wood
chopper"
"i said there was no mill within
ten fee"
"Never do you mind what you
said-I know what you said, and
the jury knows; and now, sir, listen
to me-"
"WhO made your boots ?"
"You don't know! Is there any.
thing under Gods heavens thai
you do know? There, there! Look
at the jury-not at me. And now
perhaps, you can tell the jury whaI
| your name is ?"
The witness tells his name.
"NOw, sir--look at the jury!-
how long did you live thereH'
The witness timidly asks, "Livet
where?" when the attorney spring.
to his feet
"May 1t please tie Court anG
Jury, I find this witness utterly in
corrig mulish, anC
bent upon keeping back the very
facts the jury must have. He has
clearly been tampered with anC
comes here with the manifest in
tention of browbeating AMI worry
ing both the jury and the bar.
have temporized with him, | have
led him gently from point to point
In the hope of beguiliDg him iuto .
true recital of the facts connected
with this dreadful murder, anC
what is my reward for this consid
crate kindness and forbearance.
Speaking under the sanctity of ar
oath, he tells this Court and jury
that he doesn't know where ht
lives, and has asked me to tel
him! Great God! can such thing,
be, and not overcome US like a
like-and not overcome us? / ask
your Honor, that this witness bt
sent to Jail for contumacy, to re-
main there until he expresses Q
willingness to tell what he knows
aoout this dreadful murder"
The Court then admonishes the
witness that further trifling will
not be permitted; that he mus
answer the gentlemen's questions
or he'll certainly feel called upon
to commit him to prison.
The witness by this time is be
} wildered, scared, dszed, and iD
duIges in contradictions and absur
dities as fast as the attorney re-
quires him to, and, finally, leaving
the stand, 1t Is a quarter of an houl
at least before he can recall his wi
name or fix his own identity. The
attorney then gets upon his feet
tears the wretohed WITNESSES contra
dictory and foolish rigmarole al
to tatters. and asks the Court tha
1t be excluded from the jury as falst
and nonsensical.
And this is one of the ways many
Of our average criminal lawyerl
| oAunf eftn dro u, tl.o q 4.