The Portland daily press., 1880-05-17
THE WHITAKER CASE.
Expert Testimony Inculpating
Whitaker.
THE NOTE OF WARNING ALLEGED
TO BE IN HIS HANDWRITING.
Whitaker Stoutly Protests His limo
cence.

WEST POINT, May 15.-In the Whitaker
case to-day Whitaker testified that when he
reported the wrongs done him to the author.
tiles they had been re dressed. He had suspi-
cions that cadets Blake and Mcdonald might
be the perpetrators of the outrage an him. A
letter was shown him by the Recorder, who
refused to let him take it, but Lieut. Knight
took 1t from the Recorder and gave it to Whit
taker to read. Some sarcastic remarks were
made by spectators at the unusual course of
the Recorder, and President Abercrombie said
II the remarks were heard again those making
them would be elected.
letter was read from Whitaker to man
named Wister in New York. in which he ex-
pressed indignation at the cowardly outrage
committed upon him. He read it in full. He
told tne recorder, in response to query, that
he held the same sentiments of indignation
now.
In answer to query why in the letter to
his mother he said 81 shall see that justice is
done II l have to apply to Congress- Whit
taker said, ri know 1 am innocent and I
wanted full Investigation Flipper had
sent MN telegram suggesting that Mcdonald
might have been one of his assaiants.
After further questions the Recorder asked
him ii he still adhered to his statement that
he knows nothing about the note of warning.
and he replied he did All the suppressed
portions of reports of experts were read by the
Recorder, showing that each expert fixed upon
the handwriting of cadet Whitaker as the
handwriting of the person who wrote the note
of warning, thus fixing the identity of all the
mysterious numbers in the reports of experts
on Whitaker, all of which bore heavily
against Whitaker, but that which was the
eliminating event of the entire investigation
thus far was the reading the suppressed por-
ton OF expert Southworth'S report, as pre-
sented to the court at the late secret session.
1t gives long account OF how SouthwOrth,
by means of glass discovered that portions of
the paper on which Whitaker had written
were pieces from the paper on which he had
begun letter to his mother, and proved the
handwriting to be Whittaker's All the ex-
perts identified the handwriting of Whittaker's
as the handwriting in the note of warning
three OF them being positive. The announce
ment caused sensation.
No further questions were asked Whitaker,
and the court adjourned until Monday.
WEST POINT, N, ", May 16.-In ali inter-
view today Whitaker states that last evening
ne was invited to Gen. Schofield's house, the
latter saying he had sent for him to say that
there was considerable had feeling against him
and asked him If he had anthything more to
say or wished to make any confession, and if
ne did that would be good time to do it.
Whitaker replied that he had nothing further
to say. He had told all he knew and it was
the truth, and if he had not told the truth and
desired to confessl anything Gen. Scheduled
would be the first man he would go to on &C
count of the Generals Uniform Kindness to-
ward him. Whitaker said the General adj
vised him to collect all letters he had written
lately because in that way it might be possible
to ascertain who it was that had simulated his
handwriting. He said the General told him
he had his best wishes, and Whitaker judges
from that remark that the General believes
him innocent or he would never have said it.
Whitaker was asked how no accounted for
some of the. discrepancies in his statements,
and he said he could not account for them. He
argued that the presence of discrepancies
showed he was henest for" said he, eff had
invented the story 1 would have learned it by
heart and then there would have been no dis
crepancies." He was asked how it was that
he never noticed that the writing in the
note OF warning was like his own. He
said he never thought of it, and if he had
written it he would not have exhibited it to four
or five persons He was asked what he thought
OF the experts discovery that both of the
sheets were of one paper. He said that that
did not amount to anything because all cadets
use the same kind of paper, and he wanted to
say he found the note of warning ON his chair
by the side of his table in the evening. He
was in the habit of tearing whole sheet In
two halves to write on, and persons who wrote
the note might have come to his room and
taken piece of his paper and, with many
samples of his handwriting before him, might
have forged the note.
General Schofeld says as the report of the
court is to be presented to him he does not
want to say anything ON the subject Any re-
ports OF fears of disorderly action by the cadets
against Whitaker are premature, as it is the
understanding among them to allow the court
to take care of the whole case.
Prof. Greener still claims that Whitaker is
innocent and says he has some important
points which he intends to make known over
his own signature, but not to the court