Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1881-12-15
THE GUITEAU TRIAL.

In addition to the customary ejacula-
tions, contractions, and seedlings by the
prisoner, the proceedings in the trial of
Guiteau were interrupted on Thursday
by the objections and explanations offer
ed by the assassin's brother, J. w. Gui-
teau, who is accused by the defense of
trying to keep out Of the case all proof
Of insanity in the Guitesu family. Mr..
Scoville got angry, and Guiteau broke
out in q denunciation of his brother.
Several witnesses gave testimony tend
ing to disprove the plea Of Insanity.
This displeased Guitesu, who accused
some of the witnesses of bias, and
claimed that the testimony of others
was irrelevant. President Arthur's re-
ply to the written questions sent him by
Mr.. Scoville was read. The President
said he had seen Guitsau at least ten,
and perhaps twenty times, but had no
conversation with him except 10 return
the ordinary salutations, and once or
twice in answer to his request to be en-
pIoyed as a speaker by the Republican
State Committee, of which he was chair
man. Guiteau had never rendered any
political services that the President
knew of to the Republican party in the
last campaign. There was nothing in
thel prisoners relation to himself or to
Gen. Grant or Senator Conkling or any
other leader of the Republican party so
cially or politically, to give him any
ground for supposing he would receive
political preferment, and he had never
given Guiteau any reason TO think he
could have any political or personal in
fuence with him. The President added
that in October last he received letter
from Guiteau, containing some claim to
having rendered important servicee to
the Republican party, and an appeal for
the postponement of his trial. He did
not preserve the letter.
The Rev. DIR. Macarthur of New York,
of whose church Guiteau and his wife
were members several years ago, descri-
bed his Acquaintance with the assassin
and the circumstances under which Gui-
teau was expelled from the church. The
prisoner alternately contradicted this
witness outright and addressed him
with an air of familiarity. His exami-
nation was not concluded when the court
adjourned.
Testimony was introduced BY the
prosecution in the Guitsau trial on Fri
day which made the assassin furious
Mr.. Shaw, lawyer of New York, testi-
fed that Guiteau, who then had desk
room in his Office, told him, in 1872, that
he was bound to be notorious before he
died: that If he could not get notoriety
for good, he would get it for evil; that
he would shoot some of our big men,and
would initiate Wilkes Booth. The pris-
oner denounced the witness as liar,
and accused him Of being preiudiced be-
cause he owed him $50 for Office rent. The
witness never told anybody what Gui-
teau had said until after Garfield was as
sassinated, and added that he had never
doubted Guiteau's sanity.
Several other witnesses from New
York, who had known Guiteau, among
them Judge Hawes of the Marine Court,
in whose Office the prisoner occupied. a
desk in 1874, testified that they had
never seen any indications of unsound-
ness of mind in Guiteau. Mr.. English
excited the prisoners anger by his ac-
count of the circumstances under which
Gpiteau procured bail for him when he
was in Ludlow street Jail. The witness
said that, 80 far from doubling Guiteau's
sanity, he regarded him as a man of re-
markable keenness of intellect, because
he completely outwitted him. Guiteau
declared that the witness was lying, and
denounced him in the most virulent
manner. The Rev. Macarthur, at the
conclusion of his examination, also said
he saw no indications of unsoundness of
mind In Guiteau in his intercourse with
him. DIR. Caldwell, who attended the
assassin's father In his last illness, said
that he noticed in him no indications of
unsOundness of mind.
Senator Harrison of Indiana, testified
that the prisoner asked him in Wash
ington last spring to help him get office,
but the witness told him he was already
overloaded with applications from his
own State. He had never questioned
Guitsau's sanity.
1t appeared that Guiteau owed money
to some of the witnesses besides the
Rev. DR.. Macarthur, and as they took
the stand he interrupted the proceedings
by telling how much he owed them.
One lawyer enraged the prisoner by say
ing Guiteau had collected money for
some of his clients and never paid it
over. In his fury the prisoner brutally
treated his sister, Mrs. Scoville, who
tried to restrain him.
The trial was adjourned over until
Monday.
TINE in the Guitean trial Monday, was
occupied in the examination of Spitzka,
a New York specialist, whose testimony
was in effect that the prisoner was a
moral monstrosity and an insane man.