Stephens City star. (Stephens City, Va.) 1881-1883, 1881-12-17
GUITEAU'S TRIAL.


| WASHINGTON, DEC. 5.-The first expert wit
| ness called was James G.. Kiemens. Before
| he commenced, Guiteau said
| Before any expert testimony begins desire
| to make a short speech. The very point
which want the experts to pass upon is this.
| have stated it repeatedly and | will do it
| again. When man claims that he is i'm
PEELED to do an illegal act from a power be-
| yond him, which he cannot recall, when his
| moral agency is nominated l want these ex-
perts to say whether that is sanity or insanity.
! 'sThey will be heard on that subject" re-
marked the court. The witness testified that
he was physician of Chicago, having grad
uated in medicine in 1874 that he was man
aging editor of the Chicago Medical Review
and lecturer on medical diseases at the Chi
| cago Medical College.
| Mr.. Sooyille here read from manuscript a
| hypothetical case, based upon the evidence
| for defense, as follows "Assume it to be a
fact that there was strong hereditary taint
of insanity in the blood of the prisoner at the
| bar also that at about the age of thirty-five
years his own mind was much deranged
that he was fit subject to be sent to an insane
asylum also that at different times from that
date, during the next succeeding five years,
| he manifested such decided symptoms of in
sanity, without stimulation, that many differ
ent persons conversing with him and observ-
| ing this conduct believed him to be insane !;
| also that during the month of June, 1881, at
| about the expiration of said term of five years.
| he honestly became dominated by the idea
that he was inspired of God to remove by
| death the President of the United States also
that he acted upon what he believed to be
such inspiration, and what he believed to be
| in accordance with the Divine will, i'll prepa-
ton for and in the accomplishment of such
q purpose ; also that he committed the act of
shooting the President under what he be-
lieved to be Divine command, which he was
| not at liberty to disobey, and which belief
| amounted to conviction that controlled his
conscience and overpowered his will as to that
act SO that he could not resist the mental
pressure upon him also that immediately
after the shooting he appeared calm, and as
one relieved by the performance of a great
duty also that there was no adequate motive
| for the act than the conviction that he was
| executing the Divine will for the good of his
country. Assuming all these propositions to
be true, state whether in your opinion the
prisoner was sane or insane at the time of
| shooting President Garfield %
assuming these facts to be true, / should
| say the prisoner was insane" replied the wit
ness. "Have you any doubt about 1t ?" ''No,
| SIR" The witness was then turned over for
cross examination, which was conducted by
| Mr.. Davidge. The witness said he was
| formerly connected with the insane hospital
at Wards Island he had been discharged
from there owing to having refused to sign
| certain death certificate, and on account of a
paper he read before medical society. After
some further questions Mr.. Davidge asked the
| witness if he thought strong case of hered-
itary insanity had been made out in evidence
| Mr.. Scoville objected to this question, as it
was the place of the jury to weigh the evi-
| dence. The judge sustained this objection
but after some discussion permitted Mr..
| Davidge to ask the question in the following
form: "Assuming the evidence submitted to
the jury to be true, do you mean to say that q
made out?" Mr.. Scoville objected to this,
and finally, after some discussion, the prose-
| cution was permitted to ask if, conceding Mr..
North's testimony was true (Mr. North testi-
fed to l.. w. Guiteau's crankiness), the
witness considered the old gentleman insane
''That was the opinion, judge, Of the entire
city of Freeport, said the prisoner, address,
| ing Mr.. Davidge: ''We will show what the
opinion of the whole city Of Freeport was"
retorted Mr.. Davidge. "All right show it
added: GA good man, but badly cracked on
religion" The witness, basing his Judgment
on Mr.. North's testimony, said: 81 should
regard Mr.. Luther W. Guiteau as person of
rather dubious mental condition I have not
facts enough to form decided opinion" The
substance of the evidence regarding other
members of the family alleged to be insane
having been submitted to witness in the form
| of q query, he said he should certainly write
the case as one of hereditary insanity. The
witness being questioned as to Dr. Rice's
evidence, he said he believed insanity could
exist without hallucination or delusion he
believed in what is called moral insanity The
| examination of the witness was frequently in
terrupted by discussions between counsul as
| to the admissibility Of questions and replies.
The witness said that assuming Dr. Rioe's
statement to be true that the prisoner was in
state of exaltation and his judgment was
impaired--the prisoner, If sent to an insane
asylum, would not be discharged.
The witness, had, he said, seen two or three
ifnot more cases where patients had labored
under delusion of inspiration by the Deity,
and under that delusion had pursued the OBJ
ject of the so-called delusion, logically the
witness cited two cases that had come under
his notice of alleged inspiration; the witness
did not think that fearlessness was an unerring
indication Of belief in inspiration. In reply
to question from Mr.. Dayidge the witness
said that if q man claimed to be inspired, but
acted as a vulgar criminal, the presumptive
evidence against his claim would be strong.
Mr.. Scoville objected that what Mr.. Davidge
considered the conduct of vulgar criminal
and the opinion of the witness on the same
subject might be different. ''You will please
to leave that word vulgar out, now," said the
this case. 1t is all high-toned." The witness,
continuing, said that he had examined the
prisoner twice and watched his conduct in
court. Mr.. Davidge stated that he was not
at liberty to go into the examinations he had
made of the prisoner or his conduct in court.
|
was discharged from the Wards Island Hos
pital by DR.. Macdonald because he had re-
fused to sign death certificate in the case Of
a patient who was struck by keeper and
killed, and because in discussing a paper
before the New York Neurological Society he
had passed criticisms upon the management
of insane asylums in this country. Explaining
a statement in his cross examination that he
did not believe in future rewards or punish
ments, the witness said 81 am, like a great
many scientific men, what is called an agnos-
tic l don't know anything about that matter:
l want more evidence before make up my
mind" Other expert witnesses were exam
ined, but their opinions were made up from
the leading questions put by Mr.. Scoville to
the first witness.
WASHINGTON, December 6.-The Criminal
Court room was again densely crowded, many
doubtless attracted by the expectation that
President Arthur would appear this morning
to testify in the Guiteau case. Upon the open.
ing of the court Guiteau announced that he had
prepared an order for the attendance of thf
witnesses he had suggested on Saturday, and
he would desire the court to sign 1t at once
The order was handed up to Judge Cox, and
Guiteau, apparently satisfied that his wishes
would be law to the court, settled back in hi
chair and took up morning paper. Mr.. SEQ
vile called George G. Gorham, editor of the
Republican. Upon his failing to respond
| Chaa Farwa1I maml1ap af 6onoraoo fro,.