Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-11-29
A CRANKY FAMILY.
MORE OF THE HISTORY OF IHE GUI-
TEAUS BROUGHT TO LIGHT.
Mrs. Scoviile Concludes Her Testimony
The Assassin's Brother on the Stand
An Unfavorable Account of the Assas-
sin-The Witness More Daft than the
Defendant -Guiteau Himself Sworn.

was densely crowed this morning, and at 10
O'Clock Mrs. Scoville resumed her testimony.
She described Guiteau's actions during his
visit to her in 1878, and said she was then con-
yinced he was insane and sholld be put in an
an asylum
Frequent objections were raised by counsel
for the prosecution to the character OF the
questions propounded by Scoville, and con-
tlnuous discussion ensued between counsel
upon the advissbillty of certain evidence. At
times some irritablllty was manifested.
"The witness does not understand the rules
of evidence, gents" said Scoville.
ayes, but you are supposed to-" was the
reply.
been upon the witness stand, replied with
much emphasis, mo, and I'm no lawyer
either"
OTHER WITNESSES.
Mrs. Scoville's examination concluded, the
crosse Examination was postponed to allow
Geo. D. Burroughs of Chicago to testify, as
he desired to leave the city. This witness
boarded with the Scovilles at the time OF
Guiteau's visit in 1878, and made up his mind
that the prisoner was either fool or crazy.
He was satisfied Guiteau was unsettled in in
tellect.
There was brief interval before the next
witness appeared and Guiteau took advantage
of the opportunity, and broke out with, II de-
sire to tell all these crank newspaper men that
appear here as my own counsel. That Is
my answer to all the silly stuff they have been
delivering themselves of for some days past.
Some Of these newspaper men have gone
crazy. Iappear here IN part as my own
counsel as l have the right to do under the
law and constitution of America"
No effort was made to check Guiteau, and
no notice whatever of the interruption was
taken by the court.
G. 8. Jocelyn, of the Oneida community,
thought Guiteau's marked characteristic was
intense egotlsm.
JOHN W. GUITEAU,
brother of the prisoner, was next examined.
He had not been on good terms with his
brother for a number of years. but had no
doubt of his sanity until he receiv some let
ters in October. Since he had me on here
and had seen his brother in the court room
and at the Jail, he had become satisfied be was
insane.
On being eross-examined witners admitted
that before he had come to Washington he
had always in talking of the case said he be
heved his brother was responsible; he believ ed
him responsible but not sane-Iesponsible
because as he thought at some period of his
life the I.risoner had voluntarily surrendered
himself to evil practices rather than good.
IDENTIFY fearing his brothers candor was in.
juring his case and with! considerable bitterness
interrupted, "My brother and ]. have not been
on good terms for nineteen years He always
sympathlzed with my father on that Oneida
community business, while Scoville and my
sister sympsthized with me. The last time l
saw my brother In Boston we had some angry
words. So he does not come here to testify
for me with the ordinary force brother usu-
o1I I'm ry1o m nd 10 haa
changed his views, however, in ny case. I
want the public to understand
about:this,' Guiteau continued to interrupt,
explain, and correct witness. Once Judge
Davidge attempted to stop him, but he waived
his hand imperiously, saying, "You keep
quiet, judge, If you please"
Shortly after the witness was asked in con-
nection with an incident he had related, II he,
at that time, thought the prisoner insane.
Guiteau quickly anticipated his reply, by
saying, "Why, of course, he has always
thought was badly cranked." Witness said
he never had seen the slightest traces of in.
sanity in his father.
AFTER RECESS.
After recess j. w. Guiteau resumed the
stand He heard his Uncle Abraham was in
sane His Uncle Francis Wilson Guiteau,
mentioned in the family as Francis Guiteau
second, died in an asylum. He understood
that 10 early life Francis had fought duel
with rival in love. Witness had understood
his uncle had killed man, but the record of
the asylum showed his insanity to have beea
caused by modification at fighting a sham
duel. Besides Abby Maynard, daughter of his
Aunt Julia, and Augusts Parker, who was a
cousin of witness, had never heard OF any
any other case of insanity in the family.
scoville-"What is your opinion now as to
yonr fathers sanity9"
Witness-"I think he Is sane:n
Q-"What do you mean by saying your
brother was possessed of demon or devil!"
A-"The religious theory is that there are
two forces in the universe, one under satan
or the devil and the other under God or Jesus
Christ. My father held the view that there
were living in the world these who we're
seized of the devil or satan and Of Christ or
God. he believed these two forces were at
war one with the other, and that at
present and since the fall of man
satan had to great extent determined to pos
sess himself of all those he conld and he did
possess himself of all those who were not ab-
solute believers in the Lord Jesus Christ as
the Saviour and who had not been saved from
the power of sin by complete union with the
LORD and Saviour, Jesus Christ; that all evil,
all disease, all deformity, all infrmity, was the
result of sin or the admission OF those who
had free will that they were
under the domination of satan or
the evil spirit or of the evil nature. That was
myfathsr' theological view; 1t was my BROTH
er's and is mine, and SO believed at the same
time in my brothers. life as he had free will
to choose good or evil he must have, through
his evil, through his wilfulness, through his
stubborness, through his peryersity OF nature,
allowed satan to gain such control over him.
He was under the power Of satan. That idea
is one on which based my opinion that my
brother was morally res ponsible to God, but
perhaps not responsible according to human
or legal responsibility, being in one sense In
sane"
The prisoner-"lou have that thing wrong
side up.'
Witness-"Perhaps have"
The prisoner-"That's very poor theology
and very poor position for you to take"
Coming back to the subject of his uncle,
Abraham. Gulteau, witness stated that when
he saw him last in 1857 he was "off his basel
very badly. he was ''a gassy blow-hardy kind
of man." Witness would have said of him
he ''was little weak In the upper story" BE
remembered his brother in his infancy. he
was SO nervous that he could not keep still
for five minutes. His father once offered him
ten cents if he would do SO and he old not get
the money. His mother had salt rheum very
badly; that disease affected witneas and bis
sister; he never heard of it In the prisoner.
SARAH PARKER,
of Chicago, widow Of Augustus and cousin ot
the prisoner, testified that her husband died In
an insane asylum. The prisoner and his wife