Stephens City star. (Stephens City, Va.) 1881-1883, 1882-02-04
j JUSTICE /!
GUITEAU FOUND "GUILTY AS In
DICTED."
THE VERDICT APPLAUDED.
THE BLOODY ASSASSIN'S IMPOTENT
RAGE.
He Curses the Jury and Calls Down ven-
geance on the Diety Upon Them.
SCENES IN THE COURTROOM.

|
SCENES IN THE COURT-ROOM.
After trial lasting over ten weeks, the
ease Of Charles J. Guiteau, indicted for the
murder of James A. Garfield, President of the
United States, on the I'd of July last came to
close in Washington, July 25th, the jury re-
turning verdict Of "Guilty as indicted"
| The announcement was greeted with enthu-
siastic demonstrations Of applause in the
courtroom. The result was surprise to the
assassin and his counsel, who believed the
jury would disagree. The jury were ready
with their verdict in ten minutes after retir-
ing, but were not called into the courtroom
for forty minutes owing to the absence of
Judge Cox. Judge Porter fin ished his argu-
ment for the prosecution, after having been
sebjected to frequent abuse by the prisoner,
who at times was wrought into frenzy of
passion by Judge Porter's scathing denun-
| citation of tho rime and it's author. The de-
| livery OF Judge Cox's charge occupied an
| hour and quarter. 1t was, in almost every
| particular, adverse to the prisoner. The
| latter denounced the verdict of the jury as
| an outrage, and, his counsel Will, doubtless,
| take the case to the court in banc. The YER
| dictis hailed with satisfaction throughout the
country.
| We give the important concluding speech of
| Judge Porter, which was the most scathing
ever delivered, and decidedly the most de-
| served upon the guilty assassin, who stands
before the world as the cowardly criminal for
depravity, indecency and blackguardism ever
convicted.
JUDGE PORTER RESUMES HIS ARGUMENT.
| Mr.. Porter then proceeded with his speech
He had reached portion of the argument
which was wearisome to him, and would be
still moro Nesrisone to the jury. 1t was the
| dry portion of evidence, having no interest
| but that which resulted from the revulsion of
human nature at the facts which have been
exposed He intended, because he had conf
dence in the jury, to make it brief. If it
were possible to condense the few salient
| points into few hours, he hoped not to de-
tain the court even this afternoon. His plan
had been otherwise, but he had been admon-
ished, by the snow, of the change of seasons,
and he felt that it was important that this
trial SHOULD come to an end. If he passed
hastilysover some topics which ought to be
considered, he would rely on the jury to
| supply his deficiency. Referring to the testi-
mony of DR.. North, he stated that witness
came here to swear this case through by
| fixing on his benefactor, Luther w. Guiteau,
| the guilt of this murder in transmitting his
own blood to his son. That witness had left
the stand after having planted a quivering
dart in the heart of the prisoner. If this
man were innocent now, he was guilty then,
for he was
ANIMATED BY THE SPIRIT OF MURDER
when he struck his father, taking him at o
disadvantage and fighting him in the spirit
of devil. In his turbulent passion, and
egotism, and wrath and hate of all mankind,
he turned, in his spirit of selfshness, his
| hand upon his honored father, and provoked
| th al fa thar ~ fiph which ha tho
oner) retreated with the ignominy of the
| coward-like coward, he shot the president
in the back. Mr.. Porter then referred TO the
| testimony of the prisoners brother, in order
to show, as he said, that when the prisoner
| was forty years of age; when he had MUIR
| dered Garfield and when Garfield was dead,
this brother, from the circumstances and
from his antecedent knowledge of the pris-
oncr, said that the prisoner was sane and
responsible. All that had changed that
opinion was the acting of the prisoner him
self, and the production of a letter from the
father which he regarded as evidence of in
sanity, but which l regarded as
| EVIDENCE OF DEPRAvITY.
The jury would recollect that this was a
witness who had stood by the prisoner with
the fidelity of a brother, who, though
wronged, had come here and was ready to
| contribute from his means, from his energy,
from his exertion, from all that he could, to
save this mans life /; and yet he had been
| y.
He believed John W. Guiteau to be an honest
man, feeling naturally the bias which ncline's
one to save brothers. life, and to save his
fathers name from infamy. But this brother
was an honest man, although, under the cir
cumstances, the opinions Of John w. Guiteau
were no safe guide to the jury. The facts
stated by him were facts that were rooted as
the oak tree is rooted, and cannot be re-
moved. They might as well attempted to
uproot that oak as to uproot the conviction
which this testimony must carry to their
minds. However it might have been on the
I'd of July, prior to that he was
| NO MORE INSANE THAN THE JURY,
the judge, or the counsel. This little circum-
stance was one of those things that spoke to
the consciousness. Was it depravity, weak
| ness, or selishness, or was it disease of the
brain, durable in an hour by an act of MUIR
| der?
| In quoting from and commenting upon the
testimony of John W. Guiteau, Mr.. Porter
said that the prisoner, through his counsel,
confidence for acqdittal; or, failing acquittal,
disagreement or, failing disagreement,
pardon. He had two tones to his voice two
masks to his face.
The Prisoner-How many have you got,
Porter?
Mr.. Porter-One of his masks shows the
sanity Of the Pharisee, and the other the hide
GUS grin OF the fiend of hell.
Commenting further on John W. Guiteau 8
testimony, Mr.. Porter came to the point
where the prisoner had exclaimed.
| JESUS CHRIST STRUCK BACK,
and 80 did l." and he said this prayerful
Christian struck back at Blaine. He asked
Garfield to remove him under q menace,
which was unfortunately fulfilled. He struck
back at Garfield; and, unfortunately for the
nation, for the household and for the victim
of his malice, he struck home. Commenting
upon the expressions of the prisoner excus-
ing his own conduct because he had been
initiating the course of Jesus Christ and st.
Paul, in going about from town to town and
from city to city, Mr.. Porter spoke of the
prisoner as travelling from state to state
4 swindling women as we'll as inn keepers, and
then quietly saying that he had paid the deb
because he acknowledged it, and that il
should be charged over to the Lord
"That is false, sir" said the prisoner
Mr.. Porter--Instead of Paul swindling an6
| hiR Diyine Maatar ha worL al his trad a. as