The Portland daily press., 1882-01-16
GUITEAU'S TRIAL.
Argument by Mr.. Reed for the De-
fence.
GUITEAU REFUSED THE PRIVILEGE
OF ADDRESSING THE JURY.
The Prisoner Continues His Annoying
Interjecti0ns.

crowd Streamed in, hll1ng all the vacant CHAIRS
except those reserved for prominent visitors.
By 10 o'clock all the seats in the court room
were filled. Judge Cox, hanked by Judge
Hagner and Representative Amos Townsend,
sat on the bench. Counsel were at their tables
Mrs Scoville and ]. Wilson Guiteau again sat
side by side at the counsel table OF the defence.
Guiteau, of course, sat in the dock. Ex-Atty.
Gen. Williams, Robson and Crane, and Repre-
sentative j. Hyatt Smith sat in the audience.
Senator Kellogg sat in the witness box. The
old-fashioned crier opened court with the old
fashioned cry. The jurors (all of whom looked
we'll save poor Hobbs, who seemed broken
down with grief at the loss of his wife, answer
ed to their names, and Guiteau promptly took
the floor to say that he had received checks ag-
gregating in amount $4,000. Some OF them
he supposed were good. He wanted people to
send him no other kind, good checks or none.
He wanted every body to understand, too, that
he was doing his own banking business, ana
desired the checks made payable to his order.
Before Reed began his argument, Scovile re-
quested Judge Cox to decide whether Guiteau
should be allowed to speak in his own behalf
to the jury III he decided in the affirmative,
he wanted Guiteau to speak before either Mr.
Reed or himself. Judge Cox promptly decided
that Guiteau could not address the jury. he
felt sure that he would abuse the privilege by
dragging IN irrelevant matter, by insolence and
imprudence and, being thus convinced that he
would transcend the limits of decorum, must
decline to permit him to talk at all. If there
was anything in his so.called speech which
ought to be placed before the jury, his counsel
could incorporate it in their remarks, or could
read it for him. Reed and Scoville, disappoint-
ed, but not Respondent accepted the decision
with the best grace possible, but Guiteau was
not like minded. He broke out fercely in de-
nunciation of a decision which, If allowed to
stand, he said would be an outrage to Amerl-
can jurisprudence, and cooled down only when
he happened to think that the judge might
possibly be persuaded to reverse his decision
Guiteau having concluded his little speech,
Reed took the floor in front of the jury, ana
began at once an ingenious. carefully thought
out speech. He thought that the long and la
bored speech of Mr.. Davidge indicated appre-
henson on the part of the prosecution that
there was, after all, something in the rub
bishn of the defence that would destroy their
case. Mr.. Reed thought they were right.
There was certainly not need OF their DIV cling
on the crime. That, in all its atrocity was ad-
mitted by the defence, bat that the miserable
being who committed it was sane, WIS what
the defence disputed, and he believed would
dispute successfully. If they did not leave rea-
sonable doubt in the minds OF the jury let them
hang him. Referring to the Garfield letter 10
Judge Payne, read by Porter, he said that II
Mr.. Garfield could return to-day he would say,
''Acquit this man; he cannot be sane. have
never wronged him. He had no cause to kill
me-" Mr.. Reed believed that Mrs GARFIELD
prayed nightly that, if it was in accordance
with the evidence, that the jury would render
a verdict of acquittal on the ground OF insanity.
She would rather, as he would rather, that this
verdict be rendered than that the American
people be leveled with the despotisms OF the
East. Rather let the jury say to the world,
"This man is insane" Mrs. Garfield was pray
ing, as he was praying, to guide this jury IN
their deliberations, SO that, If 1T be possible,
they may, for the honor of the nation, acquit
this miserable being on the ground OF insanity:
He referred to the case OF Lawrence, acquitted
on the ground of insanity, charged with an at
tempt to assassinate President Jackson, and to
that of Charlotte Corday, whom he pronounced
insane executed hurriedly for the assassination
of Marat; also TO the Hatfield and the Oxford
cases, pointing out points OF resemblance 10
the present case. He read to the jury the quar-
ifcations of the instructions OF the court, lay
ing down the right and wrong test as the crlte-
rlon of sanity. He claimed that Mr. Davidge
had slurred over the qualifications of the gem
eral rule. The case turned on these quallnca-
lions, that which gave the defence the dement,
of reasonable doubt, and that which modlhed
the right and wrong test SO as to PENNY argu-
ment on the part of the defence as to the delu-
sions of the prisoners mind He dwelt upon
the fact that each one of the men in the jury
was king. AS to the facts in this case trey
could not be, he felt sure, swayed by any con-
sderation extraneous to the facts. There were
no powers behind their thrones mightier than
the thrones themselves. They were the mas
tiers of the situation, but it would require moral
courage to stand up for the truth To do JUS
tice to the accused, they would have to be NOR
al, heroic. Some one, or all OF them would
have to meet contumely, possibly persecution
If they did not, notwithstanding all that they
might have to meet, do justice they would be
unworthy to be called men. Mr. Reed CONTRAST
ed Christ's mercful treatment of the insane OF
his day. He healed them. The prosecution
hang him, hang him." ".The American peo-
ple,'' broke in Gulteau, 'say let him go. The
majority of them are coming over to my side :.
Mr. Reed vent on to read from the witnesses
Bible those passages which referred to Chrlst's
dealings with the insane, with those possess
ed of the DEVIL As the New Testament said
of the lunatics, as j. w. Guiteau said OF his
brother, let them initiate the example OF the
Master, and heal, rather than hang, this poor
wretch. He then narrated the sad story OF
Guiteau's life. He dwelt upon the pure and
peaceable life which he led luntil he was 10
years old, when the first act of iniquity, the as
sault on his father, occurred. While MIR. Reed
was detailing the facts of that assault, Gulteau
broke in to say that the assault never occurred.
While Mr.. Reed was looking for the testimony
respecting the assault, Guiteau said: This
gives me chance to say that I will have my
speech printed in all the newspapers in Amerl-
ca and want your honor to read it. They
will argue that question of permitting me to
deliver it, believe, after you We read it, you'll
admit it," Reed read the evidence respecting
the assault. Guiteau, he said, did not remeDa-
Der it. NO" said Guiteau, sarcastically, my
mind is SO weak and SO FULL Mr.. Reed was
unwilling to admit that Judge Porter was
right in saying that he struck his father In the
back.
1.-THE witness said so,' remarked Davidge.
"Don't go back on your own witness" THAT
was intended for pun, Reed" said Gulteau
ITS rather faint, though guess 1t would
take microscope to see it," AT this there
was laugh. Dwelling upon this assault, he
said: "But the poor prisoner doesn't remember
it,"
mo-" said Guiteau, "nor any one else. Why
it's all bosh don't believe word OF it, nor
does anybody else"
Then Mr.. Reed said that no further act OF
violence was charged to Guiteau until the
squabble with his brother.
THAT never occurred" said Guiteau.
Then, continued Mr.. Reed, no other occurred
save the assault on his sister in 1879 with an
axe.
"And that never occurred" said Guiteau.
At the age of 20, said Reed, the great change
in his life came. He entered into blackened
future through the Oneida community, the
very vestibule of hell. He was driven into it
by his father, this pure, unpolluted youth, into
this sink of iniquity, for the purpose OF
saving his soul, the grandest object man
can ever have before him, the one object
and energies of every man. His father
said: "You will go to hell if you do not go
there"
"I went into hell when went there"
broke in Guiteau 81 was in it for six years,
got out then"
Mr.. Reed described the character OF the
Oneida community as hell on earth, whose
only object was lasciviousness, and claimed for
him immunity from the immoral life led by
most of the community, with the exception of
the three instances of immortality mentioned
by himself He claimed credit for the adms- |
sion of these immoral acts by Guiteau. he |
read the letter Guiteau wrote to his father, and
that which he wrote to thetOnieda community |
after leaving the latter. No body OF IL honest, |
sensible men anywhere could read these letters |
and pronounce them the work OF sane man. |
They fairly bristled in every sentence with in |
,anity. No sane mind ever guided the hand |
that penned such lines. He analysed the let |
ers, pointed out all the references to Guiteau's
proposed partnership with the Deity IN the |
publication of the Theocrat, a religious daily, |
Is evidence of insanity. He laid particular |
stress upon the fact that the letters were not |
for the occasion, but were Id |
Years old.
Mr. Reed dwelt upon the fact, brought out in |
he letters, that Guiteau lived in Hoboken on |
Tried beef, crackers, lemonade, etc., at the rate
If 1925 year, as evidence of his morality. He |
could not have lived an immoral life in the |
frog shops and deus of iniguity of New York
IN 1925 year. His mental faculties, not his |
moral faculties, were diseased.
At 1890 P M. the usual Monday recess was |
aiken until o'clock. Guiteau bad his first |
Inner, and everybody else went out to get |
unch and breath the fresh air.
f,ar Mr. W