Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-09-07
THE STAR ROUTE TRIALS.
COL. INGERSOLL'S ARGUMENT
CONCLUDED.
WaIsh's Evidence DIssected-A Nov
Ing Plea for MercY-The Attorney
General Closing the Case.

WASHINGTON, September 6.-Ccl. Inger-
soil resumed his argument in the star route
trial to-day, and after some desultory dis
cussiOn with the court, he addressed him
self to an examination of Walsh's testimo-
ny, though he thought that it had been
ground to powder already. He said that
everything in the world was true in proper
tion-that 1t agreed with human experience.
Take a spar crystal from the far North
and another from the far South
put them together and they would fit
together exactly. So it was with facts
Every fact would fit every other fact, but a
lie would not fit anything but another lie.
Finally, there would come place where q
lie had to join some truth, and then came 8
tumble. Now for the improbsbilities in
Walsh's testimony.
First. Bankers and brokers did not loan
money without taking notes.
Second. They did not take notes which
bore no interest. People always found it to
their interest to mention interest.
Third. Bankers and brokers did not take
notes payable on demand.
Fourth. 1t was hardly probable that when
banker held a mans nOn-interest bearing
note for $12 600 he would lend the same
man $l3, 800 also without interest.
Filth. 1t Was improbable that he would
loan the same person S., 400 more without
taking any note, unless he did 1t through
force of habit.
Sixth. When a banker called and pre-
sented notes for settlement, and his debtor
took the notes and put them in his pocket,
1t was highly improbable that the banker
would submit to such treatment.
Seventh. II Brady took the notes by force
1t was improbable that he would put him
self in the power of the man he had robbed,
and would say to him, "Of course you are
my enemy, and now put it in your power
to be revenged. l am a bribe taker and
thief" Boiling the story down, it amounted
to this: : A rich man borrowed without ne
cessity and a poor broker loaned without
security. The improbabilitY of this story
would breed suspicion and incredulity Itself.
No man believed it-no man ever would be-
lieve it-and it was for the jury TO say
whether 1t was true or not.
Col. IngersOll then went on to argue that
assuming Walsh's testimony to be true, it
affected none of the defendants excepting
Brady, and only went to show that he had
received bribes-nOt that he was con-
cerned Ia a conspiracy. The same line of
argument would apply to Rerdell's confes-
sion. Ii bound nobody but himself, and
was not confession of his completely in a
conspiracy. He did not confess that he was
guilty of a single overt act. Col. Ingersoll
then took up and replied to the arguments of
the prosecution based on the subject OF ex-
travsgance in tine star route service. The
next argument used by the prosecution was
the prOductiveness. But that had been so
perfectly answered that he would allude to
1t only for the purpose of inquiring of the
attorneys for the government how they
would like to have their fees settled ON
that basis of productiveness (laughter)
The jury had been told that It SEas hard to
prove conspiracy case, and that they must
be economical enough to put up with little,
no matter how hard 1t was to
be proved. 1t must be proved
because 1t was much harder, or should be
much harder, to convince a man without
testimony. He laid down the proposition
that the hypothesis OF guilt must follow
naturally from the facts proved, and to be
consistent, not with some of the facts, not
with the majority Of them, but with
every fact. The evidence must be
such as to exclude every reason
able hypothesis except that
of the guilt of the defendants. The prose-
cution, he said, had endeavored to terror
ize the jury by direct and indirect threats
through the newspapers and through ap-
peals to public opinion, and upon this point
he dwelt at some length. Then reaching
his perOration, he said:
"Find a verdict according to the evidence,
no matter whom 1t hits, no matter whom It
destroys, no matter whom It kills. All YOU
have read, all the papers have printed
must find no lodgment in your brain.
Regard them no more than the noises
animals make in the street. You must
stand by the testimony and by the law,
which the court gives you. That is all we
ask. These articles in the papers are not
printed in the hope that justice would be
done. They were printed in the hope that
slander might be justified by your
verdict. In this case you are absolutely
supreme. You have nothing to do with
the supposed desire Of any man, or the sup
posed desire OF any department Cunning
and addressing his remarks to the Attorney
General), or the supposed desire of any gov
ernment official, or the supposed desire Of
any President, or the supposed desire Of
the public. You have nothing to do with
these things. You have to do only with the
evidence. Here all power is powerless
except your own. When asked to please
the public you should think Of the
lives you are asked to wreck,
of the homes your verdict would darken,
of the hearths it would desolate, Of the
cheeks It would wet with dew, of the char
acer it would destroy, of the wife it would
worse than widow, OF the children It would
worse than orphan. When asked to please
the public, think of those consequences.
When asked to act from fear, hatred, NAL
0uences. Whoever does right
clothes himself in suit of armOr
which the arrows of prejudice could not
penetrate, but whoever does wrong is re-
sponsible for all the consequences, to the
last sigh, to the last tear. You are told by
Mr.. Merrick that you should have no sym
pathy, that you should be like icicles, that
you should be Godlke. That is not my
doctrine. The higher you get in the scale
of Being, the grsnder, nobler, tenderer you
will become. Kindness is always evidence
of greatness. Malice is the property of the
small soul, and whoever allows the feeling of
brotherhood to die in his heart becomes a
wild beast. Not a Kings crown nor the
DeputY's sword, the Marshal's truneheon
nor the Judges robe became them with one
half so good grace as mercy does. And
yet the only mercy we ask is mercy of an
honest verdict. l appeal to you for my
clients because the evidence shows that they
are honest men. / appeal to you for my
client, Stephen w. Dorsey, because the evil
dence shows that he is q man with an intel
lectuAl horizon and mental sky, a man of
genius, generous and honest.
"Yet, this prosecution, this government,
these attorneys, representing the majesty Of
the republic, representing the only cal re
public that ever existed, have asked you
not only to violate the law of the
land, but also the law of nature.
They have maligned nature. They have
laughed at mercy. They have trampled on
the holiest human ties, and have even made
light of 1t because wife in this trial has
sat by her husbands side. There
is a painting in the Louvre, a paint
ing OF the desolation of despair
and love. 1t represents "The Night Of the
Crucifxion." The world is wrapped in
shadows. The stars are dead and yet, in
the darkness is seen a kneeling form. 1t is
Mary Msgdalene, with loving lipsIand hands
pressed against the bleeding feet of Christ.
The skies were never dark enough nor
stariess enough. the storm was never fierce
enough nor wild enough, the quick bolts Of
heaven were never lurid enough. and the
arrows Of SANDER never few thick enough
to drive that noble woman from her hus-
bands side. Applause. And so It is in
all of human speech. The hOliest word is
woman"
while Colonel IDgersoll was delivering
this speech several ladies burst into tears,
and Mrs. Dorsey kept her handkerchief to
her eyes for some minutes.
''Now, gentlemen, have examined this
testimony. l have examined every charge
in the indictment and every charge
made outside of the indictment. l
have shown you that the Indictment
is one thing snd the evidence another.
"I have shown you that not single
charge is submitted against s. W. Dorsey.
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