Omaha daily bee., 1883-02-15

and finally resulted In q decision In
favor of the defendant. The trial be-
gan last Monday a week ago, and from
the first attracted almost national at
tention. During the building of q
new court house the spacious council
chamber lis being used as a court room.
and the room is packed with inter-
ested spectators from the opening I'M
til the close Of court esch day. Hun
dreds are turned away daily, and there
Is some talk Of renting the Grand
opera house for the remainder OF the
trial.
THE AUDIENCES
attending the daily mi OF this
cause celebre are composed OF tho bet
ter class of people, and it is said some
of them pay pretty good prices for
even standing room. Each day de-.
velops something in this now cele-
brated case, and the evidence 80 far
elected is damaging to the character
of the plsiatiff. The testimony has
not been without its dirty features,
and this Is the more surprising con
siderlng the hitherto high social stand-
Ing Of Mrs. Cougar and Capt. Wal.
lace. The people are generally as
founded to think that language and
actions such as are credited to Mrs.
Cougar could be laid to the door of a
woman who has always held herself
up to the public as a model of what
the women of this century could and
should be. One very strong feature
la the case Is that the most damaging
testimony SO far elected is from wit
nesses whose character Is unimpeacha-
BILE, and In which not the slightest
flaw can be found. The witnesses, in
the main, are old and influential citi-
zsns whose m are above the
shadow of reproach, and the general
belief is that the defendant has al
ready established his case. Mrs.
Cougar, the rla,-t,f. is a prominent
feature in the court room az she sits
erect and usually defiant, her husband
at her right hand and Capt. Wallace,
with whom she is charged
with criminal intimacy, at her
left. Sitting round about her,
sewing, knitting or reading, are some
half. dozen or more ladies of the tenn
perance league, all firm believers In
the innocence Of their besmirched
ooworker, and ready at trying mo.
ments with words of comfort or cheer.
Ocoasio nally, when the evidence Ia
unusually severe, Mrs. Cougar will re-
sort to tears, but soon RECEIVERS, and,
with her eyes firmly fastened on the
witness, listens intently to the testi-
mony. Frequently some point In the
evidence will be noted down by her.
and consultations with one oil the
other OF her eminent counsel are
numerous. She is a woman of com.
handing carriage, tall, supple and
graceful, and her face, though show
ing the marks of time, is still very
attractive. She Is credited with being
a woman of rare mental ability, a
, fluent talker and a writer Of no mean
pretentions. Her paper, Our Herald,
has frequently made its sting felt, and
it's aggressiveness has not been alto.
gether irresponsible for tho unpless.
ant situation In which she now finds
herself. John D. Cougar, the
HUSBAND OF THE PLAINTIFF
in this case Ia o small, pleasant-looking
gentleman, with dark hair and whisk.
ers and q face that betokens a man in
poor health. He Is q lawyer, with q
large and lucrative practice, and has
always borne a character which Ia
above reproach. He Is of a retiring
disposition, yet always gentlemanly
and highly respected by every one. 1t
has always been said of him that he
was "the man without a known enc
my" The very damaging testimony
concerning The b tsithh as slR@ssssa Of pfat tbs
the most Implicit confidence Is having
It's effect upon him, and the close Of
each day but adds to the burden of sor.
row so plainly depleted on his face.
Wrapped up in his business and hav-
ing the stricteSr confidence In his wife's
integrity, this Gaze has burst like q
thunder. bolt upon him. Capt. w.
De Witt Wallace, the alleged paramour
OF the plaintiff, seems to be the worst
broken up party in the case. His
manner, usually easy and dignifed, Ia
quick and nervous, and he looks like
a man momentarily expecting the
crack Of doom, yet dreading It's com.
Ing. He has been q prominent worker
In temperance and religious fields for
years, and has several times been
nominated for high Offices, although
invariably defeated. He was the re.
publican nominee for state senator
from this district OF the recent state
election, but was most ANONYMOUSLY
showed under. He is q married man
and has an interesting family. 1t was
Mrs. Cougars effort to boom the cause
of Wallace In the recent election that
led to making of the remark on which
this suit was brought. She was very
abusive of all anti-prohibitionIsts, and
Chief Mandler was one of her Victims.
He lisa German and an avowed anti.
prohibitionist, but a man whose char.
acter for truth and veracity Is above
reproach. The evidence 30 far estab.
fishes frequent clandestine meetir GO
between Mrs. Gourgar and
Capt. Wallace, and one witness,
Miss Mary Cunningham, a young lady
of spotless character, testiies to Wal.
lace having staid all night at the house
of Mrs. Cougar during her husbands
absence. 1t he's also been established
by more than one witness that her
visits to the law ofics of the festive
captain wore neither few nor far be-
tween. The defense do not expect to
close their case for several days yet,
and hint that they have some evidence
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