Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1884-01-23

PITTsBURGH, Jan. Is, 1S84.-Court
opened promptly at $50 o'clock The
jury was called, and each member re
spoDded promptly, the effects. of The
trial being not yet observable in the
countenances or department of the
twelve.
Mr.. Playford for the defense, open
ed proceedings by addressing the jury
as follows:
1T has been truly said that prosper
i;y is the test of friends and bad for.
tune is the furnace in which they
are tried On the altar Of
friend hip l cast my offering
this morning, aud | am here to defend
| that boy whose father was my friend
before be was killed This is a remark
able case, and it has been conducted in
a remarkable way We do not dispute
or deny the killing Has it occurred
to the jury that it would be singular il
we should try to show that there is
nothing singular in the fact that citi-
zen was shot down in the quiet of the
evening without a warning causeI
Does it not, gentlemen, show that
there was an unnatural cause, an tnsan.
uy? The wealth, had they
so minded, could have shown you that.
This case has had fearful beginning.
The Commonwealth could have shown
you that with the terrible disgrace, and
the scenes that had preceded, young
| Mutt knew not at the moment what he
was doing. And that we shall prove
to you We shall show you by evil
dence, that at the time he did the deed,
the past wrongs and outrages upon his
| family had made him unable to control
his will That he was pressed into the
commission OF that act by controlling
| influence and overpowering, is the de-
fense in this case. An infence that he
could not resist, is our declaration of
his part in the deed performed.
We will show you in the course of
our investigation the circumstances
that preceded this shooting. We will
show you his affectionate nature, his
love of home, his devotion to his father
and his mother aud sisters. We will
show what an interest he took in the
farm and his fathers and the family
affairs. The deep interest and love be
bad for all home projects. Then we
will show you how that boy was
changed by the murder of his father.
| How he became lonely, melancholy
and sad. His entire life's current SEEM
ed changed. But up to the trial of
Lyman Dukes for killing Mr.. Mutt,
young James knew nothing about the
terrible letters that Dukes had written,
casting horrible aspersions upon his
sister, baDkrupting the family's honor,
as well as destroying its head When
the 10y heard those terrible letters, the
most damnably horrible that human
hand has ever penned or human
thoughts devised, letters which will be
read here in evidence to show you,
when be heard those letters running his
sister, and forever casting a stigma up.
on all his little sisters, his mind gave
way. That we will show YOU He
walked the floor nights long, spent in
weeping. His appetite forsook him.
Reason was overtbrowD All this we
will Show you. Gentlemen of the jury,
| say that not in fifty years has man
been convicted for Staying the man who
bad seduced his wife or sister Not in
fifty years, even in cases where strong
men did the deed. Even Daniel +.
Sickles, whose wife had been debauch-
cd. man strong in mentality, was ac-
quilted. But there is no case paral .el
TO this present one in the annals of our
country, Not only did this mau Dukes
seduce this boys sister, as has been adj
mltted, but be also added TO bis damn
able deed by killing that sisters father
Years ago a man named Carter, who
had seduced the wife of man named
Smith, previous to Smiths marriage to
her, was shot by Smith That case
was tried by Judge Allison, and Ali.
son allowed evidence to be produced
that Washington Smiths mind had
been so affected by discovering his
wife's seduction that he was not re.
sponsible and accordingly acquitted
him. Now if Judge could admit evi.
deDcs in case like that to prove men.
tai arrangement, how more rapidly
should il be admitted in case like this
when the sister was seduced and the
father murdered
No man who committed such crime
as Dukes should go unpunished
Dukes knew that He knew there was
the hand of fate awaiting him. We
shall show you by the best medical
authority that there Is insanity pro.
duced by grief and outrage, and that
those causes can dethrone reason and
render the sufferer Irresponsible No
twelve Indians would hang n boy for
taking in bis hands d justice that be.
longed TO him And you, gentlemen
of the jury, will not add to sisters
destruction and fathers murder, the
murder Of brother and an orphaned
son. The test of right and wrong does
not prevail in q case Of this kind We
do not claim that James Mutt did not
know what he was doing; but we dc
claim that his disordcred mind nc
longer had a control upon his actions
The test of right and wrong is not to
be taken into consideration in this in
stance"
J BY Patterson-"We admit that"
Mr.. Playford continuing, "We will
call Dr. Fuller the physician Of the
Mutt family, who has attended the boy
from his birth, and will testify that ht
was always delicate and Of nervous
temperament We will show that af
ter the shooting Of his father the liabil
ity to mental disturbances that is he
reditary in James Nuts family, anG
which has afflicted his uncles and his
aunt. took strong hold upon him, ant
affected his reason 80 that be did not
possess a control of himself up to the
hour bs shot Dukes. Meeting Dukes
day after day, after Dukes strange ac
| k;,,, l., h;a la