Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1885-10-02

STATING THE FACTS.
Gentlemen of the jury, upon the
23rd Of Dec. 1894, Jacob L.Torian was
residing in the southern portion of
this county and managing the farm
of Mrs. Eliza Steger, in the bloom of
health and young manhood, On that
evening he had gone to his room with
Peter AdcOck, who had called TO pay
him friendly visit. After they had
been there half an hour or more, To-
rian seated himself att a table with
his face to the fire and with Adcock
on his left aud began writing letter
for his friend. Willie thus engaged
an assassin's bullet came crashing
through the glass and Torian falls a
quivering corpse upon the floor. Ad-
cock, shot and wounded, flies for
refuge and safety 10 the door and
when he attempts to unbolt the door
finds that he too is wounded. While
opening the door with his left hand,
his right arm hanging helpless by
his side, three other shots are fired at
him aud find a lolgment in the VIM
dow aud wall beyond. Thus you
learn in few words how Torian was
killed and Adcock wounded by the
five shots which were fired through
the window on that December even-
ing. This is simple recital of the
facts in this case. 1t is more potent
and more powerful than anv language
can depict the crime. This young
man, so far as lie knew, had not enemy
upon the face of the earth. He was
the friend, as he supposed, of every
man in tie community. Sc exemplary
and so kind was hc that Mrs. Stegcr
tells you that she had learned to re-
gard him as a son, and Lizzie Stegcr
looked upon him as a brother. Such
was the mildness and the gentleness
of the man that some cold -blooded,
cruel and heartless assassin crept and
crawled in slime to that window and
without cause, without excuse and
without provocation hurled his soul
into eternity. This surpasses all the
villainy and atrocity of romance and
Is only equaled by the blacklist pages
in the records of history. Such q
man did not belong to the human
species, although he may have worn
the human form. lie deserves to be
classed with fiends and demons
brought by the imagination from the
realms of the damned. No thug IN
the wilds OF India could surpass this
crime in enormity. Nor the Islanders
of Java whose religion is to murder
He is the proper associate of mon
strosities who disgrace the human
form. We are told that in Scotland
there was a man whose business was
TO murder and who gained liveli
hood by selling the bodies of his vic
tins. Even this is no worse thar
the crime committed by some assas,
sin in this county, nine months ago
/ want 10 impress this idea on youl
minds. gaa
The man who did this deed is no
to be Judged by the ordinary stand.
ards. Such flends, such abandoned
wrctches are not movediby the sam,
feelings and impulses that arc fount
in the breast of man. So when thu
counsel for the defense talk of wha
you would have done and wha
| you would not have done it canno
apply to you in the light ofthis crime
1t can only apply to a man capable
of such dastardly deed as this was
| have said that Torian was assassin
ated in your State and in your county
About this there is no controvers
no disagreement. There is no con
troversity that Torian was shot ant
killed. That the deed was done will
a Smith ~ Wesson pistol No. 3S, ant
that this ball taken from his body II
the deadly messenger that shed hi
life's blood. 1t is a fact that he wa;
not only murdered and assassinalet
on Dec. %, 1884, but it was also don't
at 25 minutes past 6 o'clock, as | be
lieve the evidence shows.
THE QUESTION OF TIME.
Here / begin to diverge from III,
other gentleman. They say tha
it occurred about Z o'clock and yol
are urged with all the vehemence O