The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-08-20

nessea of the witnesses for the State,
and particularly of the weak and
contradictory testimony of the alleged
shooting at the police by Samuel FielGen. But
on this point the prosecution has wasted little
time and it is not necessary to conviction
Spies, whom Blacks associates had excused as a
rhapsodist--a kind of sensational liar--Black
set forth as q humanitarian, allied in principle
and purpose to John Brown. The defense are
not looking for acquittal; they will be salts
fed with disagreement. Blacks speech pointed
to this, and amounted to powerful effort to
provoke doubt in the mind of any shaky jury
man to the technical guilt of the prisoners.
Personally Capt. w. P. Black is a tall, spare,
military appearing man of forty-four years,
handsome, graceful and of gentlemanly bear
ing. His iron-gray hair, mustache and beard
give him a patriarchal look. He is a native
of Kentucky, of Scotch-Irish descent. One
brother is &. leader of the Irish Liberals promi
nent advocate Of tenant right and reform; an
other brother is Gen. John c. Black, Commits
sioner of Pensions His wife. Texas lady. is
always present, taking notes, managing the
flower department. of the trial, and whispering
comfort to Mrs. Spies and her daughter who sit
next their handsome brother at the end of the
line of prisoners.
Whatever studied rhetorical gems wide vo-
cabulary. pleasing and powerful voice. grace
full and vigorous gesticulation can do to impress
the finer sensibilities of the twelve arbiters of
his clients fate, you may be sure Captain Black
matter of course They do not look like body
Of men to lose sight of the landmarks set by the
State ana the evidence, and lose their way in the
fog and mist of verbal eloquence.
Under Blacks ten-hours' speech the prisoners
frightened up and looked hopeful following
closely his terms, aygumentative, denunciatory,
derisive persuasive pathetic-always i'm
pressive and eloquent-as forlorn hope He is
the senior counsel standing between them and
conviction. The Jews-Jews to the core and in
k1ra ZaiSl ci1t
little figure in court. and the hard work and re-
sponsibility have fallen on Black and Foster.
The day wore on and out, and Blacks duty as
an attorney was done He had cleverly ex-
posed every weakness Of the Defense actual or
imaginal, and still the general feeling was that
he had not offered single argument on behalf
of Spies, Engle or Lingg that would raise a
doubt as to their guilt in any fair minded juror
or judge, and that the testimony on which the
able counsel relied was fatally tainted and had
but little weight with the jury.
The courtroom will seat about four hundred.
and is always full. There is line of police from
the court to the street. and, once the room is
full, no one can pass from the street except by
special permit. AS soon as one leaves another
is passed in to the vacant seat.
Tuesday a majority OF the visitors-mainly
women--kept their seats all day. eating their
lunch in the courtroom. They are of all kinds
the families of the attorneys, the wives of
bailiffs and policemen. The family and friends
of Judge Gary fill the space about him. Most
interesting is the group at the end of the row of
prisoners There is Captain Blacks wife; back
of her, Spies's mother and sister-the mother
wan and respondent, the sister buoyant or de-
pressed, as the argument goes, and both quiet
and womanly. Next to Mrs. Black is Mrs
Holmes, who advised the tramps, through The
Alarm, not to tramp. but to stay and die wher
ever they were, ending her missive with the in
cendiary line: But stop! Have you not each
a match?"
Next is the consequential Mrs. Parsons. whom
no living ethnologist can determine or classify
She says she is Mexican Indian she looks
mulatto. AS group these women are. of mas
culne type the kind Always on the border of
female suffrage and seditions and with only
moiety of the sweetness and modesty dominant
in lyrical maid and woman.
Ali day. Monday and Tuesday. Judge Gary
has been writing his instructions to the jury,
paying little seeming attention to the verbal
storm about him. His court is perfect order
Not whisper, not a person standing save the
officers. His long experience stands him we'll,
and he hears the storm of weeks steady argu-
ment in vacation time with perfect eauanimity.
The jury is a good one. They are young
averaging but thirty five. It is a great hardship
to some OF them One, Brayton. loses his vaca-
ton, being teacher; Hamilton left family of
little children, his wife convalescing from ty
phoid and his furnace business going to the
dogs. The salaries of three have heen stopped
But they well cared for, have tfv best the
Revere House can afford, are driven in the parks
and bouevards and walked OH the lake front
Reed has piano. another guitar. one studies
German, another shorthand They have full
suite of rooms, three bailifs, physician, though
none have been seriously i'll. After all. life has
been made comfortable to them, except the fear
of the great duty and responsibility of their
sworn Office which must ever haunt
them. For with them rest the
lives and liberty of Spies. Parsons,
Schwab, Fielden, Lingg Fischer and Engel.
There is the horrible knowledge that it is better
all should go than one innocent man be punished,
and on the other hand the fact that all the civil
liked world Is looking to them to punish those
who have taken up arms against the law, shed
the blood of its officers, and that by means and
for purpose foreign to everything American
and human.
To-day Mr.. Gr;npell will intrust to them the
preservation of justice and liberty, asking the
enforcement of the old Hebraic law and a YER
dict for the State in the name of law defied and
assassinated