St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-12-10
Facts and Circumstances Tell
More Lies Than the Wit
neSSeS.
Men Who Testified Against
the Accused Are Charged
Wi h Perjury.
A Blunder il the Indictment
That May Count for
Something.

ami impatient crown WIS III NdItlHS de
Judge McConnell'S court this morning
Eor the resumption of the CrOnin trial.
Mr. Forrest resumed his address to the
Jury by continuing the discussion of the
different methods of treating circum-
stantial evidence as used by the defense
and by the state. Those who are OPP
posed to us on this question have very
pretty axiom which reads thus: Wit
nesseS may lie, but facts never This
sounds very nicely. but it Is not true
There is nothing in the world that tells
so many lies as what are called facts
and circumstances. Facts can be made
20 prove anything The speaker then
referred TO the question of our tariff,
and said that Republicans. and Demo-
Gratis argued from the same facts, and
drew Numerically opposite conclusions.
Mr. Forrest read from a law book a
number of instances OF circumStantiai
evidence in which the circumstances
pointed almost without possibility OF
Contradiction TO a certain conclusion.
and yet
THIS CONCLUSION WAS FALSE.
The evidence tending TO prove that
conspiracy existed III Camp 20, the at
tOrney said, he had agreed not 10 touch.
However, it aid not matter. 1t was not
necessary. Attorney Foster had eX-
haustPd that part of the case. There
was nothingi in it. By it the jury would
be compelled TO acqut BeggS, and the
case against the other prisoners. SO far
as the Camp 20 conspiracy went. must
be dropped. The credibility of wit
nesses was then discussed. and Mr..
Forrest made a very plausible argu-
ment Every witness discovered since
the cOrOners jury was suspicious one,
said the attorney. The states Wit
nesSeS had an interest in giving dam-
aging testimony against the defendants.
For instance, it was worth 800 a week
TO Oman to have it generally believed
that his white horse was the one that
took DR.. Cronin away, that being the
amount Oman received from the dime
museum. As for the CarlsOnS, they
were poor people and were now using
their cottage as q museum and charg-
ing admission 10 cuTiOSity-SeekerS. The
interest had by the Irish witnesses was
very plain to Attorney Forrest. There
was
SPLIT IN THE CLAN-NA-GAEL
society. One side charged the other
with sending innocent men to England
-
over to the English government. The
side making the accusation was on the
witness stand for the state; the side ac-
cuSed was in the prisoners chair. Re-
venge was wanted by the former. OPP
pOrtunity to Wreak it was in their grasp,
and they used il. In like manner Mr..
Forrest handled and discussed the other
witnesses. Ali either had interest in
testifying as they did, OF else their feats
of memory were SO remarkable-to At
torney ForreSt-as to be simply ridicu-
lous. Running through his argument.
was apparently a desire to show that
all the witnesses for the state were per-
juTers. The urging which the state had
TO use in court to induce Nieman to
identify Coughlin and KunZe was hand
led very skillfully. Mr.. Forrest then
took up the expert testimony in the
case, and considered it a great length,
reading many extracts from the YER
batim report of the testimony, to show
not only that the doctors could not de-
termine the cause of death, but that
they could not even decide definitely
whether or not the wounds were in
flicted before or after death. The state,
he said, had indicted these men for the
murder of DT. CrOnin by inflicting blows
on his head and face. They must prove
that or the prisoners must be set free.
If they failed, it was their own fault in
making
BLUNDER IN THE INDICTMENT.
81 tell yon, gentlemen" exclaimed
Mr.. Forrest, eve can say that we do
denOunce the doctors murder. That
has been done sufficiently. God knows.
The whole world has denounced j., and
Numbered it at the heads of my clients
for six months. 1t was a murder.
cruel murder; but tell you, gentlemen,
that in your court house they would, in
the name of the law, commit a legal
murder to sustain theory, to sustain
blundeT. The whole thing of it was
made necessary by the original blum
der" There was no evidence, he said.
that the blows on DIR. Cr0nin'S head
caused death. They were not severe;
the skull was nowhere fractured. The
speaker then took up the matter of the
trunk, the key and the cotton batting,
which occupied his attention until the
court adjourned for the day. Mr.. For
rest will probably occupy all of to-mor-
row with his argument.
The owner of the bloody trunk which
Police Captain Schuettler went to Mil
Waukee 10 see, walked into Chief Hub
bard's Office to-day and proved property.
lie IS porter In chicago n0Cel VINO
went to Milwaukee to look for work,
and
LEFT IN A HURRY
TO avoid lawsuit over transaction in
which he had become involved in a
former visit. He described the prop
erty in the trunk supposed to belong to
COOney, the CrOnin suspect, and the
contents of the mysterious letters, con-
Vincing the chief and captain that he
owned the trunk, aud also that he was
innocent of any more serious crime
than that of jumping board bill. He
earnestly requested that his name not
De given the public, as he was afraid he
would lose his present employment.
As he had saved the officers the trouble
and expense of a long hunt, they
granted his wish.
A FavOrite Professor Dead.
IT,. u