The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-10-25
Or, CRONIN'S TAKING OFF
1oNGNECKER MAKES A LONG
OPENING ARGUMENT.

the Legal Terms Presumption of In
nocence and Reasonable Doubt-A
History of the Alleged Conspiracy
That Led to the Murder-The Exam
nation of Witnesses Begun.
CHICAGO, Oct. A.-Long before the hour
for the convening of the court in the Gro
min trial this morning hundreds of specta-
tors were clamoring for admittance, and it
required a small army of bailiffs to keep at
bav the eager ones who demanded to be
nassed in. Promptly at 10 o'clock the 200
snectators assembled in Judge McConnell's
court we're raped to order, and, as the de-
fendants filed in, at once took their seats.
THE clerk called the roll of jurors. Every
man responded to his name, and the
Crouin trial formally began. States
Attorney Longnecker at once began
his opening address to the jury.
He reviewed briefly the long continued
sitting of jurymen which had resulted in
the selection of the twelve before him. He
then defined the duties of the jurymen, de-
fined the meaning of presumption of inno-
cence as applied in the trial of persons
charged with crime, telling the jury that
PRESUMPTION of innocence was not a matter
70 be weighed against evidence 1t was, he
said. a mere negative which stood in the way
of conviction in the absence of evidence, but
must not be allowed to weaken the force of
evidence given. Mr.. Longnecker took up
and defined the meaning of reasonable
doubt as applied in such cases as this. He
said: "When you stated that you would
not convict these men except they we're
proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, it
simply meant this: That if, after hearing
the evidence, you are satisfied, as jurymen,
sworn to do your duty, that the men on
trial are guilty, then you have no right
to 60 looking for doubts; you have no right
to hunt around for an excuse to refrain from
doing that which the law makes it your
duty to do. Reasonable doubt means a
doubt that is reasonable" ;"
Mr.. Forrest, of the counsel for the de-
fense, interrupted the speaker at this point,
claiming that definition of reasonable doubt
has no place in the opening address, and
should be used only in the closing address.
The court overruled the point, and Mr..
Forrest noted an exception,
THE MATERIAL ALLEGATIONS.
The states attorney then set forth what
were the material allegations in the indict-
ment which it would be necessary for the
state to prove in order to justify convic-
tion, These were that Cronin was killed that
the killing had been done in this state: that
1t was done without provocation, and that
these men did it as result of conspiracy
He spoke of the motive for the crime,
and said that, in order to show
what that motive was, it became
necessary to examine into the history in
this 1untry of the organization known as
the United Brotherhood, commonly called
Il h.
reminded the jury that they were not try
ing the Clan-na-Gael, but the prisoners at
the bar.
SKETCHING ITS HISTORY.
Attorney Longnecker then proceeded to
sketch the history of the Clan-na-Gael in
this country. saying that it was made up of
patriotic Irishmen-Irishmen who went
into it for political effect, and Irishmen who
went into it for the money there was in it
and that its object was to free Ireland by
force of arms as soon as favorable oppor-
tunity should offer. He declared that the
Triangle was supreme, and that the oaths of
the members made their commands supe-
Flor to the laws of the nation,
Mr. Forrest objected to this line of state
ment as inadmissible in advance of proof
WARNED BY THE JUDGE.
Judge Mcconnell said that he did not
know what would be proved, but warned
the states attorney that he was making
these statements at his peril. The states
attorney said he would prove what he had
sad, and he accepted the responsibility and
proceeded to say that when Sullivan, Feely
and Boland got control of the executive
board they changed the plan of work of the
organization, and inaugurated dynamite
policy and implanted in the constitution a
T0di iTac
ing obedience to the commands OF the board.
me defense again made an exception to
InlS line of statement.
sECREsY OF THE TRIANGLE.
States Attorney Longnecker spoke of
the adoption of the triangle as a symbol of
lhe executive board. The membership did
uoC Know who constituted the triangle, so
secret was it, but nevertheless they obeyed
NS orders and were sent on various
special missions to England in
me way of active work, and
under assumed names. Notwithstanding
.qlS secresy, these men were betrayed by
tne board to the English authorities, and
TT%enty NV OF them, he said, are now in prison
~. Iue was, he declared, to enable the board to
SDeal the fund, and when at last a showing
was made the board claimed that the order
WED them $l3, 900, when there was $3.50. 900
II 'ne treasury when they took charge.
OHoNIN's CONNECTION WITH THE ORDER.
l. AO TINS point the states attorney intro
uuSeu Dr. Cronin in connection with the
"a of Usf, and proceeded to sketch the history
G. ~ MS hight against the Triangle; told of
Uaouih,s expulsion; the subsequent union
PyIive1 tion; the trial of Sullivan, Feely and
12Ua1d Cua1 by a secret committee, of which
Ann Ann was member, in Buffalo, last
august. The committee was there
-, session for days and DAYS u
9aiu dar Attorney Longnecker, "hearing evil
~ Sonce. That evidence, as we have It, will
5orLl Introduced here. Cronin took the evil
NUng 0uGe IulIy, and witnesses and facts were
r. bou1Geo ni3eo to show what they had done in
fbo oil ol- country; what had been done aero SIS
sroi i"aVer under the direction of this TT l.
Tbsu al their active work was shown.
fbs fb4o was was an being investigated there, and
O.: ilinlttee had not made its report, but
,D'!In ror,! mad taken full notes of that trial
NyitnaLlCeee. zee. he had taken down what each
"''ueSs had said about certain things.n
H.. WHAT CRoNIN WANTED.
IT, S!ate's attorney went on to say that
Sanr emu tl insisted that all of the evidence be
Hin GO "a 20 all the camps, but up to the
leaeo u Cronin's death the report had not
4 ~. sent out. 1t would have shown that
y rjy mad not only violated the laws of the
2froi ana OF this country, but also those of
e5Iahu' and had robbed the order of it's
H. lIs o- aud men of their liberties. Only a
II hal VI TWO after Cronin's death, however,
|put 'ePort OK the trial was sent
Hgss Cronln's part OF it, however,
kybch rejected, aud that part used
|trsi,nl accused Cronin Of being a
shat sn ne ne claimed that they would show