Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1889-10-28
DAIAGMG TESTIMONY
Hlisl IL Dsisacs IN ths cfulil Cass
Als ulalh to Veakm.
Ja6ss Mcconnell Forced to Retreat
Aon . Strange Ruling in Favor OF the
Prisoners.

When tne prisoners In the CfOntu case, lie
by ex-Senior Warden Beggs, tramped int
the room from the slippery bridge of sigh
Saturday morning every seat reserved 70
spectators vas occupied. The court was il
session just two hours and = half. In tha
time the prosecutors introduced two rsr
Witnesses. and successfully combated q re
0arkable ruling BY Judge Mcconnell. The,
did not attempt to present any sdditioBa
evidence - to the identity Of the body foun,
in the catch basin on the Evanston road. o
70 strengthen their almost invulnerable proc
that the corpse was not injured in its removA
from the basin to the Sheffield avenue polics
station. They did, however, continue theil
inquiry ~ 70 the caute of DIR. Cronin's death
anu succeeded in substantiating all the sen
sational and vital points made BY Surgeon
Perkins, Who removed the viscers and the
| top Of the skull Of the body At the autopsy.
| The new witness vas DR.. ID. G. Moore,
Who Witnessed and assisted in the dissection
DR.. Moore did not testify At the coroners
| inquest or before the grand jury, and he
made no deposition in the extradition of
Burke. Mr.. Forrest, drawing these admis-
stone from the witness, objected TO his giving
testimony. but the court promptly overruled
the objection. The doctor told of the ap-
pearance Of the wounds and the condition of
the viscera- These gashes, the witness was
convinced, were necessarily mortal. Death
had come from conclusion or confusion of
| the brain, and not from hem orrhase of the
facial and 0ccipitai arteries. While strong
man could bleed to death from the sevsriDg
Of .ihaae arteries, dissolution would not be
spN0l As these vessels are small Death
had 1o6btless come from the shock the brain
received, and while the hemorrhage WAS yet
in progress. A thorough examination of the
viscera showed no signs of ante -mortem de-
generation. This was another proof the doc
tor had died from violence The brain, how. .
ever. was gone Il
Cross examiner Ferrest, with his grim face
wrinkled In Smile,
asked if there were not some grounds for be-
feving that DR. Cronin died suddenly of
acute brain trouble. The witness declared
the healthy condition of the viscera was in
itself convincing refutation of such an as
sertion. Then Mr.. Forrest suggested the
possibility of sudden death from chronic
brain trouble, and asked if such being the
fact the surgeon who conducted the autopsy
could determine it by the appearance of the
brain.
As there had been no brain to examine,
DR.. Moore was unable to combat this strange
theory The witness was satisfied from the
confused condition of the wounds that the,
had been inflicted before death. In his
opinion, 1t was impossible to have any con-
fusion about scalp wound made after death
MIR. Forrest drew from the witness the sd
mission that he had but few hours before
read the newspaper reports of DIR. Egberts
testimony of the previous day. Then Mr.
Forrest created . sensation by moving that
Surg. Moore's entire testimony be stricken
from the record.
Judge Mcconnell. to the
Amusement OF Nearly Everybody
in the room. sustained the motion. drs.
matte scene followed, and suppressed excla-
nations of surprise burst from the audience.
For an instant the public prosecutors were
dumbfounded. MIR. Hynes was the first to
combat the ruling. His face was crimson
with passion as he drew his massive form
above the table at which he xAs sitting, and
in loud voice declared that, IL such an un-
precedented ruling we're observed, the trial
might just a. well stop then and there. Rails
ing his arms % that his clenched fist was on
u level with the bar OF the court Mr.. Hynes
challenged Judge Mcconnell to show au-
thority to sustain such 4 ruling. Beside the
big lawyer was Luther Latin Mills, pale
with excitement. The index finger of his
oanr, AInos, hato.o N, H,ras h.a sn;sh-
ad III. ,hunas,;ng .,,.cL ,ba cIear rasonant
v,;ca ~ AZ, Mil. a,o.e .hova The n,;sa 90
,ho .,,oa, .,d ,ha ,numhI;,, of Tho .nac,a :
-. H. ,o, aa,..oa ,h.. !, .. 80 =,
Ion tho c,.s e ,hs ,s.,;mo,v of tho ,es, of
III. sta,a.. -;,ns..a. ~.. 70 10 oxclndsd Gov
tho rssson Tho, tbev had road tho ,e.,;monv
~ wi,na..e. ~ho b.d n,eceded them on IN.
.,.nJ Iudga MeCorne,I al in nj, chair
-;,h ri. he.d in hi. hand. Rsfore hin, wers
N, uynos md NJ M;Ils tho 6rst ,ed and
v;olen; in attach IN, other almo., .ta,tlng
l., hi. r.I,o, Ths r,osocr,o,. had bsrdlv
,..nrad ,ho;v .e.,. =, ~.,ch tho effac, ~
~, a., .,,,.v ~han NJ Eo,,s., .rosa
sna ;n,,ms,.s ,b., n, Moore had been c.Jled
a, Tho II,h honr ~ match n n tho boIe. in tho
,a.,;,ony - A..;.,.nt Conn,v phvs;c;an
Eohe,t Th;. ws, a ,.unt that bronobt Mr.
Hyne, and NJ Mills IN their feet and called
fo,th cen.u,a f,om tho conr,
Jnaoa Mcconnell ans skinu in G low voice
,hor .s;J H., ;f .uch ,uI;ne wa. enfo,cod
IN Il. .n;,;, tbo,o vonld he M ,eo,on 60,
90, ,;nn;no ,he 90 bu, no aid not con,em-
nla,e ,nch . conr.e M Hvne, seeing that
tho
Court was retreating
now ,o.n.d 10 hi. foo, and With h,rst of
rhs,o,.c tb., came yerv near n,oyok;ng an.
rI.r.a IN ,ho hancha. - Tho .noc,s,or. da-
pi..oa H.. ,~;,h ..,ol ,,I;na =. ,h., la,
s,ed from tho bench tho te.,;monv Of hon
or.h,e men Who xould snnesr for the .,a,e
snd Tho cona not he ;nanenced hv nex.n.'
no, ,ano,,. vonla no erclpdaa xbila tbe
te.timonv Of ne,ju,er. who vonld .wea,
,h., ,bay had M, ,..d tho new.nane,.. oc,
count 81 tho ,,;aI vou,a oo on ,eco,d A.
,ha h;, l.wvs, -, aown Il, Inob.m and N,
Sn.rIsn -o,n-rsd 9TH I.~ hoos. n;,sd b;ab
nnon ths;, avn. m, Tho b.,,le ~. NOV
80 80 ~ .ha n,o.ecn,;or h.d ~on
with ,rnch dsi;he,.,;on and . o,,,n;,ou,
o,com;nro IN the n,e,. to, IL. en,ernr;,e : nd
;rsnarca rndgs McTonnsi, ,eve,.ed hi. No
zion. dse;.;on .na ;uIsd that ,be ,e.,;unn,