The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-09-17
ALBERTSON Held OYER.
tC0attnued from Paae IA

was not man who at one plunge started in
on criminal enterprise of that stupendous
character IN conjunction with a cousin and a
Stranger IL Is preposteTous My learned friend
says inat ne stands Ia the same position as the
man who should take horse TO an appointed
place for person who had committed murder.
ana AID him in effecting his escape That 10 not
the case at all parallel case would be that of
the Doatman who had ferred him over to
Browns point, knowing nothing about It. and
thus aiding and abetting this robbery. That
"ouio De parallel case, he absolutely having no
knowledge Of the transaction The boatman
was innocent who rowed Edward AI5ertson TO
Browns point, and that would be a parallel
case TO Robert b. A!bertson at the time he drew
THESE agreements. Had AIbertson known that
tney were TO be used for the purpose of aiding
IN The execution of q contemplated crime he
would be guilty, but there is not one single
syllable in the testimony from W hitch such an i'm.
ference can be drawn. If your honor was sitting
with the jury, in the box, / have not the shadow
Oh doubt but that your instructions to that
jury would be to bring in q verdict of not
guilty. That being the case, IL seems TO me per-
iectly clear that upon this whole examination
there Is no probable cause for holding that
Robert b. Albertson has been guilty of felony
There Is another matter / desire to
can your attention 70, and that is
the third visit of Mr.. Ross TO the
office OF Preston, Albertson d Donworth, in
which II is said that he spoke of $1,000. There
Is not particle of evidence in this case to show
that Chandler had 81 900 with him at that time
The testimony is perfectly clear that he said to
Mr.. Aloertson that If he should get 81, 900 to be
conveyed to Mr.. Wallace. would Mr.
Aloertson do it? Undoubtedly the idea
was to pave the way with Mr.. Wallace to make
doubly sure that Edward Albertson should not
DC prosecuted, for up to that time there had
been hue and cry against Edward Albertson
IL was undoubtedly this that led Chandl er to
seek means of communication with Wallace,
that he might effect final and absolute settle
ment by compromising by the payment of
money, or something of that kind That is all
there is to that Aud on that proposition he
was promptly shown the door
Ihis whole case agains6 Mr.. Albertson has
oeen founded upon detectives theory. have
no doubt that these people connected with the
pank, having called in the detectives, have been
totally misled by these detectives and have
puiit entirely upon detective theories. de-
tective cannot live unless he has theory. II
ne starts out on wrong theory he still follows
that theory, and is like the man who takes the
wrong road, and is constantly getting further
from his destination. That is exactly the
trouble with these people. Had there been any
substantial ground for believing in the guilt OF
Robert b. Albertson, there is not a shadow Of
doubt but what these fellows, sleuth- hound
like, would have got IL. These hounds have
been on his track ever since the 23d of August
and they have absolutely found not q single
particle OF testimony to eliminate Mr.. Albert
son, and there is not a single syllable of testi-
mony in this entire record to implicate Mr..
Robert Albertson in the slightest degree.
Now l desire to read what the supreme court
of the state of Illinois has said on the subject Of
detective testimony: "The employment of a
private detective for the purpose of getting up
evidence, though in some few cases may afford
useful assistance, is, as a rule, very objection
able. They are most dangerous agents, and
courts look upon their evidence with much
suspicion. When man sets up as a
hired discoverer of supposed delinquen-
cies, when the amount of his pay de-
ponds upon the extent OF his employment
and his employment depends upon the dis
coveries he is able to make, then the man be-
comes a most dangerous instrument" And
this is exactly what these men have demon
strated in this case-that they have become
most dangerous instruments When men un-
der such circumstances are given full swing,
no man is safe. An innocent man Is the one
most liable to fall into their tolls, for
he is unsuspecting; his conversation
and daily life are not guarded, and this
is the very thing that has been done in this
case. This case goes on and discusses this
character OF testimony. There has never been
q more striking illustration of the wickedness OF
that sort of business than we have had in this
case, from the very moment they began
shadowing this man, and following him
in his legitimate business from Seattle
to New Westminster, and back to
Seattle. 1t would not be surprising that an in
nocent man subjected to such treatment should
be driven crazy. do not know whether your
honor has ever felt the sensation q never did
until came to this town of being Swallowed
at every turn Of the street, at every door that
you entered, and every time you uttered a word
you felt that some one was listening TO put q
wrong construction upon what you said and a
wrong construction upon your conduct ! can
imagine man under such circumstances being
driven TO suicide; being subjected to such
espionage and Swallowed. l say it is the inno-
cent man that suffers under such treatment and
not the guilty. The guilty man is conscious of
II aud he can protect himself. But LOOK at this
young man in this situation: he tells his part
ners and he tells his friends: he even tells this
man kochersperger; he eonceals nothing. He
does not want the shame and the disgrace of
having even the remotest connection with that
viliSinous cousin: he goes TO the room
of this he had never seen and
tells him the whole story. Is that the
conduct of guilty man? No, it is the conduct
of an upright, honorable man, who, feeling the
wound to his reputation, does not want strang-
ers, or any one 10 believe for a moment that il is
true, and ne is anxious To show the facts that
will disabuse him of the remotest idea that he
Is in any way connected with the matter. These
private prosecutors have been put on the wrong
track: they have been put here by these detect
ives. and the least reparatiOn that can be made
to this man is the prompt dismissal of these
proceedings. 1t Is d serious matter, If your
honor please, to fix upon a Young man without
fair evidence the stain of being bound over TO a
court for trial, on charge OF felony like this
While the law looks only 20 the enforcement of
justice. yet the law is never to be used as a
means of persecution; the law is never to be
used as destroyer; il is used only for
the protection of society, and will
never, except upon strong evidence that
will prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. hold
man OF blameess life, as this man is con fessed
10 be, for stupendous crime like this Unless
this evidence is strong enough to justify trial
court in the belle. that he is guilty. and there is
certainly nothing in this case to do that, |
confidently expect from this court upou this
evidence your honor will find il TO be your
duty to discharge this defendant | feel conf
dent OF that, because the court has taken
the utmost pains and spent q great deal OF
time in receiving to the fullest possible measure
the evidence the state and defendant had to
offer Ii seems 10 me in looking over this testi-
mony that il will be perfectly apparent TO your
honor that every single act of this defendant is
perfectly compatible with innocence. There is
not in the record, from beginning to end, a
single act done, or a single word spoken by
Robert B. Alhertsou that might not have been
spoken BY an absolutely innocent man. II that
be so then there can he no question but that he
should be discharged.
There il one thing that has been suggested TO
me, upon which wish 20 say a word. although
| think II is super1uous. Unfortunately, in
in view of the matter in which Mr.. Sullivan
sought out the defendant, and The great noto-
hat vfv 10