The Portland daily press., 1892-08-31
In the Opinion Of Many Of Tall RiV-
er's Leading Men.
THE EVIDENCE, HOWEVER, FAILS
TO PROVE THEM RIGHT.
Yesterdays Developments Make the Gov
ernment Case Look FeebIe-Prof.
Wood Could Find No Blood on Clothes
and Axes-Lizzie's Statement at the
Inquest-The Case for the Govern
ment Closed and the Defence Begun.
Especial to the PREss.l


FALL RIVER, August 30.-Yesterday
and today have been eventful in shaping
public sentiment as to the guilt or inno-
cenoe of Lizzie Borden. Last night
when the court had adjourned, there is
no denying the fact that the cool, and en-
igmatical prisoner was passing through
the darkest hour in the minds of think
ing people that she had experienced
since the dark and gloomy Friday on
which she was driven in q, a,carriage to the
Central Police Station to Sind herself de. |
tanned and suspected of the horrible
massacre of her father and stepmother.
This evening, however, change, and al
marked one too, was noticeable in 5publics
places where men wont to congregatei
and primarily or incidentally discussI
the one absorbing topic that hassagitateds
and upset the thinking people alffoyera
the United States. ''It. slooks better, for |
do it;;n s'She ought to be#sst free ati
once;;'' and other remarks mere OF less.
strong, or tempered according to sthes !;
minds of those who sgave them UTTER
ance, were heard on every corner. Proc
fessor Wood, Of Harvard, had been
looked upon by many as the :
Trump Card of the he,Prosecution
and when ahe took his place on;the wit
ness stand today and testified that he
had been unable to find any signs of hu-
man blood on or nbout the clothing of !
the suspected criminal and that
the stomachs Of the unfortunate victims
contained no traces of poison, there
was marked change of opinion.
But to those who were posted on the
methods pursued by the prosecution, this /
result was no surprise. As one of the
leading officials connected with the case /;
said to your correspondent tonight: do
you suppose we expected to find poison
in those stomachs? Not much. We
might have thought so at one time but
when we found that Lizzie Borden had
tried to purchase prussic acid the day be-
fore the murder and failed in the attempt
we gave up expecting much on that
point. Then it was that we realized
that as the attempt to procure poison had
failed the determined and brooding young
woman had resorted to the axe or hat
chet."
AS far as public opinion in the concrete
is concerned it is, as in all such cases,
divided, but not divided evenly. The
solid business men of the town. such as
mill agents, cotton brokers and profess
sional men, either give you a direct an
swer to the effect
That Lizzie Borden is Guilty
or else knowing smile and refusal to
express opinions. Those are the men,
who, well Informed on the secluded lifd
and penurious habits of Andrew
j. Borden, know and know
we'll that there has been disc
cord and strife in the house-l
hold for years, and although most
of them would be only too glad to
avoid the belief that this hitherto blame-E
less young woman was guilty of bathing
her hands in the blood of a father, few
of them are able to take such an OPTIC
mistic view. Some men, and men highSs
in social position at that, believe that the
girl is guilty, but are willing that she
shouldtescape the consequences of hei
act notwithstanding the mandate of the
law which, in this state, demands thd
penalty of the old law, "a life for a. life.'a
''The girl,'' they say, "may, be guilty.
but she is unaccountable foE
her acts. She suffered either.
through real or imaginary
wrongs, she brooded over those wrongs
until life, as she experienced it, became
torture, mentally, and outraged nature
at length gave way before the attack.
She saw herself denied the comforts, not
to speak of luxuries, which she knew
her father could give to her without