Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1893-11-17

material facts We're withheld from counsel.
thus disqualifying them from dwelling
upon or explaining away discriminating cir
cumstances clearly proved. Nothing is so
dangerous to II defense rs an apparition of
a hostile fact which an advocate dare not
deny, and in fact cannot on competent evil
dence deny. and is unable to explain be-
cause the ialsehoois of his client have ig-
uored it.
4 Case In Point.
!. murder committed in the sixties in the
neighborhood Of the picnic grounds of
Jones' Wood in the city of New York
affords an illustration Of this truth. Watts
and Nevins were both young men, reputed
dissolute, but not criminal characters, and
more or less regularly ut work as Journey
men compositorsi in printing offices. Nevins
had recently come into a legacy of a few
hundred dollars and had stated to his fel-
low workmen that he calculated upon en-
joying life while the sum lasted in some
other way than in setting type. Watts and
he were intimates and roomed in the same
house in Sixty-third street, not far from
the picnic grounds. Both We're frequent
attendants at the rude dancing parties
held at the grounds.
1t was on Il dark evening in August that
they both appeared in the grounds when
the East Side Star association was holding
its annual rather disorlerly picnic, at which
no introductions were necessary to secure
partners. Nevins fell in with Il girl whom
he wished to startle with the unaccus-
toned treat Of Il bottle of champagne. and
about II O'Clock he set ont for his room,
where he had his stock o. money, in order
to replenish his pockets. Ii. told Watts
that ne was going i."!.c for that purpose
and would soon re.uin. He Was seen by
one OF the b~a!leeoers in the aGt lf -.vir.
the platform. y regular at,e..dInt at the
Wood, he Was well lnown, and having
been the only champagne customer ~. this
evening lie was noticed. Watt, followed
him almost instantly &:!,i WIS see. 10 20
down the platform s,@irs. 'ii!e ...>l...ycus-
recognized Ncvins wien .p!.,., o.;, :,ui nai!
no recollection as To Watts.
Next morning Ncvius was fund dead on
the floor of his room, ii ci.it il, his skull
and Il bloody hAtclet uett lam. VITA which
the murder had been committed. He had
not returned to the picnic. bat Watts had
appeared on the platform. ant! when he
came up he obtained Il glass of brandy and
peppermint from the bar, saying that he
was troubled with diarrhea and had lust
come up from the outbuildinys. As soon
as the death of Nevins was discovered the
police were notified, and one of their first
acts was to put Watts under arrest as the
person last seen with the deceased, Watts
was found in bed in his room at II o'clock.
apparently asleep. He explained his pres.
ence in his room at that late hour by stat
ing that he had not returned from the
Wood until daybreak, and that his reg
ular turn as a compositor did not require
him until 3 or 1 o'clock in the afternoon.
Convincing Evidence. .
At the station house, before being taken
to the police court at 2 p. H., he was
searched under protest, and nearly $50 were
found in his p~ocketbook. This was not a
large sum of money, and still it is more
than most compositors carry at the middle
of the week. At the police court he de-
clined to answer any questions except the
formal inquiries as to place of birth, age,
occupation, ETC., and although the evidence
against him was slight the magistrate
held him for the grand jury.
Watts, when committed to the CITY prison
to await trial, sent for a lawyer noted for
his ability and gave him s2OOin bank notes.
The possession of this amount of money
by a journeyman printer excited no COM
ment on the part of the lawyer. Nothing
is more usual than that i~mpecunious and
worthless fellows, when confined on grave
charges, should be well supplied with
money from sources unknown to the public
and even to their own counsel. A man who
could not pay a note of $50 may be able to
give his lawyer a retainer of some hun
dreds. The fact was that Watts had the
bulk of Nevins' money in his stocking when
arrested, and that the preliminary search at
the station house had not been thorough.
suspicion being light. After committal.
prisoners are only searched for dangerous
weapons, not being allowed even a pocket
knife, for fear of suicide.
Watts instructed his counsel that. while
he knew of the departure of Nevins from
the platform, he did not follow him home,
and that as q matter of fact he did not 20
home till daybreak and knew nothing
about the murder of Nevins. All defenses
OF Innocent people are essentially negative,
as this was, the prisoner not being called
on to show who the real culprits are but
only to combat evidences or presumptions
of his own guilt.
Counsel's Hands Tied.
The prisoner in this instance concealed
WV lie SOuAocIs uldIuJy because
he relied on the absence of testimony on
the part of the prosecution. But between
the dates of commitment and trial much
evidence pointing to Watts guilt came
into the possession of the district attorney.
None of this was known TO the prisoners
counsel except the testimony of the gate
keeper before the grand jury that a young
man in a dark coat and straw hat passed
out of the Wood gate directly after New
ms had gone through, coupled with that
Of the barkeeper that Watts wore a dark
coat and straw hat on that night. But
this evidence was treated by the pris-
oner as amounting to nothing, because a
large number of the young men Mt such
summer picnics wear dark coats and straw
hats, and such alleged Identification
amounts to nothing. But other evidence
had been procured by the district attorney
after the finding Of the Indictment that
pointed strongly to a guilty knowledge on
the part of the prisoner, of which neither
he nor his counsel knew anything.
BY his false statements as to the occur
FENCES the prisoner SO thoroughly tied his
counscls hands that no amount of cross
examination of the peoples witnesses or
of ingenious argument before the Jury
COULD be expected to avert Il verdict of