New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-02-28
C. w. HARRIS IN COURT.
HE MAKES A PLEA FOR A NEW TRIAL.
AFT1DAVITS AND DENIALS THAT HELEN POTTS
TOOK MoRpHINE-TnE HEARING
POSTPONED.

self mad. an address to the Record f.. Mr. NicoN
charged That OF ID" testimony for the defence
was u riury. III" case went for another week..
Tie Who'll. point Of tbc affidavit, which nm J..
Howe rcnd was tho allegation That Helen Potts was
addicted 10 the Of morphine and thai ia" poison
found IN Ter bod. knowingly administered "
hersc' The proceedings were Of ini"n-" Interest
throughout, and they occupied the tim" Of Oh" court
oil day. Ilarriss widowed mother s1t beside him
Mr. Howe prcfac,d his reading b. .ayns that h" would
show that the morphine which caused Miss PolcrN
death SELF Administered. l." went an. w"
shall show your Honor from recently acquired "v
dencc that The Testimony OF important witnesses wod
have bph changed IN important particulars lad vac
proofs We desire tn submit been made public"
Ono affidavit wa, made bv Carl Herman lGarman.
alias Peterson who declared That Miss Potts had
taken some 0plinc from his room at No 81" West
Iwcnf, -I.intlrst. in October. 1-H0 while Shc was
visiting a Mis-. Mrlli" M"c1cr IN the house.. Mrs
Mary NJ Fronetic in her affidavit. said tlHt she knew
Miss Potts and that Miss Potts visited her daughter
Miss Ethel ". Harris n her home. No. Jog West
ThrIy-SNth-St, in his city IN i'-". and aNo at
No. l,Go5 Walnut ST.. Philadelphia. one morning.
The day after Miss Potts had been to Sc" Ethel. the
witnesses daughter slept late ard could not b"
awakened for long time. >hc explained aftcr"ard
that she had taken pill given her bv Nil Potts.
Miss Ethel Harris dcp0~rd that sh" eighteen
years old and had been on terms 81 cordial intimacy
with the family Of George Potts IIecnS father. since
her infancy. She also told Of taking pill given her
by Helen which made her sleep long time. She
took OF those pills at her home in this civ and
another in Asbury Park.
Susan +. Il. jackson formerly had seminary for
young women at hundred and twenty -ffth>l. aud
Tnh-avc.. at which Helen Potts pupil In l~S7
or 1855. Miss Potts had said in tho bearing 81 the
deponcnt that She in the habit al carrying opium
morphine. which Sho used 20 stop her headaches.
servant In the house Of DR.. G. W. Tr.vcrlon. Of
Scranton. Penn. whom Miss Potts visited. II" being
relative, made affidavit that she h"r take some
pills. Miss Potts had begged the dcponent not to
tell any one that She used morphine. Miss FRANKIE
Wallace. of No. % West Onchundrcd-andi ourlh-St..
made a staten ent that Sue knew Helen intimately at
the ComstOck school where Helen died. Miss Potts
had told several of her girl friends that she used NOR
phine stop her headaches. Miss Wallace had seen
the pupils of her friends contracted to the diam
eter Of a pin point
Harris himself had made an affidavit In this he
said that he would have been acquitted had the evil
dence now I'm been given at the trial He did not
his former counsel. Int believed that had
they allowed him to take the wines, stand he wonld
have been found guilty. The document closed
with these words:
kill my wife.
fondy loved her
Her picture looks down by day and by NIGHT
In my lonely cell
Not a reproof or a does it convey, and. on
the brink Of grave. look upon her present
ment and her memory and say "Heen, before cd.
your God / a Innocent
But Mr. Recorder. will when you. too.
die. Remember al inc HVlucHt> OF NY Vdi' anu
90 remembering can you sleep and fool that there Is nos
a doubt Of nv innocence!
swear 1 am innocent OF tho crime charged against
am indeed victim Of the prejudice which formerly
existed against me; but that prejudice has thank
God been remov !!
The press. public, feel and proclaim am in.
nocent.
VIII YOU Gods agent here today. my nfe7
VIII you not, in the Of justice give me the
opportunity, which l have sworn 10 exist TO p'ove
tttt- t1v lproua
cutiener1
This is nv las: uterancc to you.
May the great God of all guide yon TO the right
and avert Iang Of conscience which must ever
feel should you DENY prayer for Justice.
Mr. Howe also read the statements OF four jurors
who said that they would not have voted 10 find
Harris guilty had the new evidence been introduced
the former trial.
Mr. Niccll attacked these aidavis with others OF
weighty importance. George Potts and his wife
both declared that they knew Ethel VI. Harris
Ct her mother. Mrs. Frvnette. There were several
persns named George Potts in Asbry Park in 1es5-59.
Mr. NicoI declared that Mrs. Frenete and her daush-
ter had Committed perjury. The girl he said. had
been Oh the stage under the name Of Edith Harris.
He read the affidavit Of William b. Spittall Phia
delpha detective, wh) said that In 1857 he traced
James y. Taggart. embezzer, to the home OF Mrs
Frenette at No 1926 walnut-s. Philadelphia. The
woman admitted that she had been living with Tag
CART as his wife, but said that he had elop'd with
her daughter Ethel to Canada
Joseph LcfeIts. an Asbuy Park druggist. had made
affidavit that from June september. 1880 he often
sold morphine to Helen Potts The girls parents
both declared that she in Scranton and Homes
dale Penn. at this time They said that she had
meyer visited any one in Philadelphia. other state
meT = made by Mr.. IIowes afdavits were ais denied
Harris himself tEen arose and said
There are certain matters spoken Of by Che learned
Dsrct.Attornev thot reply 70 really as can
myself l feel it is privilege that perhaps the Court
Will extend TO listen TO NE for few moments
feel IL is duty that have to perform
Recorder smyth suggested that Iarrs's counsel
might better he allowed to do the talking, but the
prisoner went on
But certain things coming from my lips youf honor
mean more from tho lips even Of my esteemed
counsellor Mi. Howe. who lsbos fl this case lol ioN
and Mr. Nlcoll the DistrctAtornoy. whose ONCE
have the profound respect has declared and has
presented tho aidsvits OF people who declare mat
have attempted TO deeme the memory Oh NY WIZ N""'
rnur honor I have never said 10 any living soul that
INV wife tcsk morphine. l have told people that the
evidence induced suspect IT,, and later TO DeeNe
&c; but all anasvts that the DisiretAtorney has
brought to negative ahdsNit~ anu II ne
brought a thousand like them he would stu nave
left out the important my own never Aiew
my vito took morphine. God forbid that shouid sue
pest that Mr. Mrs. Potts knew It, for If we h'd
known 1t would have been no necessity Tor thN
notion here to-day and there would never nave even
been trial in this Gaze 80,
desire also " say that II MI. and Mrs FottN nun
snox Miss wallace or never Miss Ethel Harris on her
mo.Aer and didn't know anything about thes' Witnesses
7 mu. .av the same that | didn't know them either ehd
l don't know them nov. Mi> Jackson / have hcN"
mct: Miss wallace j have recollection OF meeting; Il
1 ever met her, II la. escaped my memory. lh'y GER
,.,,1v have no motive don, think even the
Attorney would that We conG have pur-
chased Miss Jackson, that could have purchased MISS
Wallace or any other witnesses. That could very odT
r. s.h,sh,d nv the defence os 400 word a,Quit me
Tomorrow don't know where | would 'et IT,
When the DlstrttAt,rnev rose to ""n the Opposition
I'm this ease he made remark exhibits his hand b"
made q remark that think he would wish nov he had
LEFT unsaid that mine case for IAecuN CeH"h'N
RI Albany Now Your Honor, II am guilty man
al. spy Of one o the foulest that DJcken'd