Omaha daily bee., 1895-12-07

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was 10 be The capshenf of the prosecutions
case--ihat the ;Wo together entered the
church.
THE PROSECUTIONS HOPE.
II was not absolute proof that Blanche La
mont died at Durranrs hands but the prose-
cution believed that viewed In coBuec lon
with Organist Kings statemtnt It would fur
! nish such complete chain q circumstantiol
evidence that the jury could not escape 6e-
ciaTng agalns; the accused man. So they
brought forward witness after witness, per-
SONS who had seen Blanche Lamont and Dur
rant Join each other at the normal school,
where she was student persons who saw
them in a street car and evidence to show
that they left the car together about o'clock
in the afternoon and walked In the direction
of and entered the church.
Supplementing the testimony relative to
! the two approaching and entering
| the church is the testimony of
Organst King, who, II so CHANGED, was
| engaged In practice in the church late on the
afternoon of April 3. He declares that Dur
rant sick, disheveled and bearing generally
! demoralized appearance, staggered into his
presence and fecbly announced that while re
! pairing leak in the gas pipe near the roof
| he had been partially overcome. He sent
King after dose of bromo seltzer, and when
he had some what recovered the two left the
| church.
q. CAMPAIGN OF THE DEFENSE.
The conduct Of Durrant's defense has been
| something singular and really remarkable.
When the prosecution gave way to the de-
| fanse 1t was considered that strong case
| had been made out, and so skillfully had Dis
! trlct Attorney Barnes handled his materials
| that the frown of doom seemed already bent
on the young prisoner. So it was with tre-
mendous curiosity that the public who fol-
lowed the trial waited to see along what
lines the campaign to save Durrsnt would be
made, and this curiosity was continually ex-
cited by the lawyers for the defense, OF
whom one of the principals is Mr.. Deuprey,
The lawyers, in view of subsequent events,
talked very strangely They seemed to
| regard the deadly weaving of the prosecu-
tons web as huge joke. and Attorney Deu-
prey is reported to have declared that when
their turn came they would clear Durrant
in two minutes" They gave out the impress
sion with systematic persistence that they
had some coup de etat under cover, which
would, while startling the world bring to
Durrant triumphant liberty.
DEUPREY'S SENSATION.
So it was not surprising that Frisco fought
savagely for seats to hear the expected reve-
lation when Mr.. Deuprey began his speech
opening the defense. Blu, they were treated
! to sensation only half sensation, and
| which fell rather fiat than otherwise. The
! long promised denouement consisted in an
! implication that Rev. George J. Gibson, pas
| tor Of Emanuel Baptist church, had a hand
| In the terrible murders In his church. Long
| before the pastor of the church had had the
| finger Of suspicion pointed at him, and yet
| few people took any stock in the idea then
| nor did they take up the suspicion again
when Mr.. Deuprey came out against Gibson.
| The basis of the defense's implication of
| the clergyman seemed vague charge that
| Gibsons handwriting was similar to that
| on package containing Blanche Lamont's
rings. which was received from some mys-
| terious source by Blanches aunt, Mrs. Noble,
| the very day Minnie Williams body was
found 1t was expected the defense would
assail Gibson at once and strongly, even
though it were done for no other purpose
than to create in the minds Of the jurymen
| reasonable doubt as to Durrants guilt.
But, much to everybody's surprise, the de-
tense has rather held this feature of their
case in allegiance, and an array of expected
| experts in writing, who would establish
similarity between the writing of Gibson and
that on the fatal and mysterious package of
rings has not materalZed. Instead, so far
as the defense has gone, its efforts have been
mainly directed to prove an alibi for Dur
| rant on April 3, and they have been pitifully
weak In fact the whole defense has been
little less than frantic effort to prove
something out of nothing, and before the trial
was half over the outcome seemed inevita-
BILE, that Durrant. the sleek young devil
would be convicted,
STUDENTS ON THE STAND.
One important. and interesting feature Of
the defense's effort was the examination of
long line of students at the medical col
lege where Durrant was a student, which
examination, however, resulted rather In
draw, as out of scores of students not one
could recall whether Durrant was present at
the lecture on April or not. The matter of his
presence at the lecture has figured as one of
the greatest points in the trial, for II it
could have been shown that he attended DR..
Cheney's discourse it would have practically
proven an alibi.
Much said regarding the notes at
this lecture. The defense maintained that
Durrant attended in person and took notes
while the prosecution proved that he tran
scribed them afterward from a fellow STU
dents notebook.
In other notable instances the defense
9cored failures that were most conspicuous.
Attorney Deuprey, in his opening speech, out
lining the defense, promised that DR.. Cheney
of the medical college, who delivered the
lecture on April 3, would testify that Dur
rant was present, but when on the stand
DR.. Cheney gave the defense bad setback
by d caring that he could not recall whether
Durrant was at the lecture or not.
Concerning these notes, Durrant was al
legged to have asked one of the students, a
DR.. Graham, for a copy of his notes taken at
this lecture, and Durrant himself admitted
that. on the advice Of his lawyers he asked
Graham for the notes, not, however for the
purpose of copying them, but to verify his
own.
SAID HE TRIED TO PAWN 1T.
Another sensation of the trial and strong
point OF the prosecution was the testimony
Of a pawnbroker named Oppenheim, who
declared that Durrant tried to pawn a ring
in his place shortly after Blanche Lamonts
murder, and in court h identified one of
the dead girls collection of rings the
one offered him for sale. He did not buy 1t.
The defense sought to show that the pawn
broker had mistaken another young man for
Durrant, and brought the young man in
question into court. He did not in the
least resemble the prisoner, and the pawn
broker was not shaken in his statement.
Witnesses were brought forward to testify
to the good character of the prisoner, but
the prosecution showed that Durrant, while
outwardly protesting a Christian character,
is in reality of a vicious nature. Durrant
spent three days on the stand, during which
tlmo he outlined in detail his alleged move
mepts on April 8, claiming that while he
was in Blanche Lamont's company on that
day, 1t was during the morning, not in the