The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-08-21

SAN FRANCISCO aug.
prosecutors of Theodore Durrant are
at present engaged in developing
fruitful line of testimony, which prom
lses 10 throw a powerful sidelight on
the conduct of the young man toward
women. While Durrant is pictured by
his friends as being a meek, modest
youth, who so far from being able to
murder two school girls found MS
only true enjoyment in the Sunday
school of which he was assistant
superintendent, it is proposed to prove
that his baseness was boundless when
associating with women. In support
of this assertion young women VINO
are said to have been insulted by Dur
rant viii be placed on the stand and
letters written by the prisoner to his
female accuaintances will be introduce
ed as evidence.
Audacity Of Him.
The audacity of the prisoner is
shown by a letter now in the hands OF
the police which he wrote to Helen
Henry, q local actress a few weeks
before the murders. Although he had
known the young lady but Jew days
he wrote her a letter so suggestive
that she declined to answer 1t ana
few days later he followed 1t up with
another just as offensive so pola ana
Durrant become that long before his
arrest it is said that a number OF
young women declined to attend par
lies to which he was invited or asso-
ciate with him in any way.
Some of the women who have been
insulted by Durrant will be placed on
the witness stand and their testimony
will be of Importance in refuting the
contention OF the defen-e that so
moral and conscientious young man
could not commit two such atrocious
murders.
From a reliable source it is learned
that no matter what is accomplished
by the present trial it is intended to
bring Durrant before a jury on the
charge of killing Minnie Williams.
This course will be pursued even If
Durrant should be found guilty of the
murder of Blanche Lamont. The idea
of the prosecution in doing that will
be to provide against the possibility
Of the supreme court granting "a new
trial in the Lamont case. 1t is even
probable that the district attorney
would consent to a change of venue for
the Williams trial.
The Struggle for Life.
Much speculation has been INDUCED
in as to the nature of the abb Dur
rants counsel expect to present to the
jury to combat the evidence now in
the hands Of the prosecution. From
hints that have been dropped il ap
pears that the records of the Cooper
Medical college will form the basis of
the attack on the testimony of Martin
Quinlan, Nirs. Leak and others.
The record --e the rolls of DR.. vii
liam G. CEeney's class at the college.
Durrant was one of a class OF seventy
seven students VINO attended Dr.
Cheney's lectures. The roll shows
that he was present at the lecture de-
livered at the college on the afternoon
of April Sd, at the precise hour that
the prosecution claims he entered
Emanuel church with Blanche Lamont
Dr.. Cheney's lecture hour is from
$50 TO 4:30 O'Clock, and the roll of
students is not called until the close
of the lecture. On this occasion, the
doctor says, his lecture was a little
shorter than usual, and. that he may
have ordered the roll called as early
as z:20 o'clock. If Durrant was pres
ent and answered to his name, then
he could not have been at the church
with Blanche Lamont.
An Important Point.
DR.. Cheney considered the point so
important that he spent two days in
trying to determine the truth or falsity
Of facts as shown by the roll. The
seventy-six members of the class were
taken into his private office, one by
ole, and Intercepted as to whether
they had remarked Durrant's pres
.ence at the lecture, whether they
heard him answer when his name was
called, and whether they had answer
ed for him. To the two last inter
rogatories they all answered in the
negative. Some were under the i'm
preston that Durrant had attended
the lecture, but none were sure.
DR.. Cheney's investigation brought
out one important fact. 1t was that
on April - Durrant went to a fellow
student, Edward f. CHASER. and asked
Tor the notes on DR.. Cheney's lecture
aeIyered on the afternoon of the Sd
Inc prosecution looks upon this as
proof that Durrant did not attend the
lecture, for had he done so he wo1,l6
have made his own notes.