The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-09-13
THE SEVENTH DAY.
Blanche Lamont Weighed 115
Pounds-The Defense Admits a
Point and Combats Another.

Blanche Lamont Weighed 1l5
Pounds-The Defense Admits a
Point and Combats Another.
A good deal of progress was made yester-
day in the Durrant trial-more than upon
any other day it seemed.
Witnesses were called who saw Blanche
Lamont and Theodore Durrant riding to-
gether on the streetcars in the morning
and in the afternoon of April 8.
After lengthy cross-examinations Of the
witnesses who saw them on the Polk-street
car in the morning Attorney Dickinson
carelessly remarked:
ooh, the defense admits the morning
ride"
The admission came gracefully, of course,
but the fact had already been pretty well
established.
Then as to the afternoon ride on the
Powell-street car after school Attorney
Dickinson fought it to the end. .Neverthe-
less, when all had been said, it seemed to
have been pretty well proven. At least
some very strong contradictory evidence
will be needed to throw doubt upon it.
More than one reputable witness saw
Blanche and Durrant on the PoWell-street
car, or testify that they did.
But what troubled the defense most yes
terday was the first bit of evidence offered
AS to the weight of the murdered girl. If
she weighed 40 pounds small man like
Durrant could hardly have carried her up
all those stairs to the top floor Of the belfry.
But there came, yesterday morning, a
witness who testified, of his own knowl-
edge, that the weight of the murdered girl
only few days before the Sd of April was
but 115N pounds.
This was William Richard Charleton, a
grocer. Blanche used to come to his store
as often as once week to get weighed.
She was anxious to know whether she was
gaining under the influence of California
climate. She did gain little, Mr.. Charlie
ton said. Once she weighed as much as
121 pounds. Then she fell off again, and
when Mr.. Charleton weighed her just prior
about two weeks-to the occasion testi-
fed to by the witness the scales marked
lib pounds.
Witness rememb ered these weights very
clearly, because he often talked about them
to the girls. Maud and Blanche came to
his store together.
81 laughed when I read in the paper that
DR.. Barrett had said Miss Lamont weighed
40 pounds" declared the witness. And
the most persistent questioning by Mr..
Dickinson failed to shake Mr.. Charleton in
the least. Mr.. Dickinson inquired about
the scales. Were they accurate? How
often were they regulated? How long had
they been in use? Where were they pur-
chased and to whom were they sold? But
the witness answered all the questions
quite readily and quite satisfactorily
withal, from the standpoint of the attor-
neys for the people.
The Identification evidence began with
Conductor Henry Jacob Shermount, man
with quite a phenomenal memory for de-
tails. He said Blanche Lamont and Theo-
dore Durrant got on his car at the corner
of Ninth and Mission streets and rode to
Polk and Suffer on the morning of April g.
Mr.. Shermount remembered a great deal
more than this, but the essential points
contained in his rather remarkable men,
DRY were fully corroborated by the witness
that came next.
This was Herman J. Schlageter, a medi-
cal student and classmate of Durrant.
He not only saw Durrant and Blanche on
the Polk-street car, but day or two after
that the defendant spoke to him about the
meeting on the car.