The San Francisco call., 1895-10-19
OURRANT'S NEW ATTORNEY
GEORGE w. MONTEITH CALLED IN
TO ASSIST THE DEFENSE AS
AN EXPERT.
THE PRESS AND THE PLAY TO BE
DISCUSSED IN THE DALEY
CONTEMPT CASE.

An interesting sidelight in the celebrated
Durrant trial is soon to come up for adjudi-
cation in the Supreme Court of the State.
1t is the matter of the contempt of court
proceedings instituted against w. R.
Daley for attempting to produce the play,
THE Crime of Century," at the Alcazar
Theater at the time of the beginning of
the trial of Theodore Durrant for the MUIR
der of Blanche Lamont contrary to the Or
der of the court.
Judge A. w. Thompson of counsel for
Durrant, representing the respondents in
the case, will to-day file respondents brief
in the Supreme Court. The docume mt is
voluminous, and goes deeply into the mat
ters of the courts jurisdiction the objec-
tion to which formed the chief contention
of Dalley's attorneys. Authorities by the
score are cited to sustain Judge Murphy's
position, and in his argument Judge
Thompson makes q careful analysis of
legislation and its relations to the powers
of the court to protect itself against inter-
ference with the administration of justice,
the object being to establish a precedent
with reference to powers Of courts to pun
ish for contempt.
The principal reason for suppressing the
production of "The Crime of a Century
was raised by Durrant's counsel in their
efforts to secure a change of venue. II
was held by them that the public mind
had been so prejudiced by newspaper arti-
cles that the defendant could not secure a
fair trial in San Francisco, and it was held
that the production of this play would
have tendency to create still further
prejudice.
Dailey's attorneys raised the point that
if the newspapers were permitted to pub
llsh articles calculated to prejudice the
public mind their client should not be in
terfered with in the presentation of a play
which was simply 1.-The holding of the
mirror up to nature"
Judge Thompson touched upon this
point strongly and said:
There is between US and counsel for peti-
TONER no contention to the value of the lib
erty of speech and of the press.
"The voice OF the people is the voice OF God,"
and its mouthpiece, the press, is sacred.
But we cannot cOncede that the Anglo-SaXon
race made its great struggle-went through the
trayed by our learned brother on the other
side-to achieve this freedom in order that
playwright and troupe OF actors might advant-
age themselves, put little mean money in
their private purses by holding up the poor lad
here on trial for his life to public gaze, con-
demnation and execration through theatri-
cal representation of the monstrous crimes
with which he is charged, making him the
central figure as perpetrator of those crimes.
"A people equal to the heroic efforts which
| liberty has cost should be, as indeed it is too
noble hearted to crush the man, already in
such fearful straights, by needless cruelty.
There is in this dramatization and exhibi-
ton of the murders and charge of their COM
| mission by the prisoner at the bar an element
| of fendishness utterly inconsistent with
proud, liberty-loving Americanism.
1t is vile pandering to the animal instincts
| OF the lowest element of the populace which
| delights in the horrible, has no sense of JUS
| tice, is moved by the desire to see another
| tortured, joys in the suffering of man and is
| ready to persecute any one it dares.
1t is parody on Christianity, decency, law
order and justice to compare the prostitution
of intellect in this matter with the sacred
| struggle for liberty.
Between freedom of speech and of the press
on one side and the motives of these theatrical
parties on the other there is neither connection
resemblance nor affinity.
Attorney George w. Monteith has been
called into the Durrant case to assist coun-
| sci for the defense. He has made a spe-
cial study of expert and scientific evil
| dence, and will take charge of that branch
of the defendants case in rebuttal.
| General Dickinson and Mr.. Monteith
spent the afternoon at the City Hall yes
terday examining the handwriting ex-
hibits with powerful microscope. It will
! be part of Mr.. Monteith's duties in the
| case to analyze for the court and jury the
| specimens of Rev. j. George Gibson's writ
ing, and draw the comparison between the
-chirography thereon displayed and that
on the newspaper wrapper enclosing
Blanche Lamont's rings, when they were
received by Mrs. Noble.
DIR. Barretts rollcall for DIR. Cheney's
lecture of April 3, also an exhibit in the
case, was also examined under the micro
scope yesterday.
The column in which Durrant is said to
have been marked absent and the mark
| then erased was given a careful scrutiny.
Both Messrs. Dickinson and Monteith
| asserted after finishing the examination
that no traces of an absent mark could be
found opposite Durrant's name.
Mr.. Deuprey's condition was still further
improved yesterday.