The record-union., 1895-05-04
DURRANT'S EXAMINATION.
NEW AND STARTLING EVIDENCE
INTRODUCED.
A Second Hand Dealer Identifies Him
as Man Who Tried to Sell Him
Ring of Miss Lamont's.
Special to the RECoRD-UNroN.

| Special to the REcoRD-UNIoN
! SAN FRANCISCO, May 3.-The unex-
pected happened in the Durrant exami-
nation to-day. A new witness was pro-
duced, and his testimony put another
hard knot in the rope that binds Durrant.
This was Adolph Oppenheimer, second
| hand dealer in jewelry and valuables on
| Dupot street. He reads the newspapers.
and in them he found picture OF the
| rings that Blanche Lamont wore. Surely
be had seen one OF those rigs somewhere.
| He thought it over, and remembered that
early in April young man in dark
blue Overcoat had come to his store and
offered the ring for sale. He looked at
| the pictures OF Durrant in the papers.
Yes, there were the same thick lips and
the same thin mustache that he had no.
ticed on the man who had offered the
ring for sale. Mr.. Oppenheimer talked
the matter over with his wife. They
concluded that the matter might rest for
few days until things developed little.
Then there was another family consulta-
ton. and Mrs. Oppenheimer suggested
that If the man was really guilty perhaps
her husband had better speak out.
Mr.. Oppenheimer told the policeman
on the beat, but that official does not ap-
pear to have paid much attention, at least
so far as results show. AS Mr.. Open
heimer heard nothing from the City
Hall, he concluded he would 90 there
| himself. That was yesterday.
The examination was nearly concluded
! Two or three formal witnesses remained
| to be examined when the dealer in
| jewelry arrived at the hall during the
noon recess. He saw Captain Lees, and
was shown the rings worn by Blanche
Lamont. He positively identified the
diamond ring as the one that had been
offered him for sale. Then he saw the
defendant as he was brought from the
| prison to the courtroom. No doubt about
it. That was the man who wanted to
sell the ring. He was put on the stand,
and when be swore that the diamond
ring had been offered him for sale by a
man in dark blue overcoat that looked
like the defendant, an irrepressible wave
of inarticulate sound swept through the
room. The defendant was the only abso-
| lutely impassive man in the court. It
was the same when General Dickinson
asked Mr.. Oppenheimer how did he size
up the man who had offered him the
ring. The dealer remarked that he had
put him up for man who lives off the
earnings of woman" and the court
| room laughed In chorus-all but Durrant
who neither smiled nor budged. but sat
| like stone image.
ness-one not ready to swear too much,
but steadfast and unvarying in his
affirmation of what he knew. The only
place where the slightest breach was
opened was when cross ex amining coun-
sci brought out the fact that such rings as
Blanche Lamont wore are cheap affairs,
turned out by the bushel in factory.
There are perhaps thousands Of similar
make in use. On this line probably his
testimony may be attacked by the de-
fense later, on the ground that such things
are easily confused and hard to dis
tinguish. Yet the witness is positive in
his identification of this particular ring.
When Oppenheimer identified this ring
Durrant started violently. turned pale
and exhibited more uneasinesS than at
any time since his arrest,
The defendants counsel vainly tried to
break down this witness testimony and
that of three other witnesses who re-
peated the evidence given by them at
the inquest on Wednesday. These were
Martin Quinlan, the attorney who saw
Durrant and girl resembling Blanche
approaching Emmanuel Church at 4:20 p.
NJ. Oh April Sd; David Clark, who cor
| roborated Quinlan's statement of his
whereabouts on that day, and the janitor
of Emmanuel Church, who testified that
there was no defect in the gas on April
Sd, and therefore no reason why Durrant
should have been fixing the gas pipes at
the roof on that afternoon. The janitor's
evidence was for the purpose of discredit-
ing Durranps explanation to Organist
King OF his appearance. when he came
down pale, sick and weak, as the prose-
cution maintains, from the beliry, whore
he had Just murdered Blanche Lamont.
When the prosecution announced that
it had no more testimony to offer, coun-
sci for Durrant moved that the charge
against him be dismissed. This the
Judge refused TO do, and motion was
made that he be admitted to bail This
| was also denied, and Durrant was held to
answer for the murder of Blanche La
mont,