Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-10-09
THE DURANT CASE.
The Trial Nearly Over-Nothing of Import
ance Developed Yesterday.

I
ance Developed Yesterday.
San Francisco, October S.-After wan
dering through a mass Of unimportant
witnesses, the defense in the Dmant
! case this afternoon summoned to the
stand two of the most important wit
nesses that have been called since the
prosecution closed its case. One Of the
witnesses materially aided the defense,
by the fact that upon cross-eXamina-
tion he failed to give important testi-
mony expected by the prosecution. The
examination Of the other witness had
only just begun when the court took a
recess until tomorrow morning, but in
the short time the witness was on the
stand, he testified to one important
/ fact, which was directly opposed to
what the defense had hoped to estab-
lish:
The most important witness Of the
day was Charles T. Lenahan, the young
man whom the defense contends was
mistaken for Durant by POwnbroker
Oppenheim. Lenahan, who does not
bear a striking resemblance to the pris-
oner, said on April he attempted to
pawn a small diamond ring, similar to
the one worn by Blanche Lamont at
Oppenheim's shop. The witness said
that he asked Oppenheim the. same
questions and received the same an
swers that Oppenheim quoted in relat-
ing the conversation he lad with the
young man whom Oppenheim testified
was Durant
Then came the surprise to the de-
rrbfch oOtrp taro ofad pnor.lU all
the strength gained from the witness
testimony. Lenahan said that he tried
to pawn the ring In the afternoon,
while Oppenheim testified that Durant
entered his shop in the morning. At
tOrney Deuprey was considerably dis
concerted by this from the witness and
endeavored to impeach Lenahan's tes-
timony by reading a letter written by
Lenahan to the attorney for the de-
fense, in which he diyulged the fact
that he had tried to pawn small dia-
mond ring at Oppenheim's on the
same day Durant was said to have en-
tered the place. The court interrupted
/ Deuprey, however, and refused to let
him read only such parts of the letter
as referred TO the question in issue.
Deuprey then asked that the letter be
admitted in evidence and at the close
I Of the struggle over this move, court ad-
journed for the day.
w. A. Dukes, a student at Cooper
Medical College, who was expected to
give strong evidence for the prOsecu-
ton, gave disappointing testimony
Dukes said that Durant asked him If
he could remember that he attended
DR.. Cheney's lecture on the afternoon
of April 8 and to that end recalled a
number of incidents said to have taken
place at the time Although Dukes S
seat in the lecture room was next to
Durant's. Dukes could not remember
whether Durant was there or not, and
told him so. Dukes said it was untrue,
as had been reported, that Durant asked
him as favor that he would attend
the lecture. On the contrary, Dukes
said that Durant told him he wished
him to testify only to the facts as he
remembered them. With one eXcep-
tion the remainder Of the witnesses
we're called to testify to the previous
good reputation of the defendant.
II. n. F. Marshall, reporter on a
morning paper, testified that on April
II. Detective Gibson. who discovered
blanche Lamont's body in the belfry of
Emanuel Church, told him that he saw
the prints of a numer nine shoe near
where the body lay. Durant wears a
smaller shoe. In the case of Miss
Carrie Cunningham, newspaper re-
porter, who refused to disclose the
source of certain information relative
to the nature Of Mrs. Leaks testimony,
Judge Murphy ruled that the witness
was right in refusing to answer the
questions. Miss Cunningham was
therefore not punished for contempt.