The herald., 1895-09-18
THE PEOPLE VS.. DURRANT
The Prosecution Tightening the
Moose Slowly but Surely
IN FRONT OF THE CHURCH
With an Unknown Girl at 4 P. M. on
the Sd Day Of April
The Unknown Girls Appearance Exactly
TaiIies With Blanche Lamont's, and
She csrriedE Some Books

Associated Press Special Wire
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 27.-Theodore
Durrant has been taken by his prosecu-
tors right up to the scene of the murder
of Blanche Lamont in Emanuel Baptist
church. Today's trial passed him bey md
the church gate and he was with young
lady when he entered.
The day before Mrs. Crosett had left
him at the corner of either Twenty-firs.
or Twenty.second street and Valencia.
going toward Bartlett street with young
ladv. Today Martin Quinlan took him
past the corner of Twenty second and
Bartlett streets, still with the young lady
and then Mrs. Caroline 8. Leaks told of
seeing MIN pass along the front of Eman-
uel church and enter the gate at the side
of the church. He opened the gate and
let the young lady he was with pass in
ahead of him. This was after o'clock on
A nril Sd. the dav Blanche Lamont disap-
peared.
If the jury should accept all the circum-
tantial evidence as true, the case against
Durrant would certainly be very hard
one to overcome. Mrs. Vugel saw Dur
rant hanging about the school where
Blanche Lamont was. Her school friends
saw him with her, going from the school
as far as Market street. Mrs. Crosett saw
HIM with young lady, unknown to
her. on a car which had passed up Market
street. Qninlan saw him with Young
lady. Mrs. Leake thought that th e
young lady was either Blanche Lam ont
or Miss Turner.
Positive Identification OF the girl Dur
rant was with stops at Market street. The
case weakens somewhat, too, after that
point. Mrs. Crosett is positive, but she
is very old. Mrs. Leake, again. Is old,
and unlike most women under similar
circumstances, kept her important tnfor-
nation to herself during the exciting
| days of the search for the missing girl,
| the finding of the body, the coro ner's
| jury and the preliminary examination.
| The same Is true of Mrs. -Crosett
Now, the question is: Can the defense
so cloud this portion of the prose Cutiun
| case as to cause that reasonable doubt
| to arise in the minds of the jury men?
| Then defenss does net say q word about
| what 1t expects TO prove. From Durrsnt
an unbroken front of confidence. They
| laugh and sniff at the most damaging
testimony. Nothing leaves a wrinkle on
| the foreheads of the attorneys or De-
tective Morse. They cloak their case
| with mystery, fish around with the pros
ecution's witnesses good deal and look
! wise. Opinion among the habitues of
| the court room is divided as to whether
| the defense will be the most brilliant
one seen in San Francisco for years or
nothing at ala reliance upon small
| technicalities and mihor contradictions.
| The veil will have to be lifted before
! long, however, for at the present rate of
| progress the prosecution will have pre-
sented all its evidence by the middle of
next week. hen the opening statement
! of the defense ought to open the eyes of
| many who have so long waited to see.
/ AS for the prisoner. he has at last be-
gun to show some slight signs of break
| ing down under the long strain. Before
| the case opened he was unconoernedly
reading a Denver paper. During the
attorneys followed Police Court Attorney
Martin Quinlan from saloon to saloon and
drink to drink on April Sd.
But when old Mrs. Leake was giving
her testimony. when she stepped down
and pointed her feeble nnger at him in
accusation, he bent and cast down his
eyes. For on 20 he was not the easiest
man in all the place. Still, before the
day was over he yswned behind his
paper at the tediousness of the cross-eX-
amination-yawned as naturally as if he
were the least interested man in the
crowd.
AS the trial OF Theodore Durrant pro-
crosses strong evidence is being piled up
again st the defendant. The prosecution
has shown by the testimony of Mrs.
Vogel that the accused walked up and
| down the sidewalk in front of the igh
school building until Blanche Lamont
came out. He was then seen to take car
with her and started toward Market
street. Later he was seen on Valencia
street car IN company with young lady
answering Blanche Lamont's description.
by Mrs. Crossett. who has known Dur
rant intimately for years. The evidence
| that has been introduced relative to
| Durrants whereabouts on the afternoon
OF April Sd is directly contradictory to
his statement on the ght of his arrest
tAat he had not seen the murdered girl
after he left II sr on the way to schoul on
the morning of the Sd. He still maintains
that he was at the medical college at the
| time Mrs. Vogel says she saw him at the
normal school, but the defense has not
! found any of Durrant's fellow students
| to corroborate the statement. Maud La
| IN ont. sister of the m urdered girl, who
! was on the stand for short time today
! for the purpose of Identifying the ror-
| trait OF Blanche, introouced as an ex-
| hioit by tho prosecution. Tine defense
| fought hard against tho admission of TINS
| portrait, apparently fearing that it might
| lead to the Identification of Dnrrant's
| companion by those witnesses who assert
| that they saw him on the afternoon Of
| April Sd. but who were unacouainteo
! with the girl who accompanied him.
| Then Martin Quinlan took the stand and
| suppl led another link to that furnished
| by the evidence of Mrs. Crcssstt. testify
! ing that he saw Durrant and d young
| lady walking on Bartlett street toward
| Emanuel church about ten minutes past
4 on the Sd of last April. Quinlan said
he had resided in the neighborhood for
ten years and knew Durrant we'll by
sight.
| When he noticed the pair Durrant was
| smilingly attentive to the conversation o.
| his comp panIou. His description of the
appearances and costume OF tine girl tailed
precisely with the clothes and hat ident-
| fed as those worn on that day by Miss
| Lamont. He said that she carried q pack
| age of books bound With strap. There
| could be no doubt of his Identification of
Durrant, as the couple passed him on the
sidewalk as he stood waiting for friend
with whom he hal an appointment. He
| remembered the day and hour particular
ly because he afterwards went with his
| friend. David Clark. to VISIT the latters
brother in St. Luke's hospital. After
| nurrantss xrrpxt bo had war,, N ~, oraI 900