Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-10-24
MAJOR Wo0Ds0N's ADDRESS.

let the chips fall where they may"
MAJOR WOODSON'S ADDRESS.
An Earnest Plea for His Client, With
Some Unique Explanations of the
Courts Instructions.
Major Woodson began the final argument
for the defendant at 1:50 o'clock and closed
at 3:S5. He said he would not detain the
jury with long argument. 1t was his pre-
sumption that the jurors had looked at the
facts in the case from every possible point
and that counsel on neither side had pre-
sented anything the jurors did not know
when the testimony in the case closed
Major Woodson called attention to the fact
that Colonel O'Grady had said that the
motive which impelled Schlegel to murder
DR.. Berger was blackmail. He ridiculed the
| idea that Schlegel would have killed man
who had refused to be blackmailed, and
compared the statement to the story of
| the man who killed the goose that laid the
| golden egg. Then he asked:
How could John Schlegel have gotten
any money out of DR.. Berger after he was
| dead?"
The major said that the doctors and the
| lawyers We're on an equal plane SO lar
| as biackmail is concerned. He did not be-
need be afraid of being blackmaiied. There
was no man on earth with clean hands
| who e feared blackmail: nail .u ,,.o., ,.o,,
| he praised the judge and he praised the the
| jury, continued the counsel. He praised
| his fellow counsel. Why, he even praised
me. l don't want to be praised: it might
| swell my head. I don't want to be one
Of those big. high muck -mucks, | want
ha No MAJ 70 m
tlemen of the jury. That is ALL
p Major Woodson said there was an old
Speak no iii word of the dead He would
be guided by that adage. The major
then branched off into the details of the
| Schlegel. He declared that if Berger had
been innocent the proper thing for @ hing to
to Schlegel and said:
Look here. Schlegel. there is something
the matter with your wife's mind. She
| some offense. want to convince you that
1 am innocent Of the charge"
is hat he ,hs have had
7 would not have blamed Mrs. schlegel
had she carried her secret to the grave"
he declared. He said the secret would prob
ably never have been. known had she not
been, asked to go back to the doctors Of
Major Woodson, in speaking of the al
legged outrage, said:
Berger did that. You know he did It,
/ oSiSeE udSc EOlfe To ScnleSel ike
a man and faced the charge if 1t was false
But 1t was true and Berger sat back and
said, sh, lam am great physician; belong to
| and who will take the word of this humble
Dutch woman AGAINST mine? Her voice
nobody will heed it,
The attorney then referred to the manner
OF the states attorneys In cross-examina-
absolutely fair. and then. with wide
sweep S, J., Of his arms. he exclaimed: God
| l know their tricks.'
| Some Effective By-PIny.
Major woodson's first reference to schle-
gels children came when he was in the
midst of a lengthy explanation of why
Mrs. Schlegel did not go back to DIR. Ber-
gers office after that fatal Monday He
| had said 1t was because of a sense of wom-
anly duty. of her sense of Justice to her
husband. "ard.' thundered the major,
shaking his finger at the two boys, be
cause of her love for those two beautiful,
blue-eyed boys" Mrs. Schlegel looked
| pleased over the reference and smiled and
patted her youngest boy. Hugo, on the
head.
Il want to speak for every wife in Kan
| the breadwinners, 1 want to speak of the
wives of the jurors. when l say that that
and dutiful WIFE" he declared ' '''''
When the major spoke of Mrs. Schlegel
as bg y9,ung CIV
her child on the cheek.
Major Woodson, admitted that the evil
dence regarding the acts of the defendant
| after he had learned of the outrage upon
| his wife was incomplete, but he contended
that sufficient evidence had been adduced
come over the defendant; that it was
| great change-such a change as to render
| the defendant irresponsible.
| Was Schlegel justified in killing Ber-
| ger? claim that he was" said Major
Woodson. He then read the courts in.
the various paragraphs.
If there is any excuse for the shooting
of D his said ha ma59 % lit
duty. Schlegel is not the only one who
owed social duty. Berger's duty to So
| / ask you If he was not justified when ne
took the law into his own hands?"
Major Woodson next turned his attention
to Major Warner, whom, he characterized
| as ''one of the slickest old ducks in seven
states. He has his faults. like have, and
| him. Nevertheless, Major Warner is not in
this case for the good Of the defense, or
the good of the state. He is in this case
connection that Colonel O'Grady is not in
this case for his love of the state. He is;
| here from the same cause that brings Ma
Major Woodson got around the courts
instructions regarding insanity by giving
| Hypothetical case of man who was in
| an insane asylum, and who was one of the
| expert botanists of the world, who could
| talk sanely on this subject for hours but
| when asked for his name. would always an
swer. Il am Jesus Christ"
John Sehlegel." said the attorney. was
| sane on all subjects except that of putting
| DIR. Berger out of the way.
IT believe" declared Major Woodson.
| that If DIR. Berger had been honest in
| this matter and had gone to Schlegel and
| said, John, old man, 1 have wronged you
regret it,'-I believe that if he had done
this the tragedy at Twelfth and Walnut
| streets would never have occurred"
Major Woodson cited the mistake made
| by Schlegel when he came near shooting
Mr. Nash for DIR. Berger. as an evidence of
| the defendants deranged mind.
Gentlemen, we claim that it is fact
| that Schlegel was insane when he shot Dr.
| Berger. Do you propose to hang this man
because you think he was not insane
matter with this man. 1 do not believe in
| half way measures. He was guilty or in
| nocent. He was insane or sane l am glad
| that Major Warner told you we have An
| glo-SaXon laws l admire him for it. Go
| and look at the laws and find out how many
men have been hung for. defending their
! homes. Why? The home Is the unit OF So
ciety. A man has a right to protect his
home. There isn't n man on this jury who
wouldn't fight for his home, for his family
| In Gods name, is it not necessary for every
| man to fight for his home and a pure So
| ciety? We do not propose to change the
| marriage license SO that it shall read, "A
| wife shall leave her husband and cling to
her physician. If these physicians believe
| there is going to be change made In our
social laws that will allow a doctor to be a
| leper they are mistaken. We need a rough
man like John Schlegel to take the law