The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-11-12

er. testified to the accident which occurred
when he was boy. The child had fits
and conyulsions lasting three days at a
time until he was IA years old
His conduct was very ANNOYING to the
family while he was growing IN. He
would steal anything he put his hands
| on. Once he stole his fathers gold watch
and traded 1t for a newspaper. He was
then years old. He was sent to a re-
formatory for stealing a tent.
Other members of the family testified
to his strange actions.
Residents of Amesbury also testified to
the fact that he was considered weak
minded and that he had fits.
At shortly after IL O'Clock, recess was
taken until 1.30 p. N.
The first witness at the afternoon ses-
sion was Frank S. Plummer of North
Conway. He said that he had known
Kelley for three or four years, and he
came to his hotel to work in September,
| 1896, with the idea of becoming clerk.
he was there two months. For several
days, on account of dreamy spells, Mr..
Plummer said he did not know what to
do with him. Kelley told him he guessed
the devil made him act queer. He did
not consider Kelley of much value around
hotel
Gilbert FL. johnson of Portland, said he
had been in the employ of the last witness
when Kelley was there, and that he
noticed Kelley was out good deal on the
street and wrote many letters. he had
| seen Kelley out back of the house several
times trying to caboh squirrels with
string. He seemed to be gazing at space
a great deal, and did not have any seri-
| GUS conversation with anybody.
On cross-examination he said he had
seen squirrels back of the house, but it
occurred queer to him to see Kelley try
ing to catch them with string. He said
he never knew Kelley to catch squirrel
| that way.
Edward E. Loud of North Conway,
| said he first SAW Kelley at the hotel in
| that town. Kelley asked him to let him
| have ride, and after going short dis
tance, he was told the team was going to
| to Fryeburg, Me-, and he said he would
go there, too. He said he had been in
| the hotel business at Harpswell and the
devil went against him while he was
there and made a failure of it. He af-
terwards saw him in North Conway, and
| had heard people speak of his peculiari-
| ties.
| David G. Lee was the next witness and
testified that he had seen Kelley at North
Conway and thought he was peculiar. He
would talk about his hotel failures and
| said the devil was against him while he
had usually been in his favor.
John Kelley, aged 30, the prisoners
oldest brother, was next called. He said
he had seen Joe have fits frequently.
| Joseph ingalls, said he once engaged
Kelley in his hotel at Somersworth and
noticed he was peculiar. He at one time
asleep after midnight, and in few days
hs was taken sick. He was a general
errand boy about the house.
| Olive Stone of Somersworth, was called
and said she had kept company with
Kelley and at times she thought he was
I Z 4 l.
something to save using coal and wood.
He had mentioned about walking in his
sleep at one time finding himself on Mar
ket street. He had told her about having
dizzy spells.
The defence rested its case at 1885 with
the exception of expert testimony and
| the state commenced putting in rebubtal
testimony. Several witnesses testified
that they never noticed anything queer
about Kelley.
DR.. Charles P. Bancroft Of the New
Hampshire asylum for the insane, was
called, and said:
s'In the first place should say that his
mental condition was one of arrested
mental development; and that it was due
to the injury received in his childhood as
has appeared in the trial here. 1t has
| seemed to me that at that time he re-
ceived such an injury to the brain as led
to an improper subsequent development
| of the brain cells such as usually takes
place in brain of ordinary health; and
| responding failure of the mind to develop
in the ordinary way. In other words
that he I is as child in intelligence and
in moral qualifications.
| SIT seems to me that we could place
him about as child of eight or nine or
ten years in regard to his mental and
moral capacity He has some of the i'm
nd ms fiy,rt %a l. -
adult, but he has the Judgment for car
rying out these desires and impulses Of
child of eight or nine years, and hardly
| the moral capacity of child Of that age.
Il have come to the conclusion here
that this young man is not feigning; that
he is acting out his own natural self and
| that time will demonstrate that more
fully. think time will show that the
state of mind he Is in now will go on in
this direction developing more and more
| as he grows older.
II should say 1t was a case Of arrested
Development or imbecile of high grade.
l think his capacity to resist his impul-
| ses is very much diminished.
II would not attach much Importance
| to the fact that he had the capacity to
plan a murder of the sort he committed
on the 10th Of April last; as bearing up
on the question of his sanity or insanity.
The capacity to form a plan, an intelli-
genG plan, Is not an evidence of his sani-
ty. Kelley belongs. L believe, and I think
my associates in this case agree with me,
to the type Of insane criminals. II we
had proper institutions in this state as
New York state has, there is no question
but that he should go to such an institu
| tion, an institution for insane criminals,
because we recognize that the criminal
type Of insanity is somewhat different
from the ordinary type"
| DR.. Waterman, one of the examining
physicians OF Boston for the insane, was
next called, and testified as follows:
II cannot say that Kelley is absolutely
| irresponsible, but that his responsibility
is very much diminished. Whether 1t is
absolutely and entirely absent am not
quite positive. l think l should know
in times but am not positive now. I
should want to observe it for many
months. place him in the class of ar
rested development. I think it is much
more probable than otherwise that be
could not resist his impulses, and that
his action on the 10Th OF April, 1897 was
the product of a diseased mind.
From the very outset considered the
matter of his feigning and thought ii
probably the case; but think have con
vinoed myself that none of the things he