The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-10-15
TALKING FOR LUH9GHR4
Court Room Besieged b.
Eager Men and Hys-
teric Fashionable
Women.
VINCENT TALKS OF DOUBT
Circumstantial Evidence Risky,
He Thinks-Hot Shot for
Experts.
VINCENT TALKS OF DOUBT

CHICAGO, Oct. Is, 1ss7.-Electric fans
buzzed merrily on Judge Tuthills desk to-
day. But ten feet away men and women
sat and sweltered as they listened to the
closing argument of ex-Judge Vincent,
chief counsel for the defense in the Luet-
CERT trial. The crush of humanity at the
Criminal Court Building was terrific. A
hundred times the number of people the
court room would accommodate clamored
for admittance. After the corridors were
crowded with more people than could be
seated in the court room, hundreds stood
in line on the sidewalk outside and per-
sisted in their demands for admission. 1t
was the greatest crowd the trial has yet
seen and the noisiest
Collisions between guards and deputy
sheriffs on one side and the mixed throng
on the other were frequent in the early
morning and much loud and vulgar talk
was indulged in The speech making in
this famous case seems to be the great
est card in the two months of continuous
judicial performance. More than half
the number of the crowd that sWerved.
pushed, pulled, gesticulated, demanded,
beseeched and otherwise sought adnlis-
sion to Judge Tuthills court was COM
posed of women. They came attired in
matinee costumes and when their fans
were put in operation the court room was
a fluttering sea of many hued waves.
| Luetgert came into court looking much
| improved in personal appearance, owing
to a visit to the jail barbershop. He
| also appeared to have had better
nights rest than upon Wednesday night.
The big sausage maker greeted his son,
(! Arnold Luetgert, and William Charles,
| his business partner, with hearty hand
| shakes. Then he turned and faced the
large audience present. His heavy eye
| brows were contracted and the habituaI
scowl deepened as Luetgert gazed about
! him apparently in search of the pres
ence of friends.
Ex-Judge Vincent, fresh and confident
in physical appearance and in good voice,
resumed his argument where he had left
| off Thursday afternoon.
Gentlemen of the jury" said he. 81
/ had intended reading to you some ten or
| twelve cases on circumstantial evidence,
but owing to the oppressive heat and in
| Difference to the wishes and suggestions
of the Court, shall curtail my read
ings considerably. But before I enter
into further discussion of the evidence
in this case I shall read to you two
or three cases of interest"
Luetgert's chief counsel thereapon read
| from law books definitions of circumstan-
tial evidence and the weight that was
due and should be attached to such evil
dence.
"I will not say that circumstances do
| not sometimes point to guilt observed
| ex-Judge Vincent, ''but will say, aye,
and affirm with emphatic warning to you
twelve men, that condemning to death
a human being on purely circumstantial
evidence is a dangerous proceeding. Can
any juror in the jury box say that Mrs.
Luetgert will not return before I have
ceased this argument? Can any Of you
say she will not come back to her hons
and her children next week, next month,
YOU can, reasonable doubt exists in
i your mind and you must give this pr1s-
1 oner the benefit of it. Remember
/ throughout your deliberations that this
prisoner iss entitled to every reasonable
| doubt
Ex-Judge Vincent took up the evidence
| in the case and discussed 1t at length
He defended William Charles, Luetgert' ,
partner, whose evidence was impeached
and practically admitted that the story
/ Charles told was the story Luetgert
would have told had he gone on the wit
ness stand. The bone experts were dis
cussed and those of the prosecution We're
ridiculed while the experts of the defence
were extolled to the skies.
i Ex-Judge Vincent was booked to talk
all day. Tomorrow States Attorney De-
neen will speak. He will close the case
| in a five hours argument 1t is expected
that one hour and a half will be re-
| uuired for Judge TuthiH to read the Yol-
luminous instructions.