Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1898-12-22
TRIAL on SENATOR KENNEY
The Charge Was Delivered
Late Friday Afternoon. Il
IT TOOK TWO HOURS TO READ IT
The Jury Retired at 6.35
o'clock Friday Evening. !,


yesterday alGVTilOOl Wtth Ouiil l1lgEssOl
counsel for the defence in the case
against United States Senator kenney,
presented the prayers of the defence to
the court, but first took exception to
come of the prayers Of District Attorney
Vandegrift.
Mr.. Vandegrift began his address to
the jury at 3.05 o'clock and was speak,
ing Mt A. As O'Clock. the time Of adjourn
ment. He said the case was an exceed
ingly important one, not only to the
defendant but to the government. He
impressed upon tho jurors the fact that
IL they had any reasonable doubt such
doubt should be in favor Of the de-
PENDANT. He held, however, that there
was no doubt. The defendant had
been defended by able counsel, but
every point had been met by the
government. The defendant, Mr.. Van
degrift said, is convicted out of his
own mouth. He knew what he was
doing when he gave those checks. He
made out his own deposit slips, with
but few exceptions. He drew his own
checks, with the stubs before him.
The stub book of the vital period,
which Boggs said would contain some
Of his figuring, showing how the de-
PENDANTS account stood at that time,
Kenney cannot produce. He says he
drew checks without knowing what he
had in bank 1t was utterly impossible
that he should do so without knowing
the condition of his account. On July
LIST, 1896, the books of the bank showed
that he had a balance of SOL. "a, while
checks amounting to 81, 800 were being
carried, and he really owed the bank
e2,59S As which the proper officers did
not know anything about. Mr.. Vande-
grift gave a history of some of the
alleged transactions, as brought out by
the evidence. According to the ledger
of'Cuthbert & Co. the district attorney
said, the defendant had 700 shares of
Bay State Gas stock and his loss was
about S., 900; therefore Boggs, who had
100 shares, lost about one-seventh Of
5000. and not 81, 407, as had been
testified to. The statements of Boggs
from the witness stand are borne out
by other evidence. Boggs stated that
on one occasion, when the conditions
at the bank were acute and no scarcely
knew what to do to tide over tho day,
there were so many checks out, he
borrowed from William M. Dickson,
clerk of the peace of Kent county his
check on the Farmers Bank for 81, 600,
the proceeds of which he deposited to
Kenney's account. His statement was
borne out by Mr.. Dickson, who was
summoned and produced the check.
Mr./Vandegrift said it was an i'm
possibility for n man who passed
through the transactions the defendant
had passed through to explain them,
holding that if he could the prison
doors would sooner or later close upon
him. The defendants explanation,
Mr.. Yandegrift continued, that he
don't know" cannot EXPLAIN -
"cannot tell.n &c., is the only ex-
PLANTATION he could give without con.
Tossing his guilt. He called attention
tothe fact that the defendant had been
honored by the people of Delaware with
ono of the highest positions in theil
gift, and said man so fortunate In
point of intelligence did not appeal tt
him as much as q man who could plead
ignorance Of the law.
The only things the defendants
counsel can bring out, Mr.. Vandegrif
said, are their clients ignorance ant
the rascality of William N. Boggs
Boggs can be swept out of the Gaze ant
there will be no difference. Boggs as
sunled the whole burden, destroyed al
Of the evidence in his possession agains
the Others in tho crime and walked GU
into the darkness and never expecte,
to return. He left sorrowing wifi
and five little children. His life wa
ruined. His action does not indicat
that he had malice toward those VIII
helped to ruin him. The result wa
brought about through other means
the fact that the foreign check book @
the Farmers Bank contained the name
of makers of checks. The discovery q
this opened the road by which justic
might be done to the State, to tn
people who lost the s10T, 000 TIL
checks were traced to the various ind
viduals by this means and not throug
any confession by William N. Boegs
BY the time he returned the book
had been examined and the road VIZ
open.
Mr.. VANDERBILT spoke of the witnesse
brought to contradict Boggs. He sal
he would have been willing to allo
the testimony of BroclSson and Bogl
to stand and let the jury. judge betwe5
them, but Brockson's testimony ha
been contradicted by James f, McIso
Referring to, E. 4, Cooper's testimon
Mr.. Vandegrift said there was no re
difference between the testimony !
Cooper and Boggs, so far as the maj
portion OF Cooper's testimony was co
cerned. Mr.. Vandegrift said the IA
that Boggs left nearly all of his world
possessions with Kenney when he le
Dover did not indicate that he tBogg
had any malice toward him. Relati
to Joseph W. Hazell's testimony abo
Boggs' alleged gambling, attention W
called to James Coady's contradictio
"The defendant knows he is guilty
Mr.. Vandegrift exclaimed. land he
struggling to escape the natural cons
quences of his own acts.' He 81
phasized the fact that Kenney paid
of the money obtained for his accour
but all of the money for Boggs' accou
was lost to the bank. The conditi
of kenney's account at various tin
was pointed out to the jury, the peri
covered being from May to Decemb,
1896
At the opening of Thursdays 8
sion Mr. Vandegrift resumed his .
dress to the jury. He held that eyei
thing brought out in evidence point
to n combination between Sena
Kenney and William N. Boggs, defau
ing teller of the First National Ba
of Dover, to deceive the officers Of [
bank. Boggs, he averred, told |
truth on the stand. He could ha
lied. Mr.. Vandegrift showing what
might have said if no had NAL
toward the. defendant.
The prosecuting officer called att
tion to Kenney's statement that he {
not know where Boggs was going O
Boggs' statement that the matter /
been discussed by them. Boggs
confessed his trouble to ,Kenney, tell
him what he had not told anybt
II. j u \ 49, 49,. A - =