The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-04-27
WILL GO TO JURY TODAY
ARGUMENTS IN THE sAXTON MURDER
CASE ABOUT COMPLETED.
Judge Will Deliver His Charge This
Afternoon and Mrs. George May
Soon Know Her Fate.

CANTON, O., April 26.-The closing argu-
nent in the trial of Mrs. George was in
progress when court adjourned this even
irg. Prosecuting Attorney Pomerene began
his shortly after 2 o'clock and will
probably occupy the greater part. If not
all, of tomorrow forenoon in completing
it. 1t is now thought the jury will be
charged Immediately after the noon recess
on Thursday. The day was without special
incident, so far as the accused was con-
cerned. Mrs. George sat all day with down.
cast eyes, and was occasionally moved to
tears as the story Of her life was narrated.
The courtroom was thronged from early
morning to the hour OF adjournment, and
Many who could not gain admittance stood
in the courthouse corridors all day.
Attorney John C. Welty occupied the
morning in his closing plea on behalf of
Mrs. George. He said to the jury that IL
they found the accused guilty of murder
in the first degree they should not recon-
II end her to mercy, thus substituting i'm
r~risonment for life for the death penalty.
For her sake and for my sake" he said,
"Go not recommend mercy. We do not ask
it; we do not want it" In commenting on
a threat about going to the Althouse place
to create trouble, Mr.. Welty said 1t was
fitting that Saxton should meet his death
there. on the steps of his companion in
wrong doing. Mr.. Welty insisted on the
weakness of material links in the chain Of
circumstances associating his client with
the crime and the completeness of the alibi
presented. as well as the accounting for
bLrrs and needles and the condition of the
accused when arrested. Mr.. Welty con-
Guided at 2:05 o'clock.
Mr., Pomerene then began his final address
in tho nQcn on hQhalf of tho nracnnpt,na
He insisted that the extent to which the
testimony of one addicted to the opium
habit should be excluded was for the jury
to decide according to the testimony on the
use of drugs, resisting the proposition of
the defense that the court should order the
jury to ignore, the testimony entirely of
one so addicted. He also took ground OPP
posite to that of the defense on the matter
of threats. insisting that these threats
for the crime and circumStantial evidence
thereon, as well as or the question of the
degree of reconciliation and elaboration:
In summing up the case to the jury the
prosecuting attorney insisted that the Jury
should not consider what the character of
Saxton was or was not, and that If the &C
cused was thought guilty the jury should so
find, dwelling at some length on the subse-
quent result of an acquittal under such cir
cumstance when the testimony had proved
i guilt. He Insisted that an alibi
and not established is an evidence of fraud
and deception, and insisted that the alibi
in this case had not accounted for the &C
cused at the momentouS time involved. He
urged that the accused was not the simple
country woman her attorney had represent
ed her to be, but that she had been carried
away by her vanity, her ambition and her
desires for what only a rich man could pro-
vide her. He said with much vehemence
that when she secured a divorce from her
husband she must either have sworn truly
TO the good grounds for that divorce or else
have falsified TO the court, either Of which.
he said, was pertinent to this case. He in
sisted that her language and conduct had
not been that of a woman such as her at
| torney had represented her, and recalled
the testimony of witnesses who had sworn
that Mrs. Georges words We're too profane
and too obscene TO be repeated on the wit
| ness stand. AS to most OF the witnesses for
The accused. the prosecuting attorney was
disposed TO be kind and considerable. He
charged them with nothing worse than a
| mistake as to the time Of the incidents they
| narrated. and this he did only through the
testimony OF others. He was, however, very
| severe in his reference TO Mrs. George.