Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-03-08

morning.
An outline of the addresses of the
day will be found below.
THE CLOSING ADDRESS
OF Hon. John A. Howard, of Counsel
for Defense.
Mr.. Howard, of counsel for the de-
Tense, began his address few min
utes after balf-past nine. There was
a fair attendance of spectators, but the
policy of the court in discouraging the
general public, prevented the usual
crowd upon such occasions. The de-
PENDANT and his family occupied seats
in about the center of the room, fac
ing the judge, and, as may be mag
ined, were interested listeners to the
address. Mr.. Hubbard, of counsel for
the plaintiff, sat at the clerks desk,
and took notes, and listened atten-
lively, and only once did he interrupt
Mr.. Howard. for which the speaker
thanked him. The plaintiff sat in his
accustomed place, with the others of
his counsel near him. Many OF the
prominent members of the bar were
present during the day. Mr. How
ard began by saying:
Nov that we have reached the end
of this long trial, plain statement
of the case is all that is necessary. In
the two and one-half hours allotted to
me shall not devote any time to tell
ing you twelve gentlemen what good
fellows you are. We were all salts
fed with you, for each side struck off
four names, and either side could
have taken any one of you off. Both
sides in this case looked upon you as
fair men, and your duty lies with you
on your oaths-on the law and the evil
dence.
1--WE don't believe that such a case
as this ought to be brought in this
court or any other. And we thought
that when we had demanded security
for costs we were doing what was
proper. The plaintiff made an af1ida-
Wit to the effect that he was resident
of the State, and then the taunt was
thrown at us that we vouched for
his truth. Some harsh words have
been used about us in this trial, but
the worst is that we vouched for the
truth of the plaintiff This de-
PENDANT, If so disposed, after a YER
dict in his favor. could not recover
back his costs expended, and that is
all there is to it. We say this case
ought not to have been brought in this
or any other court, and l want to show
you the iInpelling causes in case in
which son drags his father, mother,
sisters and brothers into court and as
saults their character in every man
ner. Why? Because he wants their
money. The last words you heard
from his counsel yesterday, speaking
for him, we're for demand for $780,
600. They were not even willing to
give us credit for the $1,000 he got
last December Why, they ask for
$4,000 more than his father has-ask
you to send him back to the mud of
Monroe county to- earn $685. 900 over
and what he has, for this plaintiff
They also ask for a verdict which
would take from his mother the COM
forts she needs in her old age, and
from his brothers and sisters the ad-
vantages of the schools he had the
good fortune to attend. What more
evidence do you want of his being a
moral degenerate than have him come
here with this suit? He comes here
to prate about handouts hurting him!
Why, the very mother he seeks to
ruin suffered more in one maternal
pain in giving him birth than he could
possibly have done, though his hand
cuffs had been Spanish thumb-screws,
and turned until the bones cracked.
Think of his attack on the chastity
of Mrs. Hissom! On that stand, on
his oath-not looking you in the face
as an honest and conscientious man
does-he assailed his mothers chas-
tity himself! Had he forgotten that
he was blood of her blood. bone of her
bone and flesh of her flesh? Can it
be that man can have a sane mind
who would do that? Look at him
now, as he sits there. He wants
money-nothing else, and to get it he
is willing to brand his mother as
harlot and deprive his brothers and
sisters of an education, and ruin and
impoverish his father. But he is
their boy-bound always to be.
However degenerate, however vile.
man never sinks so low that his moth
er forgets him. He may wrong her,
and yet she remembers him, and his
father remembers him in his better
days, before he became the thorn
in the side this man has, and it is a
hard heart that beats in breast that
can sheer at father who would
speak of such son as my poor, dear
boy
"In this trial this has been an united
family-all on one side. And not
only the family, but the relatives.
They have chung to this defendant.
and chung to him for a month.
When this irridescent dream of
wealth has passed away, and he has
returned to his proper senses-when
the disease which evidently possesses
him yet, or he would not be here, is
gone-when he has no friends be-
cause he has no money and no pros
pect of getting 500, 000-and speak
for his father and mother-I say they
will welcome him back to their home
as they did when he married and
came to them with wife and child,
and they will say: You brought us
into Court and assailed US In every
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