Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1901-08-01
FOSBURG IS ACQUITTED.
The Pittsfeld, Mass, Manslaughtei
Case Comes to an Abrupt
Termination.
JURY WERE INSTRUCTED TO AcQuIT.
The Court Held That the Govern
ment Had Not Furnished Proof
Sufficient to Sustain q Verdict of
GufIty-A Remarkable Demon-
stration I'm Court.


stration in Court.
Pittsfeld, Mass, July 27.-At the
opening of court in the Fosburgh
trial, Judge Stevens instructed the
jury to bring in a verdict of not
guilty and this was done, ending the
trial. -
The jurymen did not leave their
seats. The verdict was received with
shouts of applause which the our
soon suppressed. The demonstra-
ton, however, was one of b most
remarkable hat has ever occurred in
q court of justice.
The Courts Remarks.
Judge Stevens in ordering a YER
dict of aequittal sand:
Mr.. Foreman and gentlemen: Dur
ing six days we have listened to a
painful recital of one of the saddest
tragedies ever presented to a jury. A
beautiful girl just budding into
womanhood was hot down, and her
brother has been accused of the
crime. The government has endeav-
ored to prove that the girl was not
shot by burglars; it has endeavored
to exclude all other members of the
family from the affair, and tried to
prove that the shot was fired by her
brother, Robert S. F~osburgh.
More in Form of nQuest
"The trial has proceeded somewhat
in the form of an inquest, and has
been tried with great pains on the
part of the government and the de-
Tense. There has been a desire to
obtain proof, and so a great deal of
evidence has been introduced and adj
mitted without objection which might
have been excluded under the strict
rule of the law. 1 think 1 ought also
to say to you that it is due to the
chief of police, who has stood behind
this prosecution, that in the view of
the court he has tried to do his duty
with a single eye to ascertaining the
truth.
Not Sufficient Proof.
"Now, Mr.. Foreman and gentlemen,
a motion has been made hat this case
be taken from the jury, and it be-
comes my duty to say to you that in
the opinion of the court the govern
ment has not furnished proof suf-
ficient to sustain a verdict of guilty
against the defendant, and, therefore,
under the direction of the court, in
the Indictment of Robert S. Eos
burgh for killing his sister, you viii
return a verdict of not guilty"
Demonstration in Court.
The crowd in the courtroom, which
included hundreds of friends of the
defendant, broke into loud applause,
which the court Immediately quelled
by sternly raising his finger and COM
manding the sheriff to see that the
demonstration was not repeated.
Robert Stewart Fosburgh, the de-
PENDANT, was then ordered to stand
asked: "What is your verdict?" The
reply was Not guilty"
Thanked the Jury.
Judge Stevens then in a few words
expressed his thanks to the jurymen
for their careful consideration of the
Ease during its presentation to them.
Young Robert Fosburgh was then
discharged from custody and court
was adjourned.
The crowd then rushed as one per-
son to shake the hand of the smiling
young man and it was several min
utes before the courtroom was
cleared.
Held a Reception.
Immediately after his discharge
young Robert Fosburgh, accompanied
by the members of his family, went
to the Wendell house, where a recep-
ton was held, and where hundreds of
people shook hands with the young
man.
Jury Was of One Kind.
AS soon as the jury was dismissed
the foreman called them together in
his private room, and for the first
time there a q conference as to
what the jurors believed. Without ex-
ception they declared hat they would
nave returned a verdict of not guilty
within Is minutes, even had they not
been instructed by the court. They
acknowledge they would have paid no
attention to the exhibits in the case.
While Judge Stevens was speaking
to the jury the members of the Fos-
burgh family, realizing what his re-
mark meant to them, burst into
tears, while the defendant sat with
buried head, the tears coursing down
his heeks The wife of the defen-
dant was the only member of the fam
lily not in the court room, and it was
said hat she remained at the hotel