Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-11
CASE GOES TO JURY
MolineuX Murder Trial Near
ing an End.
BREA THL#S CROWD
LISTENS TO CLOSING ARGUMENT
OF PROSECUTION.
Justice Lambert Delivers His Charge
and the Fate Of Prisoner Will
Soon Be Known.
BREATHLMS CROWD

NEW YORK, November 11-More than
thousand men and women, and there
were more women than men, crowded the
corridors of the criminal court building be-
fore o'clock this morning and fought for
admission to the room where Justice Lam
bert Is sitting in the Molineux trial.
After the usual preliminaries Assistant
District Attorney Osborne resumed his
summing up. He said former Governor
Black had made a mis-statement when he
declared the experts had testified that the
writing on the poison package wrapper was
not in a disguised hand. Mr.. Osborne read
extracts from the testimony to show that
two out of three of the experts had found
the address disguised.
Discussed Barnet Letters.
Mr.. Osborne argued that the Barnet let
ters, the earliest in the case, gave the first
evidence Of an attempt to disguise and that
the disguise improved with every later ex-
hibit. He declared that the earlier Barnet
letters conformed almost exactly to the
handwriting Of Molineux
The prosecution then took up the mat
ter of the letter boxes, and declared the
hiring of the Koch box in Cornishs name
was an act Of hostility to Cornish. Talking
Of Koch, who sold to a newspaper an iden-
tification of Molineux a man who had
talked to him on December II, 1898. about
hiring letter box. Mr.. Osborne said he
would not himself insult the jury by ask
ing conviction upon such evidence.
Molineux's Talk With Heiles.
The assistant district attorney dwelt az
some length on the talk MolineuX had with
Heiles before Heiles wrote to Stearns & Co.
about Harpster, and demanded:
Does not that show hostility to Harp
ster? Molineux had nothing against Harp
ster except his friendship for Cornish, ana
yet he tried to do him the greatest harm
he could-deprive him of his job. If he
would go far against Harpster, what
would he not do to Cornish?'
Mr.. Osborne began to talk about the Bar
net letters.
The man who wrote those Cornish let
ters had the Barnet case in mind" he said,
when eX-Goy. Black interrupted with an
objection, which Justice Lambert sustained
Wedding Was Sudden.
Mr.. Osborne, however, declared he was
well within the evidence, and the court per-
mitted him to proceed.
This defendant and Barnet" Mr.. Os-
borne continued, were friends living near
to each other on the same floor Of the
Knckerbocker Athletic Club. They were
paying attention to the same lady. She re-
jected Moineux. Barnet died, and eight
days later Molineux bought for the woman
an engagement ring. The wedding was
very sudden"
Mr. Osborne took up the Burns, Cornish
and Barnet letters, the first two asking for
certain remedies and the third for "a mar
riage guide" and declared that the en-
velope matched the paper of the Cornish
letter and that the wording of the conceded
Burns letter was Identical with the wording
of the Cornish letter.
Intelligence of the Jury.
This case" counsel said in concluding
his talk on the handwriting, does not de-
pend upon any witnesses who may lie, but
on the common sense and intelligence Of the
jury Former Gov. Black well said in de-
fining circumstantial evidence that every
circumstance must point to the one man as
the magnetic needle points to the pole. Ev-
cry circumstance in this case points to
Molneux."
Mr. Osborne in his peroration, pointed
out again the circumstances upon which
he relied for a conviction, turning at each
mention of MolineuX's name to point his
finger at the defendant.
Molineux Sat Unmoved.
Molineux sat unmoved at the arraign-
ment, but attentive to every word of 1t.
Not SO with his father. The old general
was visibly affected by the words of the
prosecuting officer, and Cecil Molineux, the
prisoners brother, was very nervous.
In his closing words Mr.. Osborne begged
the jury not to let their feelings run away
with their judgment and not to refuse to
convict through timidity.
1t was past noon when Mr.. Osborne was
through, and then Justice Lambert sus-
pended proceedings until 1:15 o'clock, when