Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-11-12

| Now YORK, NOV. 1.-the MOi1neux
| jury was brought into court at 1885. AT
| the same time Molineux was taken
from the Tombs into the court and Dis
| trict Attorney Jerome was summoned.
On his arrival the court room was
| locked and no one was allowed to en-
| ter or leave it.
Molineux was acquitted. The jury
remained out just Is minutes. When the
| foreman announced the verdict there
was much applause and the cheering
extended to the crowds waiting out
side in the corridors and on the street
More than thousand men and wO-
men and there were more women than
men, crowded the corridors of the
criminal court, collecting before 8
o'clock this morning and fought for ad-
mission 10 the room where Justice
Lambert is sitting in the Molineux trial
and long before the proceedings began
every chair was occupied and a solid
mass of 300 or 400 persons stood in the
rear of the court room.
Assistant District Attorney Osborne.
resuming in summing up. said ex-Gov-
ernor Black had made a misstatement
when he declared the experts had tes-
titled that tine writing on the poison
package wrapper was not in dis
guised hand writing. Mr.. Osborne read
extracts from the testimony to show
that two out Of three Of the experts had
found the address disguised.
Mr.. Osborne argued that the Barnet
letters. the earliest in the case gave the
first evidence of an attempt to disguise
and that the disguise improved with
every later exhibit. He declared that
the earlier Barnet letters conformed al
most exactly to the handwriting OF
MOlineuX.
The prosecution then took up the
matter OF the letter box and declared
the hiring Of the Koch box in Cornish's
name was an act Of hostility to Cor
nish. Talking of Koch. who sold to q
newspaper an Identification of Moli-
neux as the man who had talked to
him on December II, 1898. about hiring
a letter box Mr. Osborne said he would
not himself insult the jury by asking a
conviction upon such evidence.
The assistant district attorney dwelt
at some length on the talk Molineux
had with Heiles before Heiles wrote to
Stearns & Co. about Harspeter and de-
manded: Does not that show hostil-
ity to Harspeter? Molineux had moth
ing against Harspeter except his
friendship of Cornish and yet he tried
to do him the greatest harm he could
deprive him of his job. If he would go
so far against Harpster what would he
not do to Cornish?'
Mr.. Osborne began to talk about the
Barnet letters.
This defendant and Barnet" said
MFR. Osborne, were friends living near
to each other on the same floor of the
Knickerbocker Athletic Club. They
were paying attention to the same
lady. She rejected Molineux. Barnet
died and eight days later Molineux
bought for the woman an engagement
ring. The wedding was very sudden
Mr.. Osborne read the letter Molfn-
eux wrote to Mrs. Sadie Schaffer an
nouncing his sudden engagement to
prove that the wedding was unex-
pected at the time it occurred.
Then he took up the Burns. Cornish
and Barnet letters. the first two ask
ing for certain remedies and the third
for "a marriage guide" and declared
Of the Cornish letted and that the
wording of the conceded Burns letter
was identical with the wording Of the
Cornish letter.
"Thjs case" counsel said in con-
Guiding his talk on the writing. does
not depend upon any witness who may
lie but on the common sense ana IN
telligence of the jury
Ex-Gov. Black said in defining cir
cumstantial evidence that every cir
cumstance must point to the one man
as the magnetic needle points to the
pole. Every circumstance In the case
points to Molineux.
In his concluding words Mr.. Os-
borne begged the jury not to let their
feelings run away with their judge
| ment and not to refuse to convict
through timidity.
| IF you do" he declared "all
| through your life you will hear that
still small voice of conscience taunt-
ing you coward! coward. coward"
| 1t was past noon when Mr.. Osborne
was through and Justice Lambert sus-
pended proceedings until LIS o'clock.
He warned the jury not to discuss the
case even among themselves and said
ne would charge them Immediately
after recess.
At the afternoon session Justice
Lambert declared his charge.
katherine ]. Adams he began,
died on December IS. 1898. and the de-
PENDANT is charged with the response
bility for her death. The defendant
may be convicted II you think the
eviderce adequate Of murder In the
first hegree or il you think well OF
murder in the second degree or Of
granddaughter in the first degree or OF
granddaughter in the second degree"
Justice Lambert read from the stat
utes the definition Of the various de-
grees or homicide. laying stress on the
necessity Of deliberation and premedi.
tation to constitute murder In the first
degree. z
1T is commended here by the people,
ne went on, shat II this defendant Ii
found guilty he win be guilty Of muir.
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