The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-06-08
Mistaken Identity.
Some Complex Cases Which
Were Very Annoying.
New YORK Times.)

questions OF identity said dis
tlnguished judge, present many diff
( hcHitIes. | am not going to discuss the
rules Of evidence. They are founded
on the dictates of reason and common
sense. Nevertheless, cases of mistaken
identity give much trouble. i saw John
smith yesterday some one testifies,
with an emphasis on yesterday. I use
john Smith as a name only, for I bear
IN mind an actual case, the real man
pelng person of some Importance,
I where an honest witness SWore that
he had seen Smith yesterday Now it
was shown that at the time Smith was
I IN London and had not been in the
United States for six months. 1t was a
! hallucination on the part Of the wit
ness, or he had seen some one resem-
bling Smith
The personal equation enters into
the subject of identification. The feat
ures of the man impress themselves on
the brain of the artist. ] have been as
sured that Mr.. Sergeant our American
painter now in London, can draw in
/ prOhle or in full face a striking like
/ ness Of any one who has ever sat for
J him. l do not think that our carica-
turlsts ever feel the necessity of look
ing up model for the political per
: sonages they want. 1t is not the lines
1 OF the face some people only remember.
There is the bearing, the gait, the
swing Of the man which are recalled,
1 so that you may say That is Robin
/ son. even when his back is turned to
/ you. as he passes on the street.
"One somewhat curious tendency is
/ found in womankind. Some of the gen.
/ tier sex are always in search of like
| nesses. A lady is looking at an illus
/ trated MAGAZINE She finds a fancy
! portrait, part OF a romantic fiction. or
4 it may be the photograph Of a man in
1 actual being. She says, 1 never saw
/ such a striking likeness. It looks pre-
/ cisely like Miss Y. or Mr.. Il. Don't you
see ito You may look i'm vain for the
! least resemblance. Nevertheless, in
! cases of identification ] am inclined TO
! think that women are not prone TO err
ror l wish I could establish some
1 theory Of this kind, and it is, that men
/ identify women more readily than do
! women, and inversely that the recOgni-
! tiOn of women as far as relates to men
] is the more conclusive. 1t might depend
/ on some sexual instinct. l leave the
subject, however, to the psychologist.
1T may be that you know S., the
/ reporter. That man has a phenomenal
/ memory for faces and for names. 1
! have been seated alongside him at pub
/ lie meetings and he has told me the
name of almost every prominent person
4 within sight A face and name never
seem obliterated from his brain. Let
/ any one say to him, That is Xenophon
! Cyrus Adams, and the mans face and
4 his name S. can never forget.
Now, that may belmore or less sur
| prising, but he has another faculty,
and it is that he lOcates-may l call II
! spots-the man, telling you exactly
! where he saw him last. For some time
| I questioned the accuracy Of this per
Torrance. In summer 1 live in the
/ orange country. I am a commuter,
and so is s. S. has no pTedisposltlon
to show off, but at my request ne TOTO
me the names of all, or almost all, or
/ the people in the car Who were COM
! uuters. is there any one in the car
[ YOU do not know2 was what / asked.
Yes. he replied. Il Go not know that
mans name. He-is reading now. met
! him on Wednesday last he was III d
Broadway car. He got in near Union
square, carried dress suit case'anu On
II were painted the initials l.. Nj. r.
/ The address Of the luggage / could not
see because Of the railroad labels past
ed on the dress suit case. VIII you u9
a mild cigar, judge
( What is all this rigmarole you are
telling me?' asked. Do you mean 10
saw that, having seen this man ohce'
an inter stranger to you, and there
existing no possible reason forsyour re
neu6bering him. that you can recdll
him? Was that car empty?
NO. il was damned: was SIS reply
T lost sight OF him and 1 do not know
I where he got out -,s--,v,u
Would you mind my verifying
this?' l asked. ~.,,,-
Not in the least was D s. reply
Il went to the young man VINO was
absorbed in a newspaper. MY ques-
t,oning was somewhat Apologize in
it's manner. VIII you excuse me, /
said. but were YOU the young entle-
man who took a Broadway car one DAY
last week? Did you get in at Union
s0uare? Had you a bag or something
with the initials i. NJ. +. on II.
''Tbere was a look Of astOnishmenJ
on the Young mans face. Had ne SAID
10 me: What is that your business
7 should hardly have known now 20
formulate a reply. I assure you, SIR,
said sno bffense is meant, but want 10
take down a friend of mine who says
he met you in a car one day TINS week.
II :. you ratified me at first replied the
volIng gentleman. It sounded ike de-
] fective business. Well, i certainly dld
take a Broadway car on wednesday
last. 7 had dress suit case win me-
and the initials on 1t were Il. NJ. e
But those initials are not NINE pc
cause 1 borrowed the case from
friend. have no hesitation IN giving
you my name
ut was not necessary that l shoulG
have his real name. We exchanged
]
ouaintance to take seat with US. A
somewhat formal presentation to 5
took place. The ice was soon broken
and we we're at Orange before We knew
it. The last thing the young Ngentie-
man said was: Mr. s.. | shall nave IC
he very careful of my conduct IN the
future, for if / even mlsoehaNed
should be at your mercy.
Il have thought over a really com
plex case of identity with a Dromlc
cast of characters. only the matter was
serious one. Fact does sometimes
overshadow fancy. 1T the time the IN
cidents occurred I was practicing my
profession in a large western city, ano
il was in the second year after nae
been called to the bar. mere were
two brothers. twins, living IN the city
They were about 24[years old. Ines
We're as much alike as two peas ou
Of the same pod. They found employ
meut in their fathers Touring mill, anc
viii call them for the purposes OF
this incident A. and B. Following the
whims of twins, the two dressed very
much alike. They wore rings on tht
same fingers, and the gold water
chains were precisely alike, on Whlcf
were suspended identical seals. A was
shade taller than B., while b. was
Just a little stouter than A. SO as e
even themselves, B. wore heels TO MI
shoes somewhat higher than A s, while
had his clothes made a little mor'
, baggy Anyhow, it was difficult, IN
less you knew them very well, to-dis
tinguish one from the other.
They lived with their father IN
! house on a somewhat secluded avenue
81 Not far from them was the residenc'
D Of the richest man in the city. IhA