The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-11-03
ARGUMENT
OPENS in
M'CUE CASE
Captain MiCajah Woods
Arraigns the
Accused.
ABLE REPRESENTATION
FOR PROSECUTION.
The Great Charlottesville Law
yer Uncompromising in His
Fight for Stern Justice.
5 e. tlsa .gt5S
EXPRESSES GREAT. PITY 4. /.
FOR WILLIE M'CUE
Mr.. Sinclair Opens the Argu-
1nent for Defense and Makes
Strong Appeal for His Client,
Deepest Interest Manifest
ed and the Court Crowd
ed to Suffocation.
n 8.
fstaft corree,pondent,, {,


CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA, Now With i
an Intensity OF interest that grew with
tho day and eliminated late at night, Al In
an audience that jammed the little court
house to the bursting point, all Of "A lbe KS
marie gathered to- day to follow first $
flights Of eloquence marking the opening
OF the long awaited argument In the ia -S3
nous NC Cue trial. 81 S. ss5 \
# It waS within ali hour Of midnight be-@
fore the stufyI room discharged the eager n
half-excited throng with which If had \
been burdened continuously since early
morning. Men and " Women, old and young,
black and white, hildren Of all sizes, IT,
storneys,5 professors. ministers Of the gos-S
pei, n clerks. servants. hard -flsted sons Of
toll were In the mot ley crowd and all, 4
seemed charged with the same keen5i in-
tense desire to see and hear all that wa
done or said. "a In the presence OF the stern
and ndSuncompromisng court, they sat silent
with ceilings carefully reprcssed. Once
in the free sair, a gain the forced stoldityS
vanished and the stroke OF midnight
caught many Il chattering knot5that on
tho street corner or in some cozy hotel
lobby continued the heated argument be-
and convincing manifestation OF the peo-
pies share In this strange and terrible, !,
case. P5 r. tf 8 III s X 4:yS s4:ySS
The day furnished to each side an ops
portunity Of blending its cause, and, in-
cidentally, disclosed the line that 4 will
be followed by each In Its further con-
duct Of tho case. Is -
Captain Wood Opens.
H In the morning Captain N1lcajah Woods. I.
the brilliant leader Of the prosecution
opened the three days argument with q
speech that, during every moment OF
the few hours 1t consumed. was remark
able for its charms OF rhetoro8an It's
force or logic. 5 XII
The bright particular spots We're at the
beginning and at the end, but every where5
the tone was lofty and free Of rancor.g and /
tho plea clear and positive and distinct
At the very outset tho crowd was greater
than any Charlottesville has ever bc- II
fore known.
The first words OF the leading prosecutor
were heard By an audience that filled
evry dusty inch In the building. and
from that moment until he sat down.. 2
tired and worn, but still full of fight, I
he had his audience in the hollow Of his +
hand. He struck, out boldly. and In the
course OF a mastery summary OF the
case laid before the Jury and the court I
every point Of strength In the contention
OF the Commonwealth for the conviction
ofathe accused
He reviewed tho evidence and drew from,
1t the conclusion that he considered abso-s
ilutely established BY the testimony Of . \
half hundred witnesses
%s. In Vivid Words.
In vivid words he drew for the jury tho
picture of a horrible, inhumun crime, and &
then carefully and with characteristic 4
fairness cndeavorcd to seek the motive
that stirred the bloody hand to action
He reviewed the testimony bearing upon8
the strained. relations Of the accused and
his wife, md briefly referred to the al
ways present. but never wholly revealed
s"other woman whose alien form had
disturbed the peace Of n once happy fire.
side
With this groundwork laid, the crime
and his conception OF the motive, he toolS
UP, one by one. the things connecting tho
prisoner at the bar with the homicide.
The attention Of the jury was successfully
called to Incidents Immediately preceding
the murder to these pecullarities OF the
murder Itself. to the wild inlprobability
OF the various theories advanced to- tho
conduct OF tho accused, to the lack Of
hue and outcry to the failure 10 notify
the police, to the variant, incoherent ac-
counts given, and lastly. TO the bloody
shirt, the weapons used. the scrap ofs
gauze found In tho death chamber
There We're. of course, other points,
and points of no small Importance, but
the argument followed the general lire
indicated above, NJ II was splenddly done.
A strong and able presentation Of a case
that possesses undoubtedly strong and im-
5prrsSive features,
BY the people at large the speech Is
regarded as one of the finest ever heard
in Charlottesville. The style was polish
ed and classic In It's beauty; the de-
livery possessed a rare charm that Is
characteristic of this eminent Charlottes-
VILE attorney. There was no mud fling 4
Ing; the denunoiatlon of the alleged
criminal was keen and stingins. but al
I ways clean and untainted by mala.e, The
speaker was a man who had declined
big fec, a man prosecuting his friend,
unwill lngly.-but through a sense of duty.
lie performed his task in & manner that
lifted the argument OF the ease 70
plane above tho ordinary and the CONS
Smouplace Nhcn Captain WOODS left
The courthouse after his great speech,a
hundred people surrounded HIM ana ior
several moments scrambled TO seize ms
hand and pour forth their words oK