The San Francisco call., 1904-12-24
PRISONER NOW
ON THE VERGE
OF A COLLAPSE

Continued From Page !. Column 4.
Of the District Attorney, whose conclu-
sion on that subject necessarily will be
affected by his legal judgment as TO tn"
probability OF conviction and his more
purely official judgment whether or not
The county should be subjected to the
enormous expense which another trial
Of such a case entails.
After expressing his appreciation Of
the work Of Judge Davis, and review
ing the fact that there was no Coro-
ner's inquest and that the defense cid
not have the minutes OF the Grand
Jury which indicted Miss Patterson,
Levy continued:
..The defendant is wholly without
means. When counsel assumed the de-
fense of her case il was with the un-
6erstanding and in the expectation that
fhe defendant would be sufficiently
equipped with means, If not 10 properly
compensate them, at least TO meet the
disbursements and actual expenses
which were bound to arise. This she
has never been a bic TO do, so that dur
ing the progress of the trial We did not
even have the stenographer's minutes
Of the testimony. but were Obliged to
depend upon our own notes as 10 proofs
given through a trial spreading over
three weeks.
DEFENSE WITHOUT FUNDS.
Probably the most important wit
ness for the defense should have been
Miss Blake. the telephone operator at
the ST. Paul Hotel. who received the
various messages which the deceased
TQrrr
entirely without means 10 secure her
attendance at the trial and only discoy-
cred her whereabouts in St Louis
while the trial was in progress.
There were many other embarrass-
ments from which the defendant suf-
fered with regard to the non-appear-
ance Of witnesses which are well known
10 the public
We feel confident now that, in
view of the wide publicity given to the
case other witnesses viii come for
ward II necessary TO corroborate the
defendants story in all its substantial
details. We question. however, wheth-
er the District Attorney viii move for
q third trial Of this case.
At 1880. the hour which had been
set for the opening OF court word
came by telephone that Justice Davis
was delayed and that he would not
reach the courthouse until 1880. In
the meantime the police stationed
about the courthouse corridors had
serious difficulty in holding in check
the crowds clamOring for admission.
The courts order that spectators be
rigidly excluded from the courtroom
was carried out almost TO the letter.
Half a hundred persons occupied seats
IN the courtroom. Among them were
three women Promptly at 1880
John Randolph Patterson, the pris-
oner's father. came in and took seat
al the counsels table.
FATHER SHOWS THE STRAIN.
10 word had been received from
Justice Davis TO that time. however,
and there followed another wait Of
ten minutes before a stir Indicated
that the court was about to resume its
session. moment later the jurors
their faces showing deep lines as re-
suit Of their all-night vigil, filed SOL
emnly in and took their places behind
the rail. Miss Patterson had not
reached the courtroom up TO that
time. but as the jurors marched down
the aisle her father. half turning in
his chair gazed intently upon their
faces. As he turned back and fum-
bled nervOusly a paper which lay
upon the table his hands shook as if
with palsy and it seemed apparent
that he saw little TO arouse hope in
the faces Of the jurors. A moment
later Kan Patterson, gowned entirely
IN black and with a heavy veil con-
4cealing her features, walked with a
firm, strong step TO the chair beside
her father AS she sat down she
placed one arm across her fathers
shoulder. With the other-she raised
her veil and kissed the old man in a
very pretty, affectiOnate way. OF the
. two the father showed in a far great
er degree the strain under which they
had been for many hours and for a
time the girl turned comforter. There
was scarcely a moments delay when
the usual question was put to the jur-
ors. The foreman replied that no de-
cision had been reached. Justice Da-
Wis said that under almost any other
circumstances he would discharge the
jury al that point without further de-
lay. but this case he considered one
OF great importance. The jury again
retired.
JURY UNABLE TO AGREE.
When the jury came in again at u 50
Miss Patterson became very nervous.
The color OF her face seemed TO deepen,
II that were possible. and her whole
attitude showed that she was undergo
ing keen suffering. When the jury re-
ported their disagreement and the Jus
tice discharged them she turned TO her
father and threw herself on his shoul-
ders, weeping bitterly. Up TO the last
she hap hoped 10 be free in time to go
home to Washington to spend Christ