The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-12-23
stretched hand the prosecutor ex-
claimed:
Gentlemen / will give YOU this

| Gentlemen, l. Will give you this
revolver to take into the Jury room
, and If any man among you can hold
| it as the defense's theory Of suicide
| would require you to hold it in order
| to infict this would and then pull the
trigger, will consent to your setting
1 this defendant free on the spot"
The remainder of the speech was
given over to controverting the tes-
timony of the defense.
The appearance of the court room
when Justice Davis took his seat on
| the bench today was in marked con-
| trast TO that of yesterday and the
| day before. Not more than half the
seats were occupied today.
| Mr.. Unger of counsel for the de-
| fense renewed his motion for Justice
Davis TO order the acquittal of Miss
Patterson without further proceeding,
but the court denied the motion and
directed counsel to proceed with the
arguments.
! Mr. Levy then began the closing
! address to the jury for the defense.
Mr.. Levy impressed upon the jury
the fact that Miss Patterson was not
being tried for immortality. No wom-
depravity. said he. She becomes bad
because of the incentives of man and
the weakness of her nature. If man
takes his life because of love of ner
why punish her? If her soul were
as black as the gates of hell she was
nevertheless entitled under the law TO
as fair treatment as if she were the
sweetest and purest-
You cannot bring back the dead"
said Mr.. Levy, but if Caesar Young
were here today 1 think he would
speak a few words for this poor girl
he has made his plaything;"
Mr., Levy declared that every ef-
fort of the prosecution had failed TO
sustain the charge that Miss Patter-
son pursued and threatened to seph-
rate Young from his wife. All the
evidence tended to prove that just the
contrary was true, showing at all
times Young's persistant and unfail-
ing admiration.
Referring to the part Miss Patter-
sons sister and brother-in-law have
had in the case. the attorney said:
Il am not responsible for Julia OF
her dfsreputable husband and I would
TO God that 1 could have brought
them here. What may or may not
have prompted Julia to write the let
ter which has appeared in this trial
do not know. 1 don't know II 1t may
not be that hiding behind this defen-
dant Morgan Smith or his Wlte were
attempting to blackmail the deceased.
There is no evidence connecting the
defendant with the letter or showing
that she knew of it's contents or
whether or not it had been sent.
He argued that the whole case u
the prosecution was constructed ol ne
most ffimssy material that this, If moth
ing more, should raise a doubt IN the
minds Of the jurors.
Mr.. Levy claimed that the pr'OsecC-
ton had failed utterly in us aUueilpl
to show that Miss Patterson had amy
motive to take foung's lire. On lns
other hand it had shown that sne nd"
every reason to want hm 10 i've. ne
supplied her plentifully WTtn nlolNy'
ensur.ing her a life of ease and affluence
and she loved him. At the same time
oil the evidence went to show tnas
Young was a man of many moods ana
that he had consumed large quantities
Of liuuor within a few hours previous
to the tragedy. Was it not possiDle,
he asked, that Young, with ms excta-
be nature might have acted has'Ig
when he learned that Miss Patterson
had decided not 10 keep her promise
to meet him in Europe?
The prosecution failed at vital
point in this case, he declared, in not
being able to prove that MISS fatler
son had a revolver. He maintained
that it had been proved concluSlVely
that she had no pistol.
District Attorney Rand warned the
jury that they should not be influenced
by the plea OF sympathy to which the
counsel for the defense had been driven
by the insurmountable wall or evil
dence which confronted him.
After informing the jury that the
prosecution agreed that either Young
killed himself or was killed by the de-
fendant he attempted to show that the
suicide or accident theory had been
dtsproved.
In this connection the headless and
legleSs skeleton which has figured IN
the case was again brought before the
Jury. Mr. Rand insisted that nothing
more than the testimony of Pawnbrok-
er storm was needed to prove that
Young was the victim of a premeditat-
ed murder. The defendants counsel
agreed, he said, that the gun was pur-
chased for the purpose of killing Caesar
Young, making it clear beyond
and premeditated. He maintained that
the defense had proved by competen-
witnesses that Young never carried a
revolver and that he had no revolver
the iay he was killed. That, he said,
would destroy the suicide theory. The
testimony of experts, which was made
light of by MIR. Levy, was warmly de-
Tended by Mr.. Rand. That testimony,
said he, proved that Young could not
have held a revolver in a position to
make such a. wound as caused his
death. He declared also that all the
conditions were opposed to suicide he
ory. a man contemplating such an act
is usually n1orose while Young that
morning. had every reason for am ex-
actly opposite feeling. He had just
thrown from his shoulders the burden
which he had carried for a year or
more.
Many of the important points could
hava heSar r,r,Oyod nv II NOr<ra-1 Smith