Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-08-10

fact, where there was not the leas
room for an honest mistake, he haC
committed unmistakable perjury. 1
was not necessary, therefore, to refe
to the improbability Of the story itself
to his unexplained wandering abou
the streets al such an hour, or to th'
guilty terrors which shook his frame
while the damning perjury escaped
his lips. The positive testimo
ny, apart from all these circum
stances of doubt and suspicion, incon
trovertibly established perjury upor
him; the Juror who could take away
the life of a fellow-being upon the
evidence Of such a man must be deac
to all the best instincts Of humanity
When that evidence was discarded
what remained? Nothing upon which
verdict of guilty" could be based
Everything else might be true, ant
yet the prisoner might be as innocen
as the court or any one Of the jury
now sitting in judgment upon him
To illustrate his meaning, he supposed
case. Aided by the communication:
Durand had made to him, his sup
posed case was precisely in accord
ance with the facts; and this he pu
10 the jury so strongly and clearly
that they could not refrain from
nodding assent as he progressed. He
dwelt upon the fact, sworn to by Win
ters, that the prisoner could no
have committed the murder and ac'
complished the robbery within the
time that elapsed from his leaving
Larkins's house and that when ne
heard the alarm given 10 the watch
men, and insisted that he had done
much more than was necessary to in
sure the acquittal of his client. Ac.
cording to the law 1t was sufficient
to raise a doubt Of his guilt; he
had gone beyond the requirements OF
the law, and demonstrated his inno'
cence. He had said enough for hi:
clients defense, but not enough fol
public justice. A foul and bloody
murder had been committed; it wa:
the work of human hands, and ne
proposed to track the felon through
all the cunning devices by which he
had sought to escape from the pen
alties prescribed for the punishment
Of his horrid crime.
Here Colonel Burr turned his full
tho pyifnacS pnharfS whC
was leaning against one Of the col
umns of the courtroom.
There must have been, he contin-
ued, a guilty agent. That agent must
have had some motive or induce
ment TO commit the crime, and also
the means to accomplish his purpose
He here recapitulated the testimony
showing the total absence Of motive
on the part Of Durand, and the pres
ence of that motive in Roberts. Ac'
cording to Roberts's own statement
he had called upon Durand for the
purpose Of collecting a debt, wherea:
the proof showed that Durand wa:
an industrious, laboring man, engaged
in business whose profits more thar
supplied his wants, while Roberts
was notoriously penniless. The story
Of indebtedness was therefore too i'm
probable for belief. All the other
facts and circumstances which
weighed against the witness were
stated with the concise clearness
for which the orator was so remark
able. Throughout he had watched
the jury with the keen scrutiny Of
man accustomed to study every vary
ing shade of the human countenance
and when he saw that their interest
was excited to the highest point ne
suddenly seized a candle in each
hand, held them aloft over his head
and, advancing to Roberts, his eye:
burning like living Goals, and his voice
ringing as if ordering a charge or
the battlefield, he shouted.-"Be
hold the murderer"
The effect was electrical. The jury
by common impulse, rose to theil
feet. Roberts shook and trembleo
as If the doom Of death was sounding
in his ears. Gradually his knee:
gave way. and he sunk down helpless
at the base of the column. For more
than a minute a silence deep and
dread reigned throughout the court
room-judge, jury, and spectator:
were gazing in speechless amazemen
upon the covering wretch. 1t wa!
broken by Colonel Burr. In clea,
and sonorous voice, ne exclaimed
There, gentlemen, is Natures testi'
mony! There is a confession writer
by the finger of God himself! Now
write your verdict"
There was another pause; another
period of awful suspense, and mer
drew their breath with a feeling oI
| intense relief when the orator slowly
replaced the candles on the table anC
resumed his seat.
He had not spoken more thar
three-quarters of an hour. He hat
not touched more than half the avail
able points for the defense. A les:
experienced pleader would have gone
on, probably ruined a cause alread!
gained by attempting to make /
doubly certain. Colonel Burr knew
better. He was an adept in the mos
useful of all knowledge to a lawyer
| He knew when to stop. He haC
strained the minds of the jury to th'
highest pitch of excitement, and h
knew that under the reaction which
would follow, the concluding argu
ment of the attorney general woulC
fall upon dull and listless ears Tha
officer was himself embarrassed by ;
painful consciousness of the sam,
fact; and the jury, at the conclusion
Of his address returned a verdict o
mot guilty" without leaving the box
The court, of its own motion, imme
diately ordered the arrest of Roberts
and his committal to await the &C
ton of a grand jury.
| 1t was some time before the i'm
mense throng who had gathered t.
witness the result of the trial woult
disperse; and the officer in charge o
Roberts was standing near the doc
impatiently awaiting the opportunit,
| 70 0at bic pricoper into q carria pe