The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-24
CARUSOG GUILTY; WILLAPpEAL.
FINED SO FOR MS CONDUCT IN
PARK MaNKEY HOUSE.
Case to he Carried to General Sessions Mrs.
Grahsm Fails TO Appear Defendant
ana ms Friends Lashcd by Mathot
-renor to Sing in spite Of Conviction.


ana ms Friends Lashed by Mathot
-renor TO sing In spite Of Conviction.
Enrico Carusos the Metropolitan Opera
House tenor, was found guilty by Magis-
trate Baker in the Yorkville police court
yesterday on the charge of having annoyed,
women In an indecent manner in the Central
Park ZOO and was fined SO. He will either
refuse to hand over the money or pay under
protest and appeal from the decision to the
Court of General Sessions.
The fine imposed by the Magistrate was
the maximum provided for a disorderly
conduct case, which was the technical
charge made against Ceruso. but it would
have been possible for Magistrate Baker
to have imposed a penalty of six months in
the workhOuse. This latter sentence, under
the ordinary method of procedure in die.
orderly conduct cases, would have heen
commuted to five days in the workhouse
had not been committed before within two
years Of the present action
Caruso's counsel made ttis st ,tement last
night;
We will appeal from the decision. II
the fine had been only 9 cents il would
have made TO difference. The Magistrate
should have dismissed the case on ths
; plain. uncontroverted evidence. II Caruso
was guilty Of the conduct imputed by
Cain in his testimony, but which was abso-
! lnfalv Fafufal ha shntll haNsa lpan DIip
ished severely. n he is innocent lie should
not have been fined at all. The nom
production Of Hannah Graham. who, Cain
charges, was insulted by Caruso, and the
non-pro1uction Of any Of the other women
in the monkey house stamp the case with
80 much suspicion that he should have
been discharged on that fact alone. We
nav never heard of a case in which a COM
hitting Magistrate would decide against
the defendant when the party who It is
alleged was injured did not go on the
stand.
The notice OF appeal to General Sessions
will be given to-day or on Monday. The
proceedings in General Sessions will con-
sst merely in a review OF the testimony
taken in the Magistrates court. Pending
the appeal Caruso will remain under the
$500 bonds which were put up by Herr
Conried after his arrest.
Neither Caruso nor any Of his counsel
was in the court room when the Magistrates
finding was announced at 4 o'clock in the
afternoon and none Of them put in an
appearance. In disorderly conduct cases
it isn't necessary for the prisoner to appear
at the bar when the finding Of the court Is
announced. Caruso received the news in
his apartments in the Savoy Hotel. Herr
Conried and several Of his closest friends
were with him. The tenor refused 10 see
the newspaper men but sent out this state
ment:
Il am naturally panied and surprised by
the verdict. After the evidence was pro-
duced in full i had taken it for granted that
l would be discharged instantly and hon.
orably. | have no doubt that the verdicty
will be reversed on appeal
Herr Conried made this statement:
II have nothing to say except that I con.
cur entirely in all that Mr.. Caruso's counsel
says. l have not even contemplated any
change in the arrangements at the opera
house as a, consequence OF the verdict.
| Nothing Tess than the absolute disability
Of Caruso to sing will prevent his appearing.
az announced as RodoHo in La Boheme' on
next Wednesday night"
The announcement was made in the court
room at the beginning of yesterdays hear
ing that Caruso's vocal cords were affected
by his attendance in court. and there were
reports last night that the tenor might not
be able to sing in his opening engagement.
but Herr Conried was emphatic in his denial
that any plans had been made for such a
contingency.
All the testimony in the case was in before
noon yesterday, and it wasn't evident until
after the decision had been rendered why
the Magistrate had asked for a delay. He
wanted to visit personally the monkey
house in the Central Park 700 and test with
his own eyes the value of the testimony
given by witnesses. This he did during
the noon recess. The Magistrate was par
ticulsrly interested in the testimony OF
Adolphe D~anziger, the witness who declared
that he had seen CaTuso from the Sixty
third street park roadway enter the monkey
house and that he had later watched him in
the building without observing a single in
stance of misconduct on his part. The
Magistrate was interested, too, in form ing
his own opinion as to whether il would nave
been possible for Policeman Cain to sec the
| things which he said he saw from the places
where he testified he was standing.
The closing hearing in the case was
notable chiefly for the bitter attack which
Deputy Police Commissioner Mathot in
summing up made on Caruso and on the
spectators in the court room. The Dep uty
Commissioner also attempted to introduce
into the case another incident Of Caruso's
alleged misconduct toward women.
A. M. Mahon, secretary Of the American
League baseball team, who lives at i3s
West ll6th steet, was the first witness
called. He was put on the stand by the
defence to discredit the testimony given
by Jeremiah Mccarthy, the ticket taker
at the American League grounds. who
declared on the stand that he had seen
three OF the incidents in the monkey house
which Policeman Cain charged against
Caruso.
Secretary Mahon testified that Mccarthy
was discharged by him for dishonesty a
day before the baseball season closed last
year. Mccarthy when he was on the
stand on Thursday waa CanfnnntAd Nth