The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-03-23
THAW'S SANITY.
His Attorneys File Eight AZ
fidavits in Support of 1t.
Chief Among These Is That of
Dolphin NJ. Delmas.
LETTERS AND NOTES.
Written by the Defendant Dur
ing the Trial
Are Attached and Offered as
Part of the Exhibit.
LETTERS AND NOTES.


New York, March 23.-Afidavits of
the defense of Harry K. Thaw as to
his mental condition and whether a
| commission in lunacy should be ap-
pointed to examine him were filed at
noon today with the clerk of the SUI
preme court. There were eight affi-
davits, of which. that Of Dolphin NJ.
Delmas of Thaw,s counsel was first.
Mr.. Demas in his affidavit, declares
it to be his opinion that Thaw has been
and is capable Of understanding the
nature and object of the proceedings
going on against him, of comprehend
ing his own condition in reference to
such proceedings, and of conducting
his defense in a rational manner and
that during the whole of the trial he
has understood the nature and object
of such proceedings; has comprehend
ed his own condition in reference
thereto and has conducted his defense
in a rational manner. This opinion
the affidavit says, is based upon the
professional relations Mr.. Delmas had
had with the prisoner since the Begin
ming of the trial and the many COM
munications he has sent to Thaw and
received from him
Eighteen letters received by Mr..
Delmas from Thaw during the trial
and several slips of paper containing
suggestions with reference to the con-
duct of the proceedings actually go
ing on, which were handed him by the
defendant in the court room are made
a part of the affidavit.
Mrs. William Thaw in her affidavit
denies that in the direct line of descent
for four generations there has been any
faint of insanity or epilepsy in the fam
lily of Harry K. Tnaw. She denounces
what she terms the malicious nlisrep-
resentation and gross exaggera tion,"
on this subject. She goes at great
length into the family history of the
ThawS and the Copleys. She denies the
brutal assertion" that Henry w. Cop
ley was IAN imbeci1e from birth.
Two vicious boys frightened the lad at
6 years of age With horrible masks into
a state of terror He was ever after
of feeble intellect gh7- s---
The letters attached to the Delmas
affidavit contain numerous suggestions
concerning the. conduct of the case. |
In one instance Mr. Delmas is request |
ed toSpersonaIly conduct the examina- |
ton of all with esses. In a letter sent |
duringsth examination of Mrs: Thaw |
the prisoner said:
My wife's strength is ebbing. She |
can not recuperate until after the
cross examination. 1t will be unfor- |
tunate if she broke down and her
testimony was stricken out. Her con-
dition of nervousness and sadness is i
grave. Can not DIR. Evans De kept
back"
Another letter from Thaw to Mr..
Delmas read: =,
"Please arrange for Mr.. Carol!
testimony Mr.. Peabody !
has a brief thereon. We do not wish /
Jerome to further attack Mrs. Thaw IN
his rebuttal. The further facts proved
by Mr.. Beckwith and the superior i'm
nression he will produce, may dfscour-
age Jerome from annoying Mrs.
Thaw."
Mr. Beckwith is one of the artists
for whom Mrs. Thaw once posed.
In still another letter Thaw declares
that he knows respectable young
woman, residing in Wisconsin,
who was willing to come on and teSti-
fv that IS W. enticed her to his
studio and mistreated her.
Exhibit "H' attached to Mr.. Del
mas affidavit is a note from Thaw in
which he says:
Dear Mr. Delmas: This is only to
YOU on your successes.
your first long objection was, of
curse. obvious but you trapped Jer-
,me wonderfullysg by your reference to
| new planet, into shaking his head
s YOU wished and so concluding per-
ectly The second long one, against
| new production of evidence in ch1ef
w the prosecution, was pronounced in
very powerful and high plane. I
ear 7 am confused as to the sexual
that Jerome urged. l was
lot excited against White by any such
.ccording to our evidence. Mrs Thaw
n her testimony could have stated
hat the Thomas girl is dead. Thomas
vas a fraudulent name. The woman
lerself is alive and I hear now is try
ng to escape her horrid ssociation.
Every Sincerely yours.