Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1907-03-19
THAW CASE NEARS The END
Argument Will Begin Wednesday and Yer
dict is Expected Friday Night
HUMMEL AFFIDAVIT READ IN FULL
Contradicts Testimony Of the Indicted
Attorney and Tells OF Alleged
Cruel Treatment of Miss
Nesbit by Mr.. Thaw.
UWMEL AFFIDAVIT READ IN FULL

NEW YORK. March ls.-when the Thaw
trial was adjourned today there remained
but four expert witnesses to be examined
before the taking Of evidence closes. Three
experts were disposed OF today in a little
more than an hour. 80 II is generally be-
lieved the last word of evidence may be
uttered IN the famous case tomorrow. In
that event the summing up by Mr.. Delmas
for the defense will begin Wednesday morn
ing District Attorney Jerome will reply
on Thursday Justice Fitzgerald may pro
coed Immediately. with his charge to the
jury. or he may defer It until Friday.
Unless the unexpected happens. there
should be a verdict by Friday night
The case for the people was finally closed
today by the introduction Of the much
discussed Hummel affidavit, which was read
IN full to the jury The afldavit proved a
surprise only in the severity Of the assaults
Thaw is charged with having inflicted on
Evelyn Nesbit when, according TO Abe
Hummel, Miss Nesbit would not sign papers
accusing White Of having drugged and
ruined her. In this affidavit Miss Nesbit
charges Thaw with having attacked her
with a cowhide whip while they were stop
ping at an old castle in the Austrian Tyrol
and lashing her bare skin until she be-
came faint from the pain and swOoned He
repeated the attack the next day, according
10 the affidavit and afterward in Paris he
beat d. 't half hour intervals throughout
one on. day. leaving off only when she
would faint away and could no longer
understand what was happening. Miss Mes
bit is alleged to have sworn in the amdavit
that she was in daily fear for her life
and that Thaw acted as a demented person
during ammo of ba pesa,iIts
Amdavit Contradicts HummeI.
The affidavit was In some ways a direct
contradiction Of Hummels recent testimony
on the stand. In order that the defense
might not prevent him from telling the
story Of the making Of the affidavit, he
stated positively that he was not acting
Miss Nesbit's attorney when he drew
up the affidavit, that he was acting solely
in the interest OF Stanford White and that
no legal action was contemplated in behalf
of the young woman who is now Harry
Thaw's wife.
There was considerable surprise, conse-
quently, when Mr. Jerome today read the
opening words Of the AFFIDAVIT which were:
Supreme court. county Of New York
Evelyn Nesbit, plaintiff, against Harry
Kendall Thaw defendant
1t Is said the action contemplated when
the affidavit was made the recovery Of
certain property, which Il was alleged that
Thaw had wrongfully taken from the girl
In debating the AFFIDAVIT, Hummel referred
to himself as Miss Nesbit's attorney, she
being represented to have said:
II have received certain letters and cable
grams from Thaw. which 1 have turned
over to my attorney, Mr. Abram II. Hum
mel"
The affidavit Is also endorsed Howe &
Hummel. attorneys for plaintiff"
DeImas begins sur-RebuttaI.
When Mr. Delmas began introducing tes-
timony- IN sur-rebuttal, he introduced first
Of all the record in the trial and convic-
ton OF Hummel OF. the charge Of con-
spiracy. He started TO read the entire
record, but had not reached the remarks
Mr.. Jerome made at the sentencing Of
Hummel and which Mr. Delmas wanted
to present to the jury, wnen Mr.. Jerome
said he would admit the entire record
without objection. Mr.. DesmaB then said he
would save the district attorney'sl ref
erences to Hummel for the defense's sum
ming up
Next Mr.. Delmas put on the stand three
policemen who saw Thaw the night Of the
tragedy or early in the morning after, and
they all declared that he either looked or
acted lrfatOnaly. 10 TWO OF them ne COM
planned Of hearing young girls voices The
witnesses admitted on cross-examination
that there were seven women of the street
in the station house the night Thaw was
there and they were making considerable
noise but could not be heard from Thaw's
cell.
Three Experts for Defense.
After this testimony had been presented
Mr.. Delmas passed to the final stages of
the trial by introducing the first Of seven
alienists employed by the defense three
OF the experts being new to the case.
DR.. Graeme NJ. Hammond and Dr. Smith
Ely Jellife, who have been in the case from
the first, and DR.. w. A. White, superin-
tendent OF the Government Hospital for the
Insane at Washington, were todays wit
nesses. and all were Intercepted on the
hypothetical question framed by the dis
trlct attorney. All three of the experts
declared Thaw was mentally unbalanced
at the time he killed Stanford White that
he did not know the nature or quality Of