Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-04-10
notes the character of the execution
that took place.
Stood as. a Priest Mint Have.

notes the character OF the execution
that took place.
Stood as a Priest Might Have.
Mr.. Thaw stood as priest mign;
have stood after some ceremony OF
sacriiicial Offering, saying All is over
and dismissing the congregation. re
turned his pistol barrel down To m.
dictate to the audience that there was
no danger to them. he then walked
slowly TO where his wife stood and
when she said. 20, Harry. what have
you done?' he replied. 1T is all right.
dearie. y have probably saved your
lie AS he said this he stopped ana
kissed her. When he was disarmed
he said, He ruined my WIFE
II have dwelt upon these incidents,
gentlemen. to- call your attention to
the fact that the safety of his wife.
whose menace was implied by the
very presence of this man, was up
permost in his mind. To him this
man who had met the young wife OIL
the street, who had followed her to
the doctors, had also followed her to
the Cafe Martin and to the roof gar.
den. THIS was the man who Eai
boosted he would get the young wife
away from her husband. So II was
that after he had shot, the first grea1
''o'Sie Nii"t htlicu Mltuln lllitl
In the storms stress of the moment
was that at last my Wife is safe.
have saved her life.
And then when he answered The
officer and said, He has ruined my
wife what was the condition of his
mind? What was it, when as lie was
quietly ard peaceably walking
down the aisle he turned
walking down the aisle he turned
and saw the hideous form of the
man who had been the cause of her
suffering?'
With dramatic emphasis, Mr. Eel
mas cried out that when Harry Thaw
behold Stanford White on the Madl-
son Square Roof Garden the story of
his wife's wrongs overcame him
He pictured in an instant as dy.
ing man may picture his past life
all 3that Stanford White had dome
THE ruin he had wrought and he
struck, as the tigress strikes in &c
Tense of her young struck for the
home struck for American woma,:-
hood; struck for humanity and Stan
ford White fell.
1Ah! Gentlemen" the advocate
went on IF Harry 1haw believed lie
was the instrument of Providence,
who will say he was mistaken?''
Mr. Delmas discussed but brieHy
the testimony of the expert witnesses
declaring that whatever weight might
attach to their utterances was on the
side of the defendant He declared
the burden of proof MS to Thnw's
sanity mt the time of the homicide
rested with tile prosecution. which
had failed to make out its case. Com
ing TO the question of reasonable
doubt, Mr.. Delmas said:
IPeads With the Jury.
Gentlemen, take Your minds back
TO the day you were examined, when
the learned justice said to you, Are
you ready to give this defendant the
benefit of every reasonable doubt?
and on your oaths that YOU were. Won
We're admitted to the jury box. Be
fore you send this young man to
his doom YOU must be satisfied of
his guilt beyond every reasonable
doubt
what is reasonable doubt? The
term seems to define itself in its own
words. A reasonable doubt is DOUBT
which reasonable man may have
You are all reasonable mon, and
when you doubt you can say that
Thaw is guilty is reasonable doubt,
the benefit Of which the law SAYS you
must give to the defendant. A great
English judge once said that il Is
better that ninety nine guilty men
should escape rather than that one
innocent man should be punished. II
there is one chance in n hundred
that this defendant was of such un
sound mind as not to know the ma.
lure OF his act then YOU must give
him the benefit of that doubt.
G f,, I,n Al.
which invoke. | ask you in the
name OF humanity; | ask you in the
name of religion to reserve whatever
doubt you may have in favor of this
defendant. 1t was in discussing
Thaws mental state that Mr. Delmas
came at last to the question OF "un-
written law"
The Unwritten Law.
(, Tine district attorney will make
light OF tho experts because they have
not defined the species of insanity of
which they say Harry Thaw is suffer
ing" he declared. Il will suggest its
name. | would call it 'dementia Am
ericana.' 1t is species of insanity
which has been recognized in every
State of this Union. 1t is that spu.
cies OF insanity which makes the Am.
erican man believe his home, his
Wlte, MS daughters, are sacred and
that whatsoever stains the virtue OF
his threshold violates the highest OF
human laws. 1t is species of insanity
which has been recognized in every
state OF this Union-from Canada to
Mexico. from the Atlantic to the Pa:
cific.
That is the species of insanity
"hich mas boon recognized by the
courts in the case Of"
Mr.. Garyin was on his feet in an
objection. saving the argument wns