The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-02-05

ing over and over again in his mind until his brain was in whirl of mad ness and he felt impelled by Provi- dence to act in the way he did.
 We will not rest the evidence of insanity on any single act, though eminent specialists on brain diseases have long held that insanity may be defined by a single act
 "An insane man." continued MT. Gleason, ''may express the utmost ab- horrence of all crime and admit that murder is wrong; yet, when the insane impulse comes, 1t separates the act contemplated from the general idea of crime and the general consciousness that murder is wrong does not enter into the act at all.
 "Our law declares that a killing is murder when the man who commits the act Is of sound mind--of sound mind, remember--and when there is malice aforethouEht, either expressed or implied.
 "A man who Is crazy cannot know righs from wrong. The human mind Is like that glass of water you see be- fore you The water is clear now, but drop single bit of colored matter into 1t and the whole mass becomes tinged."
 MT. Gleason was discussing the tes- timony which might be introduced in rebuttal when MT. GNrvan objected on the ground that no such testimony was in evidence Justice Fitzgerald sus- tained the Assistant District Attorney and MT. Gleason took up a new lead.
 Thaw Watches Gleason.
 Thaw sat with his left cheek resting on his hand during MT. Gleason's ad- dress. The greater part of the time his eyes were downcast. It was only occasionally that he raised them to look at the lawyer who was pleading his case. Not once did he look toward the jury box.
 when that man shot Stanford White." declared MT. Gleason. point ing to the defendant. who quickly looked down, he was insane The question that will arise is; Are you satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that this man was sane?
 If not you should give him the ben eft of that doubt and I may say that any doubt as to insanity is a reason able doubt"
 MT. Gleason was about to ask the jurors to consider a passage in a story by Robert Louis Stevenson when MT. Jerome interposed an objection. He asked that counsel be guided by facts and the evidence to be intro duced.
 Justice Fitzgerald said he would not voluntarily have curtailed MT. Glea- sons remarks. but now that the mat ter had been called to his attention he felt he must ask counsel to conflne himself to the evidence to be adduced, leaving the argument and inferences to be drawn from the testimony to be summed up at the end of the trial
 Mir. Gleason then attempted to give something of the defendants history. saying he is s6 years of age and that Harriet K. Thaw. the daughter of an aunt is confined in an asylum for the insane.
 Jerome Again Interrupts.
 MT. Jerome again interrupted, ob- jectinG to bringing in collateral evil dence.
 MT. Gleason explained that he would show there was insanity on both sides of the defendants family and on this assertion he was allowed to proceed.
 Harry Thaw." continued MT. Gleas- on, after the interruption, met Evelyn Nesbit in 1901 and fell honorably in love with her. He went to her mother in March. 1902, and told her he wanted to marry her daughter.
 "The girl soon thereafter, it so hap pened, was in the hospital to undergo a serious operation. It was understood that when she had recovered from the operation Miss Nesbit was to go to Paris and Thaw was to go along, as the avowed suitor of the young wo- man.
 We will show that in 1903 he asked this young woman to marry him. She refused. Why she refused you will hear from her own lips. She will best tell her story Suffice 1t to say that the reason was one connected With an experience in the life of the girl with regard to Stanford White.
 ThaN,a Dfaeaaed NaInd
 That Thaw suffered from a diseased mind we will show you by the testi- mony of his mother, his wife, his rela- lives. his doctors and by letters he wrote to the society for the suppress sion of vice in this city. When you have heard all this testimony it will be impossible for you to say that the act of this man for which he is now undergoing trial was that of a sane person. Working in his diseased brain we will show you many things con nected with his past life and that of his wife. They eliminated in the ex- ploison which caused the defendant to kill Stanford White,
 "Thaw had long labored under the