Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1908-01-25
Rapid Progress Made in Hearing
Defense's Witnesses.
C0MSTOCK ON THE STAND

lier in the day. and Mrs. William
Thaw. mother of the defendant. had
completed her testimony. The kin
dergarten teacher who had charge OF
Harry Thaw as a lad OF six also testi-
fed. and the day marked long stride
toward the conclusion OF the celebrated
case
new. had been discounted by the known
facts OF Thaw's appeal to him TO assist
In closing up the houses where stan
ford White was alleged to have main
tanned deliberately furnished apart
ments. and where young girls were
said to have been mistreated A dozen
letters Thaw wrote to Comstock re-
garding the matter. giving detailed de-
scription OF the Twentyfourth street
house. were admitted in evidence and
read to the jury District Attorney Je-
rome seemed as pleased as the defense
with the letters. and later In the day
read into the record himself most OF
Mr.. Comstocks replies to Thaw The
witness indicated in his testimony that
nothing ever came of the complaints
legal evidence being lacking.
Mrs William Thaw. still unable to
walk unassisted because OF her recent
Illness. was not long upon the stand
She told OF Thaw's early life. of influ.
ences before his birth. and OF the men
tai unsoundness OF two OF her brothers
~ Mr. To-
rome contented himself with reading
To the jury the affidavit made by the
elder Mrs Thaw last year when the
question Of her sons sanity was before
a lunacy commission In that afh-
davit she declared that in the direct
line OF descent there had been no in
sanity in Harry Thaw's family for four
generations As to the collateral
cases Mrs Thaw said in the affidavit
there were but two. and they were
easily accounted for. In her statement
to the commission Mrs. Thaw also re-
scented the insinuation which she said
she had been compelled TO suffer be-
cause OF the newspaper reports of in
sanity In the family and she asserted
that there were no family secrets 10
hide and there was no skeleton to be
barred
Jerome's long and severe cross
examination OF Mrs. Evelyn Nesbit
Thaw at the trial of her husband has
ended. The attorneys for the defense
then succeeded in placing in evidence
a letter written by the defendant in
the fall of 1903. which completely cor
roborated the claim that the girl who
was to become his wife did tell him the
story of her relations with Stanford
White much as she related II upon the
stand at this and the former trial.
This letter was one of dozen which
were read TO the jury as tending To
corroborate young Mrs. Thaw's testi-
mony and as further tending TO show
the effect her story had upon the de-
PENDANTS mind Most OF these letters
were read to the jury in the former
trial. and were considered as one OF
the strongest bits of evidence in the
hands OF the defense. Mr. Jerome OBJ
jected to their introduction into the
record. but was overruled by Justice
Bowling after Thaw himself had made
a waiver OF the confidential relation of
counsel and client when Frederick w.
Longfellow. his former attorney. ap-
peared on the stand to identify the
letters.
Some OF the writings were address.
ed to Mr.. Longfellow and others had
been sent TO him TO be delivered TO
Miss Nesbit They all contained ref
erences TO the girls history and TO her
experience. and in the letters intended
for the young woman Thaw constantly
bespoke his love and respect for her.
Many OF the sentences rambled on In
coherently and there were many
scratches. erasures and interllneations.
The first letter Mr. flttleton read
was repetition. largely, in the de-
PENDANTS own words, OF the story the
Nesbit girl says she told him IN Paris
In 1908. In H. however. Thaw refers
to two "drugged champagne" incidents
one at the Photographic studio in
Twenty street and the other in
the Twenty-fourth street house
whereas Mrs Thaw twice testified that
while luncheon and wine were served
during the posing at the Photographic
place. nothing out of the ordinary oc-
Cured Thaw's letter corroborated
Mrs. Thaw in that he declared It was
in abe Twenty-fourth street house that
she and Stamford White first were
alone.
Mr.. Jerome was much quleter in his
handling OF young Mrs. Thaw on the
stand and his voice lacked the high.
hard pitch. The cross-examination re-
solved itself for time into a verbal
battle between prosecutor and witness
and there were several lively Tits
which ended only when Justice Dowl-
ing took hand.