The semi-weekly messenger., 1908-01-14
State AMI DEFENSE
Prescott Their Sides Of Case in
ThaH trial
LITTLE1OR SENSATIONAL.
" His 0peuing Plea for The PrIs-
Oner

Outline of Defense Shows Determine
ton to Prove Thaw Insane in 1906
Regardless OF ConsequenCes-Neith
er Thaw nor Family Spared in Reel
tai Of Defendants History
New York, January 13.-Tne Tha~
trial moved with rush today. After
1.-The state had presented It's direct case
Iard Assistant Attorney GarYin ha1
lcraracI erized the killing OF STAFFORD
lWbua a. premeditateo. dehDei ate
lane cowardly murder Nardn w. 1t
cleton fer the defense. made ;he II: n
ling Flea for the prisoner. His l':"rr sc
IOf new evidence was Sen5l,, - l.. atr
Lit Teton promised to forge \ chain oi
Ici-cunst ances, and TO prHiIca line
10! te. :'mony which wall prove HAIRY
TX. TIaN undeniab'y insane ~ tie
(tlnr, Cf the homicide l. Ire"r" Cf
hereditary insanity and OF st~ang', u1-
usual acts of Thaw was tod OF ~ -Ir.
Littleton who said that physicians ana
nurses who had attended Thaw were
hurrying here from Europe: that
teachers of the defendant in childhood
would be on hand to give their i'm
ipressions of the wide-eyed. distant
boy In conclusion Mr.. Littleton
challenged the district aatorney to
iproduce a single reputable physician
who would say that Thaw was not in
sane at the time he killed the noted
architect
! Mr.. Littleton startled the courtroom
by declaring that after Evelyn Nesbit
had told him her story in Paris in
1903, Thaw "drenched himself with q
poison and would have died but for
the heroic work of three physicians
/ who labored over him all one night
When Mr.. Littleton started to launch
into the relations of Stanford White
with the girl whom Thaw married,
Mr.. Jerome was on his feet with an
objection Justice Bowling sustained
| him and the name of the architect was
Il not linked again with that of the de-
fendant's wife. Mr.. Littleton touched
but lightly upon the girls story, as she
told it to Thaw, but again drew an
objection from the prosecution officer
who said: ''Mr. Littleton is now stray
ing into a field of stuff which in my
opinion will be excluded"
| Again Justice Bowling sustained the
objection.
Mr.. Littleton spared neither Thaw
nor his family in the recital Of the
defendants life history. During the
speech Thaw sat wide-eyed and pallid,
looking fixedly at his counsel Toward
the close he seemed rather dispIeased
with something that was said. Mr..
Littleton's speech was somewhat dra-
matte and impassioned at times and
was keenly followed b. the Jury
Thaws ancestry, marked by decided
ines of insanity on both the fathers
and mothers side, according TO his
chief counsel, was drawn with great
care and then the defendent himself
was pictured as irrational, erratic and
insane as a boy, who OsCillating bet
ween sanity and madness, between
brilliance and darkness, fought una
vailingly against the fever of insanity
which coursed in bis blood at birth.
Il make no claims for this defendant
morals, vices or virtues" declared Mr..
Littleton. But | say his life history
is enough TO free him from the charge
that he was responsible for his act.
Add to his history the heart-breaking
episode of his love for the young wo-
man who became his wife and Of her
recital TO him Of story which fash
ed 70 the four quarters of the globe.
made all the world that read stand
/ still and wonder. and / shall have
no hesitancy in asking you IL you have
not a reasonable doubt as 20 whether
he was sane the night of this dcp'Or-
able tragedy And upon that doubt I
shall ask you for a verdict OF not
guilty"
Mr. Littleton told Of a trip abroad
taken by Thaw in 1899. when he was
I'll and insane at Rome. Monte Carlo
and London, being under the care OF
physicians and nurses, and he declared
ne would produce these physicians and
nurses as far as possible TO tell their
story. Teachers who kept diaries about
the strange child who sat in their
classes also will come. he said, to tel
the jury about the early life and ten.
dencies OF the defendant
After his sppech Mr.. Lttleton wa.
asked In what manner he would at