The morning journal-courier., 1908-01-28
THREE DAYS MORE
Thaw Case Should be in the Jury's Hands by Noon
 on Thursday.
PLEA MANIAC OPPRESSIVE
Judge and Defendant May Go to Blackwell's Island to Take
 Hummel Testimony.

New York, Jan. 27-Harry K. Thaw's defense closed to-day with 'manic-depressive" insanity as ex- pianing the death of Stanford White at the hands of the Pittsburg million aire. Tomorrow the prosecution will begin it's evidence in rebuttal The case should go to the jury by Wed nesday night or Thursday noon
 Tomorrow District Attorney Je- rome will apply for the appointment of commission to take the testimo- ny of Abraham Hpminel, the disbar- red lawyer, who Is in the penitentiary on Blackwell's Island, and who Is said to be too i'll to appear in court Mir Littleton of the defense, said he would oppose any such action. whereupon JusticeDowlins announced that if nee essary he would go to the island him self tomorrow night with the de- fendant and his counsel to preside at the taking of Hummers testimony The jury, 1t was said, would be com pelled to take the night trip across the river. Thaw seemed delighted at the prospect of such an outing even to the grim shores of New Yorks city penal colony, and smiled broadly at the courts suggestion.
 District Attorney Jerome lisappoint- ed crowded court room when he re- trained from last years tactics of bait ing the expert witnesses for the de- fense three of whom-Drs Wagner, Evans and Jelliffe-declared that at the time Thaw killed Sanford Whi1e ne was suffering from such defect of reason as not to know the nature or quality of his act or that the act was wrong. The prosecutor contented him. self withdra wing from the alienists the fact that last year they swore that 1t was during brain storm" that Thaw committed the homicide.
 He also read from the affidavit made by pr Wagner before the lunacy com mission last year giving conversations with Thaw in court which tended to show that the defendant had a dis. tinct recollection of occurrences on the roof garden immediately preceding the tragedy
 It was left to Justice Bowling to make most important inquiries of the alienists. He desired to know the ex- act nature of aniac-depressive" in- sanity, and if the attacks were likely to recur. He also asked If person. suffering from this form of insanity would be likely to commit assaults. He | lejrned that it Is a recurrent form of mental disorder, that the attacks come suddenly and without warning, a i period of sanity being followed by a maniacal outburst, then by a period oi | complete depression and then by an other lucid interval.
 It seemed that the presiding judge was seeking to obtain information upor which to predicate judicial action 1T the event of verdict of not guilty or the ground of insanity. or of direct ac uuittal Even in the latter event, 1t i pointed out, Justice Bowling woul, have the right to have Thaw commit ted for examination.
 An English physician, one of thre i foreign doctors who testified today 1 first applied the term manic -depress i've" or 'sub-acute mania to Thawi mental condition. Dr. Sydney Russell
 Wells. of London, made the diagnosi
 during an outbreak by Thaw in London in 1899 when with normal tempera
 ture Thaw demanded that the walls O
 his rooms in a nursing home be tori
 down so that he might have air an
 that 20 tons of ice be put in the apart
 ment to cool it