The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-10
Masterful Defense Of
 Col. Duncan Cooper

murder of Senator Carmack. but he did seem determined to besmirch the witness's character. He accused him of not paying his debts. What has that to do with the killing of Carmackr They tried to make you believe that he embezzled funds as clerk and master of chancery. What has that to do with the killing of Carmack? You saw the witness on the stand. You heard him swear that no one ever lost dollar through him. You heard him swear that his business methods always wer~ unsuccessful. The whole scheme of the State was not to convict Colonel Cooper of murder, but to disgrace hin publicly on his record"
 General Meeks went on to trace the alleged insults" which the defense claims Carmack heaped upon Coionei Cooper in the debates with Patterson.
 ''Colonel Cooper told you that these insults were continued almost daily In The Tennessean. We did not see fl to introduce these assaults in print but we did introduce some.'
 As a matter of fact the defense in. troduced only three editorials. one Of which failed to mention Cooper's name. The others were of a bantering type.
 "The State has charged" said Gen. eral Meeks. that the defendants knew the route that Senator Carmack daily followed and the time that he left for his apartments Now how could the defendants know this time or this route? Where did they get this in- formation? Senator Carmack's own stenographer said she did not know where Senator Carmack lived"
 General Meeks then turned his atten- tion to the notes that Colonel Cooper drafted to be sent to Carmack and de- clared if there was any mystery about them, the State should have cleared tho mystery up. He denounced the effort of the State to involve the liberty oi the press but declared that where the liberty of .he press was abused by man who used It to defame a private citizen, it degenerated into license.
 Why" he said. when a man sits, as Carmack d.d. behind the editor!ai counter of a paper and writes. morn ing after morning. and day after day editorials that attack and assault man who Is not himself in an editorial position. he becomes insulting and there is no greater insult possible"
 General Meeks next discussed the mystery of the bullet which was found in Robins bed and said that mystery was not connected with the case. He claimed that Robin was shot. that no one doubted it; that Senator Carmack shot him. which was equally beyond dispute.
 The attorney next went to the incl dent of the pistol scabbard found in Senator Carmack's overcoat pocket when the coat was examined in court during the trial and denounced the States attorneys for insinuating that the couhsel for the defense planted" the scabbard where 1t was found.
 Told the Truth.
 The State knew that Major Yer tress loaned Senator Carmack the re- volver," he said. They knew. too. that he loaned 1t to the Senator with the scabbard on 1t. But they never put Major Vortress on the stand. Then, honest man that he is, the Major. when he read the attack on the defense's counsel, communicated with them and told the truth"
 "we have proven" he went on, that the meeting of the parties was purely and undoubtedly an acidental encoun- ter. We hold that the guilt or inno- cence of these defendants must rest upon the state of mind they were In at the time the meeting took place."
 Counsel described the effect of the editorial. Across the Muddy Chasm." upon Colonel Cooper the morning be- fore the killing and declared that when Craig went to Carmack after his in- terview with Cooper. he told Carmack that Cooper had said. Then this note goes
 That note was to be the declaration of war, and until that note was sent by Cooper and received by Senator Car mack Cooper understood and Carmack understood that there was to be no trouble, and that note was never sent. Now we do not say that the editorials which Carmack wrote Justified Colonel Cooper In killing Carmack. But we do say that these continued insults were so unbearable and so offensive that they drove Colonel Cooper into a frenzy. It was not like insulting a man before twenty-five or fifty people. These ed- itorials were circulated all over the