Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-08-07
PROSECUTOR SAYS PERFEcTPRo.
eENY WOULD BE lMPos.
slBLE.
SAYS EVELYN FALslFlEp
IN STORY ABOUT WHITE
BIames Wife Of Prisoner For lnflam-
ing Mind of Her Husband-Attack
on jerome in "The Secret Unveiled"
Designated as Further Evidence of
Mental Incapaeity Of Mother Of Thaw.

closing argument was heard by thel
Supreme Court Justice Mills today in
the application Of Harry K. Thaw for
release from the Matteawan insane
asylum. Each side was confined to an
hour, and both said they did not need
as much time as this.
Mrs. Josiah Thaw, the prisoners sis.
ter-in-law, was the only member Of the
family party not present when court
convened. Thaw looked even paler
than usual His chair touched Jerome's
and his features were set with evident
determination to show no emotion un-
der the storm which he expected to
descend upon his head.
Jerome began with saying that the
justice must be perfectly familiar with
the caseS therefore he would not at
tempt to go over the evidence in de-
tail. Speaking of the credibility of
witnesses and their bearing under cross
examination, he said he believed all did
their best to tell the truth, except Mrs
Evelyn Nesbit Thaw.
Says Evelyn Lied.
oo liiIlh, il0 QeCldTGQ, CIdL Cu!S
girl was deliberately and Intentionally
falsifying. That she told her husband
the story of her injury at the hands of
White have no doubt"
jerome then passed directly to the
question of Thaw's sanity He summed
up Thaw's family history with the dec
laration that when a member broke,
He or she broke in their weak spot
the mind. Under the strain they de-
veloped imbecility or epilepsy. Let me
point out now that the whole Thaw
family manifested what might be called
popularity. From such stock, the av-
erage man would say. without any as
sistance from alienists: Well, you
would get a pretty rickety sort Of a
child out Of that family"
Evidence Of insanity.
Susie Merrill's story of receiving
large sumo of money from Thaw's at
torneys and his living at her house
with various women, the district attor.
ney said, was unrefuted. Here jerome
laid down his notes and recited from
memory various wild acts Of the prls-
oner testified to at the former trials,
which acts he said were evidence of
diseased mind. While Jerome spoke
Mrs. Thaw read magazine. Thaw's
love of the dramatic was pointed out
by Jerome as a strong characteristic of
his alleged MANIA It received it's
strongest illustration in the shooting OF
White, said Jerome. The district at
torney declared he placed little reliance
on the testimony of DR.. Evans, Thaw's
chief alienist, and asked the court to
disregard 1t.
Thaw Record Uncanny.
IF q person had come here from
Mars" continued the prosecutor, "and
seen Thaw on the stand, he would have
realized that something was the matter
with him. It was unwholesome, 1t was
uncanny. I call your attention to his
attitude toward his act. A man Of
sound mind would have said: Yes, I
killed him, but he did a great wrong to
the woman I loved, and hated him.
1t was wrong, I know"
Jerome's voice rose for tho first time
Mrs. Thaw laid down her magazine
and she, Thaw and his counsel held a
whispered conference. Jerome went
on:
''The situation is about this: Here is
man whom heredity has proved to be
that of a highly nervous sort. We
find him marrying that girl. There was
nothing after the marriage to excite
his jealousy. We see him pursuing
this idea of injury to young American
girls"
Referring to Mrs. Thaw's attack on
him in the Secret Unveiled" Jerome
said: I'VE see in this pamphlet the
same color that runs all thru the sons
behaviour. 1t seems to me it would
not be safe to turn this man loose un-
til there had been ample opportunity
to submit him to medical examination
from day to day for long period"
Morschauser Replies.
Attorney Morschauser for Thaw, be-
gan his address by urging the court to
consider only the evidence produced in
the present proceedings and disregard
Thaw's condition prior to and during or
just after the homicide He dwelt upon
the testimony of his own alienists, and
attacked that Of the opposing experts
especially of Baker. If Thaw had had
q latent trace of insanity, he said the
horrors" of Mattaewan would have
made it evident. The incidents Of
'lHdW early Ire were grossly eXa8-
gerated at the trials. he said. to show
insanity. A similar result might be
achieved with the boyhood pranks of
any man. He declared that altho de-
fendant's life was raked for Incidents
to prove his insanity at the trials, there
was period of fourteen years during
which no erratic acts were in evil
dence.
Mrs. Thaw Issues Statement.
Mrs. Mary Copley Thaw today made
public statement in which she COM
pared the testimony given by the alien
lists in behalf of Thaw's effort to free
himself from the insane asylum to the
evidence given by District Attorney Je-
rome's alienists. Mrs. Thaw said: "Je-
rome speaksi Of fourteen alienists
There are but four that he dares place
on the witness stand to swear that my
son has or ever had any incurable
mental trouble; and these nave no re-