The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1909-07-28
THAW SPEAKS
FOR HIMSELF
MercileSSIy Questioned by
District Attorney
PUT ON THE STAND EARLY
The Seeker for Freedom from Mattea-
wan Asylum Was Plainly Nervous,
Realizing How Much Depended
on His Answers.

White Plains, N. Y, July Plainly
nervous and realizing that his fate de-
pended on his own testimony, Harry X
Thaw took the stand at ten o'clock this
forenoon to try to convince Justice Mills
that he il sane enough to be freed from
Matteawan asylum Attorney Mors-
chauser for the young man, dreading
the possibility Of District Attorney Je-
rome taking Thaw in hand at the end
Of the day when he was tired out, waived
direct examination, and Jerome started
in.
why are you heregg he first asked.
In habeas corpus proceeding to re.
lease me from Matteawan," said Thaw
why were you committed to Alattea.
want
Because at the end Of my second trla.
/ was acquitted and the Judge issued Il
commitment" replied Thaw nervously
Well, why were you acquittedig
Because they found me not guilty"
said Thaw sharply.
Why, you killed Stanford White, did
you notgn
AT this question Thaw crossed his legs
leisurely and then answered:
- was acquitted. ] think. because
counsel for both sides said was suffer.
ing from delusious at the time.n
Jerome tried to introduce q letter
which il Is alleged he wrote to Evelyn,
containing lewd pictures he drew At.
torney MoTsehauser fought II bitterly.
but Justice Mills decided that if Thaw's
writing could be identified by any other
than Evelyn IL might 20 in. During the
debate Thaw smiled at his mother and
his sister, who waved encouragingly.
The great crowd IN the courtroom.
which contained many women, was
amazed BY Thaw's demeanor. which was
eminently cool. Thaw left the stand
while Peter Olney. a member Of the
first unacy commission which found him
sane. identified the record. Then Thaw
resumed.
Thaw's Acts Revealed.
During yesterday afternoons session,
Thaw heard a womans testimony that
made his pallid face flush. He saw
pearl handled dog whip exhibited, an
he heard the witness swear that she had
seen him WELD it on young girls The
prisoners wife, Evelyn Nesbit Thaw,
was IN court and heard most Of the tes
timony, which was Of such d nature Thar
Justice Mills preceded It's presentation
with the warning that no woman
should stay in the courtroom unless she
IS willing TO hear everything Two
girls left the room
The witness was Miss Susan Merrill,
buxom, pink,cheeked woman Of about
81 years, and she opened new chapter
n the life of stanford Whites slayer
She told Of alleged acts Of his between
1902 and 1908. when he was young
bachelor about New York before the
tragedy on the Madison square roof gar
den that resulted in bis being placed IN
the state asylum for the criminal insane
from which he Il now trying to escape
BY proving himself sane.
Her testimony was III marked contrast
to that Of two alienists who went on
the stand and gave Thaw clean bill Of
mental health Her testimony waasthat
during the three years named, she kept
in succession two New York lodging
houses. where Thaw rented roms under
assumed names and 60 which be brought
at various times more than 200 girls
After Thaw's imprisonment, she said,
she paid these women 1T least S25,000 as
the price Of their silence and to keep
them from bothering Thaw's wife or his
mother" One 81 them, whom she said
passed as Thaw's wife, received 81 900
The money was given to her she said,
by Thaw's attorneys. Hartridge & Pea
body
Others, she said, got several thousand
each The money was all in one thou
sand dollar bills, and she said she had no
checks Or receipts as proofs Of her state.
ments.
AT this point in the testimony a mys-
terious package which was brought to
court Monday BY Clifford w. Hartridge,
Thaw's former counsel was mwrapped
and pearl handled whip, about three
feet long, was flashed into view With
this before the eyes of court and spec
tators, the woman related a series or
stories about finding Thaw On several
occasions lashing the girls upon their
bare arms and bodies.