The Washington herald., 1909-07-29

White Plains, n. Y, July 2S.-Harry X.
Thaw underwent six hours examination
by District Attorney Jerome in the SUI
preme Court here to-day. and at the end
he told his inquisitor that he could con-
tinue. as he threatened to do, for two
days more If he wished.
Thaw surprised Jerome. A year age
last month. when for a few minutes he
had gone on the stand in his own behalf
at a similar proceeding in Poughkeepsie,
the Matteawan prisoner lost his grip on
himself completely under the simplest
questioning. To-day he exhibited the
keenest intellect and kept the steadlest
hand.
The proceedings resemblcd more those
Of a witness testifying dispassionately in
a case beyond his interest than those Of a
man whose freedom depended in large
measure upon every spoken sentence.
At Ease All the Time.
Thaw was at ease all the time. joked
with his questoner, corrected him once OF
twice, and met him point for point in
every dangerous passage.
The morbidly curious circle Of White
Plains citizens who daily fight for places
in the court room heard things to-day
that were away above their heads
The alert man on the witness stand
talked quite naturally Of the Honorable
Mrs S0-and-s0 and the Duchess OF This
and-that whom he had to dine with him
I'm cafes Of Paris. lie spoke about noun
tain climbing IN Turkestan, about the de-
lights OF the Rhine country. French was
az the tip Of his tongue and easy repartee
with illusions in the ballad currency Of
the cOsmopolite.
The citizens OF White Plains had
crowded the court 10 hear a lunatic- When
ThaW first took the stand nt a few
minutes after the opening of the morn
ing session. spectators braced themselves
70 await some untoward demonstration
on his part. an explosion such as the
alienists had talked about FOR two days
past
The man who Is seeking release from
Matteawan as one cured OF his insanity
settled himself easily IN his chair and
wiped his glasses while Jerome thumbed
his reams Of typewritten paper.
Ii was in the soothing accents Of one
who addresses a child that Jerome put
the first question:
Did the witness know the nature OF
the proceedings that were in progress
there?
The same question. put I'm the same
way. had thrown Thaw into q panic a
year before in PoUghkeepsie. and he had
logical answer at that time To-day he
answered tersely that it was habcas
corpus proceeding brought to test his
present sanity. The tone Of his voice
was enough 10 convince jerome that he
could not conduct a class in first reader
at the present occasion.
jerome Feeling Ground.
The district attorney was feeling his
ground during the first five minutes Of
Interrogation. and Thaw was finding his.
Throughout all the days questioning Je-
rome tried hard to throw himself into
the mental attitude Of the man who faced
him. He groped at every point to touch
the characteristic weakness that the
alienists declare TO be resident somewhere
in a paranoiac's mental complement.
He sounded him on his memory, on his
concept Of the morality that was out
ragged m his killing Of White. and on his
assumed Chivalry IN regard to the pro-
lection Of young women He skipped
from cne subject 70 another. and then
with suddenness back to n review OF the
first. Thaw was as nlmble and fluid in
his reasoning as Jerome.
One subject upon which the prosecutor
harped with strong insistenca was that
OF Thaw's relations with the man he
slew, his view Of the character Of White.
and Of the motives which prompted his
murder.
You know Ferris, the hypnotIst?''
Queried Jerome.
Thaw said some years ago, when his
acquaintance with Evelyn Thaw was in
its inception, Ferris had come TO his
apartments for the purpose Of giving him
lessons in hypnotism.
II told him that I knew and was inter
ested in a young lady, and that it was
barely possible that she was under the
hypnotic influence of a certain man in
town. I wanted to know something about
hypnotism. so that I could be sure on
thlS point
What led you to believe that this
young woman was hypnotized?" the dis
trict attorney wanted 10 know.
From what she herself had told me
and friends had said to me-" replied
Thaw. Il had Stanford White in mind
although I was not at all sure that he
could be a hypnotist"
Impression of White.
Jerome wanted 10 know II White had
struck him as a man Of magnetic per-
sonalty-as a man who would appeal tc
women.
Thaw said with the slightest Struggling
Of the shoulders that when he first met
White ne had not been impressed with
him at all and that probably he knew
White as well after the first meeting as
he ever did subsequently.
THAT was a different kettle OF fish. d
the witness said lightly when Jerome re-
ferred 10 passages in letters Thaw had
written TO Evelyn Nesbit on the subject
Continued on Page 9, Column @.
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