The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1910-12-06
ElrOy Kent Case Again up in
Vermont House
DEBATED ALL FORENOON
Senate Adjourned It's Session in Order
to Hear the Discussion of the Case.
The Talk Was Resumed
This Afternoon.

The Vermont Senate this morning dis.
posed OF what little business was on
hand in short order and adjourned. to
go into the House to hear the debate
on the Elroy Kent case, in which Kent
is condemned to be hanged next Febru
airy for numbering Della Congdon. The
only business was the passage by the
Senate Of the weights and measures bill
with a further amendment giving the
governor the power to appoint the com.
missioner, which was the way the orig
inal oil read, until the House amended
it to make the officer elected by the
general assembly.
As soon as the Elroy Kent case came
up at I0:30 o'clock, Mr.. Howard of Whit
ing yielded the floor to Mr. Webster of
Swanton, who moved that, inasmuch as
the attorney general had spoken before
the House on the case, John d. Spell
man of Rutland, one OF Kent's counsel,
be permitted to advocate his cause before
the House. This required three-fourths
vote, and the rising vote showed l3s
for the motion and 46 opposed, just
enough to adopt it.
Mr., Spellman said that, although Kent
had fair trial before an honest jury,
there had always been doubt in his
mind as TO whether the verdict was rear
" right, and he felt that as an attorney
he would not be doing his full duty un-
less he did what he could to prevent a
man Of unsound mind being sent to the
gallows. Mr. Spellman said that Kent
was Of unsomd mind by lineage He
read abstracts OF the testimony given
by Drs Grout and Wasson of the state
hospital for the insane and OF Dr. ShiTres
Of Montreal. an expert alienist employed
by the state in the trial This testi-
mony was that while Kent was probably
sane he was OF unsound mind, OF low
mentality, degenerate and moral
imbecile
Mr. SpeIlman closed with an eloquent
to show that Kent came from an insane
family and that a younger brother was
now under arrest, charged with the mur
der Of his own father
Mr. Spellman closed with an eloquent
appeal to the members not to disgrace
the state by sending to his death a man
admitted by all the expert testimony TO
be of unsound mind.
Mr. Peck Of Burlington asked Mr.
Spellman If the state did not furnish
money to procure such witnesses as
kents counsel desired, and Mr. Spellman
said ii did as IL always does in criminal
cases. He also said that he thought that
If a Mrs Thaw had been al hand with
plenty Of money some Of the expert
Testimony might have been different He
considered that two letters from Dr.
Shirres Of Montreal to States Attorney
Jones OF Rutland were capable of that
construction.
Mr.. Howard Of Whiting made an ev-
tended speech in kents favor. which he
prefaced BY asking Mr.. Peck of Burling-
ton. chairman of the judiciary committee,
which reported the bill adversely, If tn.
committee had communicated with the
authorities at the Waterbury asylum in
regard TO the case, or If Kent's counsel
had been given an opportunity to appear
before the committee, Mr. Peck an
swered no TO both questions. Mr.. How
ard said he would not 20 into the ques-
tion Of consttutionality, as he thought
it was but a subterfuge and that mem
bers of the House should be men enough
to face this matter and stand up and
be counted He also quoted from some
Of the testimony given at the trial, gave
some of the family history, showing an
inherited tendency to insanity. Mr.. How
ard told OF an accident TO Kent, in
which, when jumping from train. his
skull was fractured. and, in removing a
splinter from the wound. two ounces of
brain tissue were removed. At the time
Kent escaped from the Waterbury asy-
lum, his sentence at the state prison had
expired, and if he was not insane they
had no right to keep him at the asylum.
He thought the fact that he carved his
name in the vicinity of the crime was
strong evidence of his insanity. He
thought that as ne walked through the
corridors the comments he heard were a
cry to cruelty him, cruelty him.
Mr. Peck Of Burlington desired to ask
the attorney general some questions.
Mr. Howard OF Whiting objected. and the
chair ruled that this was a continuation
of Fridays session and that the attOr.
ney general could be heard, Thereupon,
the attorney general answered Mr.. Peck's
questions and then addressed the House.
Without taking action on the bill, the
House adjourned at 1915 p. M, and Ola
the return resumed consideration of the
case
A Junket Killed
Joint resolutions were introduced in
the House this inorning as follows;L
BY Mr. Martin of Hartland, granting
the use of Representatives hall to the
veterans of the Civil war Thursday even
ing. December s. This was adopted on
the part of the House,
BY Mr.. Stone Of Wallingford, empow-
ering the joint committee on the house
of correction to visit that institution at
the expense of the state and report by
bill or otherwise This resolution was
favored by Mr.. Stone and opposed by
Mr. Martin OF Brookline. Ii was not
adopted.