The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1911-06-15
USE OF ALCOHOL HEREDITARY
Pathetic Story of Brilliant Lawyer
Who Disowned Son When
Charged With Murder.

A young man from a good family
committed an atTocious murder and
was put on trial for his life. His
grandfather had been an excessive
drinker. His father and mother both
drank moderately at meals. His life
and history indicated great brain
feebleness and degrees of insanity
for at least two years before the MUIR
der. Public sentiment was very
strong against him at the trial. The
district attorney had employed an
able lawyer to assist him and he pub
licly announced that the cause of JUS
tice demanded the prisoners death.
Two distinguished physicians were re-
tanned to swear to the sanity of the
prisoner. l was called as an expert
in his defense, says a writer in an
exchange. AS the trial went on 1t
was evident that the efforts of the
state would be directed to break the
force of my testimony as to the in
sanity of the prisoner. l answered
the hypothetical question and ex-
planned it at some length for the de-
Tense, and then was cross-eXamined
by the states attorney, who was evil
IDENTIFY determined to destroy the i'm
preston which had produced on the
Jury.
The attorney was a man of keen in
tellect and a thorough master Of the
art of examining witnesses. After
~ OF hnAC IN
fusion in my statements, he settled
down to a scientific examination, in
sisting on exact answers without quail
ifications AS the examination pro
crossed it was evident to both of us
that we were surprising each other in
questions and answers. There was in
his questioning unmistakable indica
tons of very clear knowledge Of the
alcoholic mind and method of reason
ing such as can never be described In
books.
Although two able physicians we're
seated at his side suggesting ques-
tions. it was evident that his knowl-
edge of such cases was far superior
" lhtll ., anu INC JNIl rs anu AOl Allo VI
questions were revelations of famil-
iarity with the subject that was a sur
prise to me.
At the close of the days trial l
concluded that a personal acquaint-
ance with the attorney might give me
an insight into his mentality that
would be to my advantage in the next
days examination, which after a
night of consultation and preparation
would undoubtedly be still more Sc
we're Upon being introduced by the
Judge. !. in an undertone. remarked
to the attorney that | had never be
fore been examined by any one who
had such acute knowledge of the
drink craze and its victims, and that
| knew that this knowledge did not
come from books. After moments
hesitation he answered me with a
quivering lip, Yes, l know Of this
matter personally in my family and
1t has been a skeleton to me"
He asked me 20 come to his room
at the hotel that evening for per
sonal talk The interview lasted until
midnight. He then told me of his
only son who was expelled from col
lege for drinking. and of how he had
driven him away from his home
against the advice Of his wife and
that his son was now serving a life
sentence for murder in a western
prison He spoke Of his bitter feel
ings against the attitude his wife had
taken, for she had insisted that the
boy was diseased. This he himself
could not believe and he reviewed the
heart burnings and sorrows which
followed the death of his wife. and
her steadfast faith in the mental
sickness of the boy, and her disap-
prevail of his own harshness; and how
at her death he realized that she was
right, but his pride and position made
him fear 10 think of this subject Sc
riously. He spoke of his own drink
ing days, and of his abstinence at his
wife's request after the birth of his
son. Even on this trial he did not
dare to permit his feelings to assume
the possibility of mental disease l
told him frankly that he made a mis-
take, that his wife was right that his
boy was a victim, the direct trans
mission of his own drinking habits.
We shook hands and parted with a
cordially which was not apparent in
the next days examination. and yet
beneath the bluff and stern exterior
! could see the real man struggling to
put the question so that my answers
would be the least favorable to his in
terest. The case was won. My testi-
mony prevailed and the victim was
placed in an insane asylum, where he
| died two years later. No one knew
that our midnight interview saved
this prisoner from judicial murder
A few years afterward this lawyer
employed me as an expert in the de-
Tense of a similar case. At the close
of the trial l went to his son, a poor,