Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-10-18

she took it was that MacFarland was
grossly careless in putting 1t in the
bottle tbat had contained the bro
mide, that his carelessness was SO
gross as to show a reckless disregard
for his wife's safety, you might con-
vect him of involuntary manslaugh-
ter.
1.-THE State does not ask you to do
so. The defendants counsel says he
ought to be convicted for murder or
| acquitted. That is probably due TO
| the fact that neither the prosecutor
nor Mr.. McDermit think that the ac-
t,on of the defendant, if it was inno-
cent, exhibits such gross carelessness
| that can justify you in saying that
What he did was in reckless disregard
to the life and safety of his wife.
"But thai is for you, gentlemen
to say. >.
..The state says that the proof IN
this case justify. yes require, a YER
| dict of guilty of murder in the nrst
| degree. that the testimony, the Whole
| testimony In the case, h a oifered on
| the one side and on the other, wneh
| considered together, demonstrates
| that Mcfarland got this cyanide
| and dissolved it and put 1t in TINS
| bromide bottle with the intention OF
| having his wife axe it and thereby
| taking her life. And If that is true,
why it followes as a necessary CON
| sequence thai the Is
guilty of that high grade of homi-
for ours statute says thai any
murder which occurs through the ad-
ministration of poison shall be muir
der in the first degree. So, II Mac
Farland intended hat his wife should
unwittingly take this poison, which
she did take, that is the only con-
clusion you can come to.
Now, 1 won't attempt to- discuss
the evidence upon hat question, gen.
tlemen. 1t took nearly three days to
put 1t before you, and your ~recollec-
ton of 1t is as accurate as mine N
as fresh, I have no doubt
Evidence Circumstantial..
sIt is circumstantial almost en-
tirely. OF course when n person
celebrates over the killing of an
other and prearranges it he does not
do the things which put that inten-
ton into effect openly so that every
body can see. He doesn't go around
with a brass band and nou It
to the world. He does it secretly,
so where the State attempts to es-
tablish against an indicted man a
charge of murder by the administra-
ton of poison it is almost always
necessary to establish the act by what
the law calls 'circumstantial evil
dence;' that is, by proving things
which taken together make up a
demonstration of the truth of the
proposition.
Now let me read for you the law
upon that question:: 1T Is not suffi-
cient that the circumstance be estab-
lished, accounted for and therefore
render probable the hypothesis to be
established by the prosecutor. They
must exclude TO a moral certainty
every other hypothesis but the single
one of guilt
Now, in this case. the State claims
to have established a motive, and
that motive is the destruction of the
defendants love for his wife and his
illegitimate passion for Florence
Bromley. They say that has been
established by the letters in this case,
by the testimony of the defendant
himself and the loss OF love for his
wife and his love for the other
woman. they say, gave motive suffi-
cient to lead him to go to any lengths
to get rid of the chains which bound
abintin order that he might take unit }
himself as a wife this Philadelphia
girl.
THE State claims that. notwith-
standing MacFrarland's testimony. as
7 understand the prosecutor, the fact
that for five years prior to this
woman's death this defendant had
unsuccessfully sought to get her to
agree to a divorce, SO far as any act
looking to that end is concerned.