The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1912-02-09
A, FLORIDA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9. 1919.
THE END OF THE WATERMAN
TRIAL
From Sundays Daily:

and at precisely ten o'clock Hon. Rob
, ert w. Davis, of Tampa, one of the at
torneys for the state, began his speech
before the jury. He spoke for one
hour and thirty minutes, when the
court took a recess for dinner.
Mr.. Davis has achieved a wonderful
reputation as forceful and effective
speaker in criminal cases and his
speech on Saturday morning will do
much towards the maintenance of that
reputation.
Growing age has had a mellowing
effect upon the language, manners
and gestures of the distinguished at
torney. He does not permit his voice
to climb to the top of the building nor
descend to the cellar. He has his
voice under complete subsection and it
falls upon the ear like the limped flow
of running waters. He never raved
and made no attempts to annihilate
the reputation OF the witnesses.
He said that the lawyers had done
much and that he had done his part
to discredit circumstantial evidence,
but that he believed it to be true that
more innocent persons had been con-
victed on direct than on circumstan-
tial evidence. He told forcibly and
plainly why this was so. And then he
took up the evidence, link by link,
until he welded the same into COM
plete chain which fitted with telling
effect upon the movements of the ac-
cused on the fatal day and night this
most awful crime was committed.
In the afternoon Mr. Burford be-
gan his speech for the defense. One
can we'll imagine that he is the kind
of orators that gave Bob Toombs
such an unique place in the annals of
our criminal Jurisprudence. He is of
heavy build and possesses the impos-
ing gestures and vehement eloquence
that made Mr. Bob Toombs a national
character.
Mr.. Burford dissected the evidence
and tore it into shreds and then ap-
piled the same character of evidence
against one of the states own wit
nesses and said that it pointed as I'M
erringly to his guilt as it did to the
prisoner at the bar.
Mr.. Burford spoke for fully two
hours and his speech was one of the
best efforts of his later years.
Mr.. Burford was followed by Mr..
Raymond B. Bullock, leading counsel
for the defense.
He was intensely in earnest and his
conduct in this case has won him
many friends.
He began his speech by saying that
he wanted to emphasize the fact that
he did not act in the capacity of paid
attorney. Pointing to the prisoner he
said: I'm that mans veins courses
the same blood that courses through
mine His father was my mothers
father. Believing as do in his entire
innocence | would be unfaithful and
undutiful TO her sainted memory were
l not to do all in my power to rescue
him from the dangers which unfavor-
able circumstances and unfriendly
witnesses have thrown around him"
| This appeal had it's effects which was
electrical and Mr.. Bullock never ap-
peared to better advantage and never
will again.
He said that he did not ask for
mercy. If from the evidence the jury
believed him guilty of the foul crime
of which he was accused he wanted
| them to pronounce him guilty the
same as they would for the veriest
vagabond that tramps the earth; but
he said that he was sincere in the be-
! lief that the evidence did not con-
meet him even remotely with the
crime, and then he began a powerful
elucidation of the evidence, tearing it
at least to his own satisfaction into
shreds and tatters.
Mr.. Bullock made a fine speech and
won for himself many enconiums. He
raised himself in the public estima-
ton and made speech which will be-
come historic.
Mr.. Edw. w Davis, state attorney,
made the closing speech. If the eff
forts of the Hon Robert w. Davis,
Hon Robert A. Burford and Hon.
Raymond B. Bullock are to be likened
to the powerful utterances of Bob
Toombs and the massive and ponder
Gus eloquence of his school, his may
be likened to the plain, persuasive, eff
fective eloquence of Alexander H.
Stephens, than whom the past gener-
alton produced no greater or a more
successful pleader.
Mr.. Davis's speech was analytical
i and logical he let no part of the evil