The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-06-30
STATE BEGINS
TO POUN I'D AT
THAW TO-DAY
Direct Evidence Nearly All
In and Hostile Witnesses
Are Ready.
THREE AL1ENISTS ARE
POSITIVE HE Is SANE

day have been taking the stand at the
sanity hearing Of Harry X. Thaw before
Justice Walter Kendrick and IA jury
TO swear that they believe Thaw to be
sane. was called by Thaw's counsel yes
terday afternoon In the person OF DIR.
Charles X. Mills of the University of
Pennsylvania.
The cross examination OF DR.. Mills
which ii is thought will not take up
much time. may be completed before
tho midday recess to-day, whereupon
Deputy Attorneys General Frank X
Cook and Alfred l.. Becker will begin
70 call another long line of witnesses
through whom the state hopes to con-
vince judge and jury that Thaw Is still
insane and therefore should be returned
TO Matteawan.
All day long yesterday Thaw heard
the last of the witnesses for his side
not only swear ~emphatically that they
think him perfectly sane now but. In the
case OF DIR. Charles l.. Bancroft. head
of New Hampshire's State insane asylum
and member of the Streeter commission
which declared Thaw sane after his es-
cape from Matteawan, that he was sane
even Ut the rme he killed Stanford
White.
As the chief reason Thaw escaped the
Sing Sing death house in his sccoHd trial
for murder was that the jury declared
him insane, DIR. Bancroft's assertion OIL
the stand yesterday forenoon that
Thaw's act OF numbering White was not
that of an insane man caused somewhat
of a stir in the court room.
"Thaw Sane at Time Of Murder"
'"Thsw's act,- said DN Bancroft il
giving reasons he had for believing the
shooting was the result Of sudden anger
helped along by overlndulgence In cham
payne. did not impress me as that Of
a p~aranoiac. We were unable TO find
that he was africted with decisions. and
without decisions paranoia Is iinposs bic.
This, together with the fact that Thaw
expressed what was. I believe, honest
regret for his homicidal act. showed
Thaw TO be sane. I never have known
of a ~paranoiac mind to regret the deed
of violence. The delusion always per-
sists in such minds that the violence was
justified"
There were alienist witnesses not
only emphatic yesterday in their beliefs
In Thaw's sanity. but argumentatively
so when under the fire OF the States
cross-examination. Notably discursive
In Offering reasons for thinking Thaw
sane was DIR. d. Percy Hickling of
Washington. II. c., who, It was brought
out In cross-examination. is a son-in-
law of ex-Gov. Stone OF Pennsylvania,
counsel for the Thaws while Whites
slayer was fighting the States efforts
10 bring him back from New Hampshire.
DR.. Hickling spent a great part of the
day IN explaining at length his reasons
Tor believing that Thaw did not kill
White as a result Of decisions concern
ing Whites treatment Of Evelyn Nesbit,
but oecause-what the alienist sought to
show was an entirely different matter
Thaw had heard many stories of the re-
lations Of White and Thsw's wife which
he had every reason to believe were
true. The witness went even further
than others who had preceded him on
the stand by saying that he had 'prac-
tically discarded" all belief In evidence
brought forth at former court proceed
Ing that Thaw had been guilty Of moral
abnornality.
Queer Twist TO Argument.
IA curious twist OF argument thereupon
Wfs brought about. During the forenoon
sefion Thaw's counsel in endeavorlng
10 thow that Thaw had sane reasons for
his enmity toward Stanford White, went
pack TO the testimony given years ago
BY Susan Merrill. keeper Of the Tender
loin house where Thaw had rented a
room. thus backing up by Mrs. Merrill's
word that Thaw had reason to believe
White grossly immoral.
But when during tho afternoon ses-
sion Deputy Attorney-General Cook I'M
successfully sought to convince DR..
Hickling that Mrs. Merrill's testimony
showed Thaw guilty OF moral deKen-
eracy. Thaw's chief counsel, John q,
Stanchffeld. was on his feet to offer evil
dence that Mrs. Merrill's word was
valueless inasmuch as she once was in
dicted for perjury.
VNnA RiRglAa and chuol1ao xhnx 1890.
tuated the sessions of preceding DAYS
were not heard during sessions OF YES
teruay' which were taken w more or less
win testimony which either was a rak-
ing up or testimony several years old or
the more or less technical description nv
experts or details Of their examination
OF Thaw at Matteawan, at White Plains
concord. n. H., or examinations as TO
his sanity made by Thaw alienists as re-
Gently as last Sunday.
only once was happiness permitted TO
break through the stretches OF tedious
tesumony. This was during the after
noon when Mr.. S~tanchfeld. while oues-
tionlns DR.. Hickling. dryly referred TO
what Thaw's chief counsel seemed IN
mink was an undue display of egotism
on the part OF DIR. Austin Flint, alienist
Tor the State, who is present at all the
sessions Of the hearing.
DR.. F1int's "EEotism."
"Dr. Hickling." began Mr.. stancbaeld
with a suspicion Of a smile, "a few DAYS
ago at a session OF this hearing DIR
Austin Flint walked over to the press
table here and reproved one of the re-
porters now beside me for writing .Dr
austin q. Flint in his newspaper, DIR,
Flint being displeased because n middle
initial "G." was inserted In his name
NOW would you consider this a display
OF undue eSotism on the part Of Or.
F1int?"
Court and Jury and spectators were
grinning broadly by this time. Deputv
Attorney-General Becker. smiling a bit
himself. was on his feet with an oh
lection to the question Immediately. Jus
tice Hendrick- Incorrectly called ems
tice Hendrlcks' almost as often as he
Is addressed by his correct name
laughed question md objection into the
discard briefly.
Oh said Justice Hendrick. "the
newspaper boys often give my name all
the letters in the alphabet when thew
write about me too"
The press table during the forenoon
session got Thaw's own worG. for II that
perhaps before the state begins to try
10 prove him insane to-day the Thaw
SIDE will spring something in the nature
OF a surprise.
Thaw "surprise" Promised.
Yes, it's true" said Thaw when
asked for details about the "surprise,