The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1917-02-17


the prisoner stood up at the back of
the courtroom md interrupted counsel.
81 was guilty." she cried. He did
right. Let him go, judge! Why can't
you let him go?"
BE silent, woman" Numbered the
judge.
81 will not be silent. love him. /
was crazy when did what did. Let
him go!"
An officer of the court succeeded
with difficulty in silencing her. The
sound of her hysterical weeping filed
the courtroom. The judge scowled.
The case had already attracted unen-
| viable notoriety. The newspapers were
full of 1t. He was receiving criticism.
And he felt the injustice Of it all. No
body seemed to understand that he had
placed his own sympathies aside. No
one thought that he might feel for the
prisoner. No one understood that his
function was simply to carry out the
law.
And all through that day and the
next he felt the sympathies Of the jury
turn toward the prisoner, and he hard
ened his heart and resolved that their
verdict should not be acquittal. All the
while, too, he was conscious of the
cynical look in the eyes of the prisoner.
The case ended at last, as even the
greatest of cases must come to an end.
Counsel for both sides had delivered
their speeches. 1t was now his turn
to speak. He was summing up. And
he proceeded with grave elaboration.
He, expounded the circumstances Of the
crime. Nobody had made the sugges-
ton that the man might not be guilty
The facts were proved. He hammered
that in. He told the jury that they
must find a verdict according to the
facts-which were proven.
"Have little pityr' cried the pris-
orer's wife, leaping to her feet with
dramatic gesture. "Are you a man?
Is your heart carved out of fiint?''
"Be silent!" roared the judge. ere
move that woman from the court
ROOM"
She struggled and shrieked all the
while, and the courtroom was in an up
roar. Every face that met the judges
was hard and condemning. He noticed
that: for an instant there flashed
through his mind the memory of his
wife and little girl. How happy he
was at home! Why couldn't they un-
derstand that 1t was just to protect
such homes that the law was made?
But what was he thinking? 1t was
In such defense that the prisoner had
committed his action. The judge be-
came confused. He stammered a lit
tie when, the court being cleared Of the
disturbance, he took up his charge
again.
1.-THE facts are proved" he went on.
''The law wisely and rightly demands a
life for life. Only in extenuating cir
cumstances does it permit you to bring
in lesser verdict than that Of muir
der in the first degree. If you find that
these extenuating circumstances were
of the nature of ignorance of the ma
ture Of the crime, or of lack of intent
to kill, you may bring in verdict of
manslaughter. If you find that there
was no generalization you may bring
in one of murder in the second degree.
But these circumstances do not exist.
The crime. the motive are clear"
1t was odd how that shrewd, cynical
gaze of the prisoner disturbed him. He
broke off in confusion. And suddenly
he seemed to sway in his seat. He re-
NAMED with mouth open, and his face
was ashen pale.
Two minutes must have elapsed be-
fore he spoke again, and in the mean
time deepening .ense of uneasiness
had settled about tSe court. The jury,
who had already decided upon a ver-
dict Of manslaughter, waited in polite
impatience. Some thought the Judge
was ILL.
"The law" he went on, sis quite
clear. Some say that there are deeper
moral laws than human ones, which we
ought to obey. Some claim that the
voice of conscience is stronger than
the enactments of the legislature, when
these conflict. 1t is not for me to pass
upon these statements. We are all hu-
man and fallible, gentlemen. The pris-
oner was gravely wronged; he took
the same course Of action that many
men would have taken. He took the
course that you and I might have
taken-would have taken. I commit
the case to your care, gentlemen, with
the assurance that you will judge wise
ly and rightly"
The newspaper men in the court
room stared at one another and wrote
as fast as their pens would fly. The
judges speech was the sensation of the
trial. An account Of it appeared few
minutes after the verdict, in every pa
per, under some heading implying that
the Judge had at last abandoned his
infexible determination. Judge Par
kins Approves Unwritten Law" one
heading ran.
His charge had been practically an
instruction to tho jury to acquit. 1t
was easy enough to read between the
lines of the half hearted message. But
apart from the words there was some
thing In the judges manner, the tone,
the gesture that wrought upon all