Evening star., 1923-09-26
FOREGO TESTIMONY
IN WARDDEFENSE
MiIlionaire's Attorneys Rest.
Chief Pleads Case Is Un-
J changed by Trial.
BY the Associates Press

WHITE PLAINS, n. " September
ga sensation equal to that al
yesterday, when the state abruptly
ended ITS prosecution, came today a.
the triaI of Walter S. Ward, charged
with numbering Clarence Peters oi
Haverhill, Mass, when the defense
announced to the court that it rested
its case without submitting any testi-
mony.
Afer announcing that the defense
rested. Isaac N. Mills. chief counse,
for the defense, renewed his motion
that the indictment be dismissed and
the jury be instructed to return q
verdict of acquittal, but Justice Wag'
ner again denied all motions.
Mills said that the secret OF tht
blaokmail which caused Ward to Kill
Clarence Peters would never be re-
Vea1ed. To prevent such a disclosure
ne said, ne had refrained from call.
ing members of the Ward family q
abe witness stand.
Confined to Evidence.
Hardly had the chief OF the defense
counsel begun his address to the jury
when Attorney General sherman OBJ
tected to his statements, and Justice
Wagner ordered Mr. Mills to refrain
from all comment ana to keep to the
evidence.
We are at the beginning of the
END, Mr.. Mills had begun, and
nave to tell you that / have the most
profound satisfaction that my client
has come to the bar of justice this
way, prosecuted by the state, and
n
One of my first satiSfactionS is In
nnding nothing in the peoples case
that was not there before. The cards
have been laid out, and have count
torn
Claims Case Unchanged.
Mr.. Mills went on TO say that he
had been an attorney for many years,
ana that he was surprised that At
torney General Sherman had revealed
nothing new. and that in the ex-
animation of former District Attorney
Weeks it was shown that all the wit
nesseS in this case were the same
ones who had testified before the first
grand jury that indicted Ward
= have been in the case since the
inrst Indictment was presented" add
ed Mr.. Mills, II am like an old mar
iner riding the seas; now he steers
Tor the open gate of the home port.
realizing that the opposition contains
nothing but wind, nothing but mere
blum. at that. Now with every sail
craft we are going home safely, as
we sought.
Charges Unfnirness.
The first hour of Mills summation
was devoted to an arraignment OF
the methods used by the prosecution
who, he said. had presented It's case
unfairly and unjustiy. Charging that
~ Fpv
properly coached, he pointed out that
Seventy-two witnesses had been
heard by the grand jury. while only
thirty-two. had been called before the
trial jury.
The prosecution, Mills asserted.
had not dared to call the other wit
nesses because their testimony would
have been riddled by cross -examina-
ton
Turning to Mrs. Ward, who had
been sitting, her head bowed. beside
Ralph Ward, brother of the accused.
he called upon the jurymen to observe
the terrible effect which the strain of
the proceedings had had upon her.
Exhibiting to the courtroom at
large a large photograph of Mrs.
Ward. apparently taken before the
staying of Peters. he called upon all
those. nFesent to compare the youth
full. fresh-faced woman on the pho
tograph with the bowed worry-worn
figure who sat sobbing at the de-
fRnse counsel table.
Points TO Wife.
by the side of my client" Mills con-
ttnued, his loyal and devoted wife,
the woman God gave to be with him,
has sat throughout the proceedings.
She has stuck to him through trials
and tribulations as well as in pros
perity. You can see her face is worn
with grief from this persecution Of
sixteen months"
AS the defense counsel pointed to
her Mrs. Ward sobbed unrestrainedly,
her body shaking convulsively. Ralph
Ward put his arm over the back OF
her chair and whispered words OF
comfort.
Mills then launched into a severe
criticism of the calling to the wit
ness stand of Mrs. Ward. When you
ask mans wife to testify against
him you ask a violation of Gods
laws" he said. asserting that the tes-
timony of Mrs. Ward had added moth
ing to the states case, detracted
nothing from her husbands reputa-
tion and merely served to increase
her agonized worry that her words
might seal the doom of her husband.
Taking up the states evidence
point by point Mills attempted to
show that series of unrelated cir
cumstances. which, he asserted
neither indicated nor proved that h
crime had been committed, had been
set forth before the jury"
Mr.. Mills charged that Peters,
who. il had been shown in the testi-
mony, came to New York with less
than 50 in his pocket and a pack of
playing cards, hired himself out as
a gunman to carry out the black
mail threat of those whom Mr.. Mills
said were his accomplices. He de-
clared the paths of Ward and Peters
had never crossed until the night OF
the tragedy.
VIII Keep secret.
Then Mr.. Mills emphatically de-
would never become known and that
that the defense had not called any
OF the Ward family to the witness
stand.
"Put yourself in his place." Mr..
Mills said to the jury. Suppose you
fell into the hands OF evil men and
they knew a secret that affected not
only you but the character and stand
ing of your wife and children. Sup
pose they threatened to expose you.
If you had a drop of red blood or
manly honor in your veins you would
do Just what Walter Ward did.
when this case goes into your
keeping the life and happiness OF this
man and this woman will rest I'm your
Mr. Mills said that both George
Washington and Alexander Hamilton
had submitted to blackmail
uHsARaEA Hs naaNI Hr~rUax-