Evening star., 1926-12-03
BY FRANCES MOVES HART.
Special Dispatch TO The Star.

special D1spatch TO The star.
COURTHOUSE. SOMERvILLE, N.
j.. December 3.-Senator Case yester.
day afternoon refined up abruptly in
the midst of his four.hour speech and
| remarked confidentially to the jury
that 1t was almost impossible for him
to realize he was taking part in a
| murder trial and not a play. 1t is al
most impossible for us, too, and there
have been moments for which what
| are spaciously referred to as ''the bill
| lion-dollar counsel should shoulder
their full share of responsibility. We
have also had profound doubts as to
whether we had not strayed by some
| unfortunate error into a political con-
| vention, a Christmas pantomime, a
Fourth of July celebration or a
| valedictory address at the local high
school.
There is much to be said in favor of
both of the speeches that have closed
the case for the defense. They had
the great primary assets of being pro-
foundly sincere. 1t was impossible to
doubt for one moment that Senator
Case and Mr.. McCarter are not con-
vinced to the marrow of their bones
and the core of their hearts of the alb
solute innocence of the three whose
lives they are defending.
Attitude Is Impressive.
That conviction is so burning that
it has become an emotion, something
divorced entirely from the realm of
intellect and reason and translated
into an overwhelming pity and indig-
nation. They ceased to be defenders
and became crusaders. This attitude,
to the detached observer. was very i'm
pressive. but it had its drawbacks.
The rage of pity that shook Case to
tears at the end of a genuinely mov-
ing plea and that rang in McCarter's
voice when he told US Of the wrongs
that had been done this gentle
lady" and William, who has never
even hurt bird" was not so effective
when 1t turned to spleen against
dying woman, a deaf man and the en-
tire Democratic party of the State of
New Jersey.
If Mr.. McCarter could have remem
bered that 1t was the case OF Stevens,
Stevens and Hall VS.. the State of New
Jersey that he was trying. and mot
Phillip Payne and the New York Mir
ror-if Mr.. Case could have been per-
suaded that it was not Jersey city
that was on trial for it's life, but two
men and a woman, this trial would
have been over last night, we would
not be in so critical mood, and bet
ter speeches could have been credited
to both Of them.
Nor are we not disposed to over
look lightly Mr.. McCarter's efforts to
inject humor into this trial. either.
His first playful reference to Lieut..
Walter Ciecieuch as "Choo-Choo,"
brought only mild transports on our
part-his more daring variation OF 1t
to "Hoochy-Coochy," left us per-
turbed-and at his seventeenth repe-
tition of these quips, we have been,
like Queen Victoria, not amused.
McCarter's Age Stressed.
Great play has been made of the
fact that Mr.. McCarter Is 81 years old.
Senator Case became so overwrought
at the thought Of the insouciance with
which Senator Simpson has treated
his aged colleague that it took him
about 10 minutes to remember that he
was wasting time in getting to his
central theme Of corruption in Jer:
sey City. We ourselves regard 81
years as a very reasonable age for a
lawyer, and the principal reaction
that we got from the rosy. chubby
faced, excellently groomed Mr.. Nc
Carter initiating Marie Demarest in
a high falsetto squeak and praying
God to preserve him from such
with surprising lit
tie dance step, the exultant and ne.
farious fingerprint experts, next day,
Hip! Hip! Hooray! off for the Cat
skills to see Faurot-." Initiating
very badly Caprio saying. Have you
gotta da papers?" The principal re-
action, we say, we got from this, was
that if Mr.. McCarter was 81 years old,
he was old enough to know better.
This is a. murder trial, and even II
Mr.. McCarter has a genius for panto-
mime and ventriloquism, we can think
of more appropriate occasions to ex'
ercise It. Though we admit, guiltily,
that we would not willingly relinquish
some of his more notable impersona-
unexpected metamorpnosls
into the crabapple tree during the
first day or SO of the trial; the inter
esting role, no later than Wednes'
day, of ray of light passing through
a lens propelled by motions OF really
Delsartean grace; the Interpretation
Of Willie dancing backward through
a door" as attested by Marie De-
narest. and executed with everything
hut. ballet skirts by the leader OF the
bar himself.
Jury Frankly Puzzled.
We think that Mr.. McCarter did not
gauge the psychology or
the jurors accurately. Possibly they
were flattered at his remarking, -Four
years ago--the length Of time that 1t
takes us to so through college--you
know how servants like to close up
q house early. We've all gone calling
on Young ladies' and sent up cards by
the butler-is Miss Simpkins at
1 don't believe that we've
ever left a fingerprint on a card yet"
But we have our profound doubts as
70 whether the world of college and
servants and calling cards is not an
alien and uncoveted one to the farm
ers. teamsters and blacksmith who
form the gentlemen Of the jury.
Their expressions were frankly baf.
fed when Philip Payne was introduced
to them first as Mephistopheles and
then, slightly satirically. we fear. as
Intriguing combina'