Evening star., 1948-01-28
Writing Expert
Backs LaughIin
On TwoLefters
Esther Signature
On Notes to Lawyer
Called Genuine

Attorney James j. Laughl1n, went
on the stand today in the District
Court trial of Mr.. Laughlin and
DR.. Henry L. Peckham, jr., on abor-
ton charges and testified that the
signature on two important letters
introduced in evidence Is genuine.
The letters, signed Esther" were
introduced by Mr.. Laughlin as hay
ing been received from Mrs. Esther
Pickard Hobbs, %, once his f1ancee
and the chief Government witness.
Chief Justice Bolitha ]. Laws, pre-
siding at the trial, described them
when they were introduced as Every
powerful" for the defense, and under
his orders they have been in the
possession of a deputy marshal.
The Government charges Mr..
Laughlin arranged and DR.. Peckham
performed illegal operations on Mrs.
Hobbs on or about last March 20
and a.. Mrs. Hobbs was then Miss
Esther Pickard. She was married
last May 2.
Contents Of Letters.
The expert who testified is Ord
way Hilton of New York.
One letter, dated May is, and
addressed Dear Jim," said Mr..
Laughlin was not responsible for
the writer's pregnancy and that he
had nothing to do with the illegal
operation.
The second signature about which
Mr.. Hilton testified and which he
said was genuine was on a letter
dated March 20. In that letter, the
writer told of being sorry to have
missed Mr.. Laughlin and said she
Was leaving Washington immedi-
ately for her home in Pittsboro,
N. c.
An Office associate of Mr.. Laugh
Inns testified that Mrs. Hobbs wrote
this letter in his Office after she
had waited in vain for Mr.. Laugh
Inns return.
It was on that night, the Gov
ernment charges, that the first IL
legal operations was performed.
Denied Writing Letter.
Mrs. Hobbs, when she was on the
stand, admitted the signature on
the March 20 letter was hers, but
denied she had written the letter.
She also indicated that the sigma
ture on the May 16 letter was hers.
Detective 1t. Edgar E. Scott was
to take the stand later today as a
Government rebuttal witness.
1t. Scott is the police officer who
made the investigation on which
the Governments case is based.
Scott Previously Testified.
1t. Scott was the second witness
called by the Government and testi-
fed on January Is. He was cross
examined then by Mr.. Laughlin
who sought to bring out that the
police had Ill feeling toward him.
1t. Scott denied 1t.
In questions asked Government
witnesses. Mr.. Laughlin has indi-
Gated his belief both United States
Attorney George Morris Fay and the
police had it in for him. Apparently
for this reason he wanted to ques-
ton Maj. Robert J. Barrett, the
police chief, and Mr.. Fay. He said
yesterday, however, that those wit
nesses would not be called, since 1t
had been ruled their testimony
would be irrelevant.
The jury of 10 men and two
women heard Government witness
Yesterday afternoon contradict
the earlier testimony of his wife.
The witness who contradicted his
wife's testimony was R. J. Foster,
jr., Of Burlington, N. c. His wife,
whom he followed to the stand, is
the former Miss Marybelle Pickard,
sister of Mrs. Hobbs, who now lives
in Raleigh, N. C.
Mrs. Foster had testified that, in
a conversation with Mr.. Laughlin
In a hotel in Burlington last fall,
the attorney had asked her and
her husband "if we would testify
in his behalf" and said that, If
they did, he would give them a va
cation at Miami Beach.
Mr.. Foster denied Mr.. Laughlin
had asked them to testify for him.
He said Mr. Laughlin asked them
to have Mrs. Hobbs employ a North
Carolina lawyer named Horton who
would come up to Washington land
say that what Esther had said was
untrue" Mr.. Foster said the pur-
f1Oea vvos t0 Stnn the cQSn