Newspaper Page Text
8 THE STATE DENIMS THE LIFE OF DURRANT Opening Speech of Assist ant District Attorney Peixotto, BUT ONE VERDICT ASKED. The Prisoner Listens Atten tively, but Remains Calm PASSIVE. MR. DEUPREY ASKS FOR TIME. Mr. Dickinson Will Begin His Argumhnt for the Defense To-Day. TUE DUKRANT CABE IN A MINUTE— PEIX- OTTO'S SPEECH. The trial ot Theodore Durrant for the murder of Blanche l.amont is very near its end now, i; . -t;i all appearances. yesterday the State's opening argument to the jury whs made by the Assistant District Attorney, Edward D. Pelxotto. To-day Mr. Dickinson will begin the argument for the de fense. It Is expected that he will close by the evening adjournment. Monday being collection day, there will prob ably be no session of the court, as there are several jurors who have private business of im portance on that day. Tuesday, it Mr. Deuprey is physically able to do so, he will make the closing argument for the defense. Mr. Barnes will follow for the people— then there are only left the court's in structions to the jury and the verdict. Mr. I'eixottoniade an able address yesterday, sticking clo?e to the facts of tne case as ad duced in evidence and concluding before the usual hour of the evening adjournment had been quite readied. VERY NEAR THE END. The First Argument In the Famous Trial— Durrant Was Inter ested. All day a young man in broadcloth frock coat stood in front of along green-covered table. All day he talked — sometimes pleadingly, sometimes poetically, often argumentatively, always earnestly. In front of him, on the other side of the long table, were twelve men, seated. All day they listened, attentively. Tiie room was densely crowded. Judges, lawyers, public men, the wives of these, society men and women, and as many of the unknown public as could be squeezed into the room elbowed and crowded one another all day. Merely to hear the voice of this young man in broadcloth? Hardly that. There is another figure that shares al ways the interest of the crowds that seek the courtroom. A silent, calm, impassive ngure his is. It does not speak, save in an occasional whisper to Mr. Dickinson— the little, nervous woman who sits behind. No matter who has the lioor or the witness chair; no matter how eloquent the words of the counsel or how sensational the tes timony of the witness, thJs silent figure, never nervous, always cool, is yet the cen tral ligure. Yesterday a lady who came to the court for the tirst time asked her escort to point out Durrant. Jokingly he pointed to one of the men at the reporters' table. ••What a horrible face he has!" said the fair one, and she was looking, too, at one of the best-natured men on the afternoon press. But she thought— for the moment— that it was Durrant. Imagination did the rest. And her remark would have been no nearer the mark had she in truth been looking into the face of Durrant. His is not a pleasant face. It was not pleasant yesterday while he listened to the words of the young man who did the talking. But there was no horror on the face. Once or twice the mouth opened slowly and the eyes closed in a sleepy yawn. This was while the young man who did the talking— Assistant District Attorney Ed ward D. Peixotto— was paying his compli ments to the court and jury. After awhile Peixotto got down to the evidence in the case. Then Durrant turned toward the speaker and listened attentively, but not eagerly. He took notes occasionally. Oirce or twice he looked with a trifle more than the ordinary interest at the speaker, when the latter made a telling point against him. There was some poetry in Mr. Peixotto's speech— quite a little of introductory com pliments—but in all it was a telling speech and h good argument. It was not too long and it was not too flowery. But few lawyers talk carefui English to a jury, and Mr. Peixotto proved not an exception to the rule. He was preceded by Miss Cunningham, who came back on the stand when court opened in the morning to say that she had not promised Durrant not to tell the story about the second landing of the belfry. He did not require such a promise, as he did not foresee such a contingency. He made her promise not to publish it, and she kept this promise faithfully. 'That is all," said Mr. Barnes. "No cross-examination," said Mr. Dick inson. "The State rests," said Mr. Barnes. "We have nothing further," said Mr. Dickinson. •■Proceed with the argument, gentle men, '' said the court. Then it was that the young man with the broadcloth frock coat began his talk. And when he had ended it, late in the afternoon, Mr. Dickinson presented an affidavit from his colleague, Mr. Deuprey. The affidavit set forth that affiant had reason to believe that he would be re covered sufficiently from his illness to be in court Monday morning and make the Opening argument for the defense. This was accompanied by a similar affidavit from Mr. Deuprey's physician. Upon these documents Mr. Dickinson based a motion for adjournment till Mon day, so that Mr. Deuprey might De heard before the former should make the closing argument for the defense. The court was uncertain whether to grant this request or not, and the matter was left for the jury to decide. They de sired to proceed in the morning, and at the same time asked for an adjournment over Monday because that is collection day. And this will be the order of the proceed ings. ' . When court opens this morning Mr. Dickinson will address the court on behalf of the defendant. Cf rV*. * " ".:: THE FIRST ARGUMENT. Mr. Pelxotto's Picture of the F!end« Ish Crime In the Belfry of Emmanuel Church. Assistant District Attorney Edward D. Peixotto began his argument to the jury with well-chosen remarks concerning the great importance of the case at issue, of nn connection with the famous trial and Ills present duty. "1 approach my task with fear and mis : my poor abilities be unable to cope with it ; for ] recognize that lam a i . man and inexperienced, and well i I with faltering voice undertake the j task which my senior has trusted to me. • To you, the jury of twelve good men and | true, before beginning the discussion of the evidence I wish to say a few words. You have been taken from your homes, your Presides and your occupations, and | through these weary days and tedious ■ with patience have siren your at tention and time and consideration to this ca.-e without any hope of reward. 1 know you thoroughly appreciate the importance <>f this case, and that you thoroughly ap preciate the duty thai re^ts upon you from the time when you took your oath and obligation to well and truly try this cause. '\a not want the iii>. icted. "We, as counsel for the t^tate, recognize that this is a great and important cause. Wo recognize that we have a divided duty, a duty to the State and to this defendant. Ti;>' State never does and never will ask nviction of an innocent man. Ours i< not a cause which must be won at all hazard. It is not one that we must go into regardless of a!! consequences. No officer of the law mindful of his duty, conscien tious of his oath regarding bis position, or one moment forget it. If this de fendant, Theodore Durrant, is not guilty, we as representatives of the State demand the right to know it! If he is guilty, we, the representatives of the State, demand tlie right to see that he is punished. We ask you to keep this matter plainly before you. •We want from you a determination and a solution of the problem that shall be submitted to you. 1 say it in no spirit of flattery that never in our commonwealth has there been impaneled a more intelli gent and attentive jury than this. Neither Bide exhausted, the challenges allowed by law, and so we started with confidence in the men who would try the cause. That coniidence has not. I am sure, been shaken. Public opinion Mops short at the doors of jut>tice. 'Whatever may be the public opinion, its waves may roll and roar, but when they reach the temple of justice there they stop, and in the calm and dignity of the law such as we have witnessed, no matter how hideous the crime and no matter how bad the individual who committed it, he is entitled to a fair and impartial trial. '•We charge that Theodore Durrant killed Blanche Lamont on or about the 3d of April, 1895. This fact must be estab lished to the satisfaction of the State, free of all reasonable doubt, and ol moral cer tainty. We know this. At the inception of this cause you were asked especially upon the question as to what is a reasona ble doubt. You were told it did not mean an imaginable or possible 3onbt; for any | thing that is the work of a human being, that is the product of the testimony of hu man beings is accompanied by a vague or possible doubt. If we had to prove beyond all possible doubt a cause murder would always go unpunished, as circumstantial evidence would be eliminated from the law and we could never prove crimes which in many instances are fearful and hideous because there is no direct evidence of it. "We told you the case rested largely on circumstantial evidence, though this "can not be called a case of pure circumstantial evidence. We have a large amount of di rect evidence upon one of the vital ques tions and that must be determined; that is, as to the identity of the body, as to whether or n3t it was Blanche Lamont, and whether or not she is dead." Nou the State answers Mr. Dcvprey's opening questions. Here the Assistant District Attorney cited the case of the Parkman- Webster murder. Then, continuing, he said: "We are now prepared to answer the questions, Where was she murdered? When was she murdered? By whom was she murdered? What 'was tlie motive? We answer the question, Where was she murdered? In the belfry of Em manuel Baptist Church. When was she murdered? On the afternoon of the 3d of April, between the hours of 4 :20 and 3 o'clock. By whom was she murdered ? By this defendant, Theodore Durrant. What was the motive? Unbridled passion— that same motive that has iilled our history with so many black pages. "Now, gentlemen of the jury, we will go | right at our case. We will take up the j evidence piecemeal; that evidence that has come trom all sides, from all classes of people; so different, so diversed, old | and young, girls and boys, men and women, rich and poor — all have supplied evidence that fits together and coils" the rope around this defendant so tight that he is beyond recall. "And if in the statement of this evi dence I go one jot beyond the fact, one misstatement, no matter how slight, I ask you, I beseech you, learned counsel for the defendant, to stop me where I am, for knowingly and intentionally I would not state one thing against this man further than what has already been stated in your presence that would harm him one jot be yond the awful position in which we find him now. Durrant shows the nerve re quired to handle dead bodies. ''Blanche Lamont was a young girl of about twenty years of age. born m Mon tana, reared" in the country. She came out here a year or two aero to reside with her aunt, Mrs. Noble. Let us take Dur rant's own description of the girl. He said: "She was so pure, so good, so inno cent that she thought all others were like her, and whoever she had confidence in could lead her wherever they would.' This is the defendant's statement of her charac ter to her friends after she was missing. He only too well knew what her confi dence was and how she might be led. "The other character in this awful trag edy is a young man about 24 years of age, a handy man about the church, a medical student, one who is just in the first step of that profession which takes nerve, the kind of nerve that leads up to a crime of this character; that profession in which so many have stopped in the first year of their studies because they did not have nerve enough and stamina enough to go through with handling dead bodies and dissecting them as is required. You have seen this young man in court, you have observed him on the stand, you have seen his coolness, his calmness and his cun . ning. That character, and a medical stu ■ dent handling dead bodies, I wish you 1 would keep before your eyes, for we need I these facts later on. The character of Miss Lamont — trusting and confiding — I wish you also to keep in your mind, for we need that later on. "This defendant has proved a good char acter for himself. I admit right here that in a criminal defense this is one of the strongest safeguards against accusation. Blanche could have bfen U <l only by a man of good reputation. "We know as prosecuting officers that in the ordinary cases of murder, of embezzle ment, of forgery, that good character is one of the hardest tninirs to contend against before a jury. But in this case we wanted the defendant to prove a good character. He has proved it. It is only with a man of pood character that Blanche Lamont would have ever pone to a loneJy spot. If he had been a man of bad char acter — it Blanche Lamont had for one moment suspected that he was not what the world believed him she never would have gone one step out of the sight of any other human beings. That is why I say to you, This defendant's good character helps to place him, as we shall show you, as the murderer of this eirt. "On the :*.d of April Blanche Lamont starter! ag usual for her school. She was attending the higher branches. The same morning this defendant started for his college. But when we lake him out of his bed and ace him leaving his house, we will THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25, 1895. snow you that his conduct and life from that moment were different and unusual. He had never before met Blanche La mont. He had never before gone to school over that route on the Mission-street line. He had never before gone to school with her in the morning, but on this fatal day all these things happened. He escorted her to the school tiiut morning. We prove this by two witnesses, a conductor and a student. Where is the proof thai Mr. Deuprey promisedf "This testimony is not denied but ad mitted by. the defendant. If it is possible to prove* that this defendant was taking Miss Lamont to school in the morning; if it is possible to prove this by third par ties, outside of this defendant's admis sions — where he was and what he was doing with this girl in the morning— why is it that we cannot also f>rove his where" abouts in the afternoon? Why is it that every witness that has testified to the doing of this man in the afternoon is a fool— a driveling idiot, or an old and blind individual? If we could prove it in the morning, why cannot we prove it in the afternoon'/ Because that would be to admit his guilt. But I say we did prove it in ttie morning. We did prove it in the afternoon. "He left Blanche Lamont at her school. He tolls you he went to college. He tells you he took a walk, and the counsel for the defense says he will show you with whom he took the walk and how he took the walk. Where is that proof ? Where indeed? Itoss fails to corroborate him, saying simply he does rot remember the date. Carter cannot corroborate him, say ing some time early in April. Why did not Durrant attend Professor Hanson's lecture f "Gentlemen, there is one very peculiar thing which you must have noticed about many of the students at this time. They have a very peculiar memory. They can not remember anything. The secret, gen tlemen of the jury, is this, that they would not perjure themselves by swearing to a falsehood to save this defendant, but their class pride did not let them tax their memory to such an extent that they could tell the whole truth. They simply say 'we know nothing.' Their testimony is a blank. Their testimony is negative, j "But we have this fact from the de fendant, that he took that walk, that he was not at Hanson's lecture. He had been at every one of them during that entire term, during all the month of March, but he was not at Hanson's lecture on the 3d. He was absent. "Where was he? He says he was up in the library talking with a student, not about the lecture, but prescribing for the catarrh. We have a witness who tells you iri plain terms where he was — Mrs. VbgeL You saw her. You are to judge whether she is laboring under a delusion; you can judge of her character, a plain German lady. Mrs. Vopel saw the defendant waiting for Blanche Lamont. "She attended to her daily affairs. She had a large sum of money in the house be longing to a friend. There had been a burglar in the neighborhood, which nat urally made the neighbors suspicious. Mrs. Vogel, lookingoutof tin; window, saw this man, the defendant. She looked again and the same man was there, and yet again and heTvas passing up and down, walking to and fro, looking up at the buildings, pacing and waiting as he was for his victim, as the vulture flies back ward and forward waiting for his prey. He was there about 2 o'clock. He was not at Hanson's lecture. Mrs. Vogel says he was in front of the school. She watched him well. She saw him there and ob served him through her opera-glasses. The next thing she remembers is that she saw and recognized his face in the paper. They say Mrs. Vogel made a mistake übout the clothing this defendant had on." Here Mr. Peixotto spoke about the memory of faces and the identification of clothing, saying that it is difficult to de scribe minutely a person's clothing. Mrs. Vogel's testimony read, "He was dressed in a dark suit, a cutaway, and had on a soft hat and lighter pants. The pants were not black. I know that for sure." Mr. l'eixotto exhibited Durrant's clothing to the jury. Blanche came out of the school with Minnie Belle. Edwards. "I am not contending that these are light pants; neither did Mrs. Vogel. She said that they were lighter. Put those trousers in the light and I will ask you to judge whether they are not lighter than the coat. Mrs. Vogel's testimony did not stand alone. You may think it strange that Mrs. Vogel was looking out of the window. She told yon how it was that she started to look at him and why she used her opera-glasses. What this man was waiting for haypened. School let out. The young girls from their classes came down the stairs. Mrs. Voeel said she saw two girls come down the stairway nearest to Clay street. Minnie Belle Edwards came down with Blanche Lamont. All the girls knew Blanche Lamont. They took particular notice of her because she was a new pupil at the school. "They walked down the street together. Mm. Vogel saw this man, Theodore Dur rant, run up to them; (hia mtin, who should have been at Hanson's lecture and was not there. This man, who was on Powell street: seen there by Mrs. Vogel and Mrs. Edwards. What directed these girls' attention to him? It is not custom ary for young men to meet girls after school, and when they do, and this being a new pupil, naturally the girls looked, and as the saying is "sized up' the young man. Mrs. Vogcl saw Durrant and Blanche get on the car. "They saw him get on the car. Mrs. : Vogel saw them get on the car. She did ! I not know that it was Blanche Lamont. j She says it was one of tho girls coming out i |of the school. You have two persons 1 tes- I timony, uncontradicted, unimpeached, to : the effect that Theodore Durrant got upon ; the car after school with Blanche La : mont. Blanche Lamont started with ■ ■ Theodore Durrant upon that journey from j I whose bourne no traveler returns. This defendant started on his road to the mur derer's cell and to the gallows. "That is not negative testimony. That ! I is testimony of fact uncontradicted, cor- j ' roborated, unim peached. The car con- j tinned on to the turntable. Minnie Belle ■ Kd wards was still in the car. She saw i j Blanche Lamont and Theodore Durrant j i were on the oar still. She wont about her j i way and they went about theirs. Before j this defendant was ever arrested, before even he was suspected sufficiently to cause ! any investigation against him, these girls told that story. When Blanche .Lamont ! was missing and this defendant was help- j ing in the search and finding clews from j people on the street, those girls said that Blanche Lamont left school and met a young man, and if they should see that young man they would recognize him. and when they did see his pictureand they ! did see him they did recognize it and him. and their recognition is bound by oath." Mrs. Crosselt saw them riding in the Valencia- street car. After giving a description of Durrant's I movements when he got on the Valencia- i street car, Mr. Peixotto interpolated a 1 EDGAB D. PEIXOTTO ADDRESSES THE JURY. •'The devil and the angrel went into the house of God together." [Sketched by a "Call" artist. ] description of Addison's vision of Mirza, wherein the philosopher muses on life, lie described the bridge seen in the vision, with the people dropping through holes into the river, as described by the author. This led up to the testimony of Mrs. Cros sett, an old lady whose testimony has been ot considerable importance. "Mrs. Crossett had reached nearly to the end of the bridge of time." said Mr. Peix otto. "She came from her home to this court knowing well the responsibility that rested on her. Do you think it possible that if she had a slight or vague, let alone a reasonable doubt, that she would have put it upon her last years to take a false oath ? "V ou cannot believe that. She had known this young man, he even mixing with her own family. It is a fact that she did see him on the car; that it was Theo dore DuVrant and a young girl whom she describes as arrayed in the garments such as Blanche Lamont wore. They got off at Twenty-first street because Blanche La mont lived there. Theodore Durrant had gone to that school to take her home. They started to walk down Twenty-first street. You could easily imacine this man's suggestion, 'Let us go up to the church a moment.' Martin Quinlan taic them walking toward the church. "This man of good character, to this girl who was so good, so innocent and so pure that she could be led anywhere by those in whom she had confidence. And so when they went down Twenty-first street they went up Bartlett street and another per son saw them. Martin Quinlan. It is true he is a Police Court practitioner, but it is very odd that he has been here in San Francisco for ten years, has been residing in the neighborhood of that church, has been practicing in this City and owns property and the house he lives in — it is strange, I say, that the defense should be driven to get some people from Santa Rosa to swear that his character was bad somn ten years ago, and not a solitary soul has said one word against him in San Fran cisco for ten years. They go to Sonoma County to get some opposing lawyers to Ray that they did not think he was all right ten years ago. "Quinlan saw this man and also saw Blanche Lamont. Now. as to Mrs. Leak. She was nearsighted, borne of her friends would come forward and tell you that Mrs. Leak could not recognize anybody. Where is that testimony? It has not been pro duced, because it is not a tact. Mrs. Leak knows what she is talking about. Her daughter was rather late that afternoon and did not come home on time. While looking out of the window she saw a couple coming along. Mr». Leak saw Blanche and Durrant enter the church. "The man was Theodore Durrant. The girl was either Lucille Turner or Blanche Lamont. She could not tell which, be cause the girl's face was turned toward the man. If she was not honest, why did not Mrs. Leak say directly, 'I saw Blanche La mont?' But you ccc, gentlemen of the jury, she is telling you only what she saw. Ij. was not Lucille Turner, "because she did not, after a certain time, go with Theodore Durrant any more. Blanche Lamont had not heard of the character of Theodore Durrant, and she never for one moment suspected that when she entered that gate and went into that church she was indeed entering the portals of heaven. As to what happened in there, gentlemen of the jury, the testimony is blank. That is why we asked you if you would convict on cir cumstantial evidence. The story is told and we will tell it to you. In there this cunning man went with that innocent young girl, and what man can do with woman you undoubtedly know." Mr. l'eixotto recited some verses begin ning, "The devil stood at the gate of hell. Then, with dramatic effect, he said, "The devil and the angel went into the house of God !" A graphic picture of the awful crime in the bctfry. "Into the belfry they went. What was the consequence? His hands clasned her throat. The girl gasped her last. " Before it can be told in words her life breath had departed and Theodore Durrant had be come a murderer. No sooner does the mind act than it starts to conceal this crime. The body is stretched out, not as some one who was not accustomed to the handling of the dead, but lying there on the floor with her arms crossed. There, unclothed, unhonored and unsung, un wept, unknelled, with no dirge but the whistle of the wind through the eaves of the belfry, he left her for time to wither ana age to decay. "Did he for one moment think that there was a hole deep enough or a tower high enough in this little world of ours to hide that crime, that dead body of an in nocent girl? He stripped her of every thing, even her jewels, the rings on her lingers. You can see the whole story written as plain as I do. There were her gloves, her books — everything just as Mrs. Vogel saw her come out of school. Just as Miss Edwards and Miss Lannigan saw her on the car. Just as Mrs. Crossett and Mr. Quinlan and Mrs. Leak saw her go in. All the garments even were in the church, and were afterward placed in tnis court, crying out. 'Guilty! it was you, and you alone!' "No human eye saw, no human car heard." "In what spot in that belfry did the girl breathe her last? I cannot tell you. I could only theorize with you. We only know that she was murdered about that hour. That it was Blanche Lamont who was murdered cannot be doubted. No human eye saw. no human ear heard, save that of the dying girl and this man who has covered himself with falsehoods in endeavoring to extricate himself. When he was there in that belfry, that he could have gone back and finished up the thing I have no need to tell you. But here he comes down iroin the belfry and the de fense makes this point— that if he had been up in the belfry he could have walked out into the street and met nobody. "That at first looks plausible, but you must not mistake the man you have. *He is no longer at that time a'man. He is a murderer. Every- nook and corner had an eye to his imagination. He was looking always for somebody who had seen him He wanted not the light of day, but the darkness of night; yea, Egyptian darkness was not enough for h'm. "He went doion by the uay of the murderer." "Supposing he came out of that door and ran into Sademan! In his pale con dition supposing he should meet some body. The murderer's mind takes no such chances. He went down by the way of the murderer, down by the way of dark ness. You, every one of you, went there and saw that dark place between the ceil ing, and you know how you ciimbea through that opening. You walked across the ceiling to the back of the church down to the back stairs. It is dark and you can sneak down, and that is what the murderer wants to do, to sneak out. He came into that room and there met with another point which lam ready to answer. How would a man with his hands drippinpwith blood walk in where George King was playing the piano ? Is there any of our in voluntary senses that we haye more con trol of than hearing? This man was com ing 1 down from the belfry and coming down for the tirst time as a "murderer. Do you think for one moment that there was anything el^e buzzing in his brain than that of the murder? And when George Kinir gives you his testimony it is appar ent that he is hia friend, and an unwilling witness." George R. King's testimony was here read, showing that Durrant stood at the entrance to the room a moment. Jt was the pallor of nervous exhaustion on hit face. ''He stood pale, disheveled, his hair mussed, the pallor of nervous exertion on his face. He rtid so stand, but the de fendant says: 'I came up to the door and said, Hello! <Jeorge, playing the piano?' Bat the defendant let slip one thine. When George King said to him, 'Why do you look t-o pale?' he said — and mark this, gentlemen of the jury — 'You would be paJe if you had gone through with what I have gone through.' George King did not tell you that because he did not wish to harm this man more than he needed.' Mr. Peixotto made one or two satirical remarks in reference to Dnrrant's attempt ing to carry off bis conversation with George King in a light and airy manner, He said that Durrant was weak when he helped George King to carry down the organ, and that when he took the bromo seltzer he was nauteated. Testimony was read to prove this and the court adjourned for Kincheon. On resuming after luncheon Mr. Peixotto quoted from Oliver Wendell Holmes, who suiii, ".Sin has many tools, but the lie is the handle that tits them all." ""When this defendant," continued Mr. Peixotto, "had committed the greatest sin in the whole category, when he had trans gressed the first laws of (iod and the high est laws of man, when lie had imbued him self with the ureatest of all sins, then, and from that time, mj contention is, his en tire life and nets with reference to the Emmanuel Baptist Church, Blanche La mont and everything concerning that transaction, was a living lie that has been exposed in its entirety to you. Ko one had asked Dur rant to fix tht sunburners. "When he met George King there, when ho stood exhausted, pale, disheveled, King said to him 'What is the matter with you?' and he then told him '1 have been upstairs iixing the gas.' We have proved to you that the first words he spoke were false. Take the story as he described it. He says the gas was out of order, that he had a conversation with Sademan, the janitor. This he places on the 24th of March. But, gentlemen of the jury, here is what Mr. Sademan says about that: [Frank Sademan's testimony was read, showing tnat on the 3d of April ttje gas ap paratus in the Emmanuel Baptist Church was in perfect condition.] 'From each and every one of the trus tees of the church we have the same an swer that none of them had spoken to this defendant about the gas. If, taking his story to be true for the moment, they had spoken to him on the 24th about the gas, in that light of the case how in the name of heaven was this man so unfortunate, how were the gods so leagued agaiii>t him that they should have Deen left unfinished to this fatal day, April 3? That was a busy day, you will remember. He says he was at the lecture or one part of it. How was it that this man was up there to re pair the gas fixtures when the day before the plumbers were there, and on the next day the company sent their men to take down the Bunburners, removing all work he claims to have done. What the experts said about the effect* of inhaling yu--. "There was nothing to corroborate him, and everything to disbelieve him on this ground. If he had waited for a week and a half after finding out the fixture was not in order, do you think he was going to sneak away from the lecture, hurry to the church and turn on the pas? Why, if the burners had been out of order and he had turned on the gas, the atmosphere would be in a condition to explode. He might have been suffocated, but if he had not got to that stage, he would at least have got to a cherry red, as was testified to by Profes sor Price, the most celebrated chemist in this State, whose reputation is as broad as this State. The gas that he had been tam pering with was the life breath of Blanche Lamont— that and that alone, and he was never near that sun burner save when he passed by ana down. If he had been at the fixture he would have had the tools with him when he appeared before George King. That I say is the first falsehood. How Durrant's conscience troubhd him at the prayer -meeting. "The first thing that he tells you is dis proved by science and by medicine. That nijrht he goes home to his mother who says that his appetite wai not good — but I do not want to take the testimony of the mother against the nefendant. He was not feeling well and he went to the church. He sat down there. Mrs. Noble came to the church. At that time nobody in the congregation knew that Blanche' Lamont was missing. Mrs. Noble did not want the story to get out. Of course she was troubled. Of course she was worried, for Blanche Lamont went through the even tenor of her life with great regularity. Who, above all, is the first to mention the name of the missing girl? Somebody had a gnawing at his innerself. Somebody there was, who was not there for the pur pose of prayer or devotion, but for the pur pose of covering up his true identity. Durrant watching at the ferries for the touting girl. "That person was Theodore Durrant. He was watching Mrs. Noble, he tells you. lie saw her cast a paper at Mrs. Moore. He in his guilty conscience was watching her, moved up to her and said: 'Did Blanche Lamont come home? I've got a book I'm .going to bring to her.' Look through the history of any crime and see how the human mind trios to conceal and to put itself in the way of innocence. We will see how he carried this through. "Time went on. The girl was reported missing. He joined actively in the search. He gave suggestions, offered his services' offered the services of his friends. He de precated the work of detectives that were out. He said they were not doing their duty, and it was while the search was at its height, and while all had nearly given up nope of finding this missing girl then it was left to this defendant, to this man above all, to find, as he says, a clew to .blanche Lamont' s disappearance. Theo dore Durrant, as we contend, had a very different errand at the foot of Market street on the 12tb day of April than his evidence will disclose. He was there, nevertheless, watching the boats coming in for Blanche Lamont. He was waiting and watching for something. We do not know exactly what. "lam looking for Blanche Lamont. I have a clew." Again the fates were against him, for sademan was there watching and waiting for somebody. There is a peculiar tbing about that bit of testimony. It is only a drop in this great mass of testimony, only rive lines, but it speaks volumes. "When he saw Sademan and Sademan saw him, the janitor said: 'What are you doing here?' You will remember that BademAn was the janitor of the church, lie was connected in many ways with all of the congregation, and would be likely to re port what he had heard from anybody to others of the congregation. Sademan knew Blanche Lamont. He was interested in the church, and when this defendant saw Sademan another thing cropped up in his mind. He thought of Blanche Lamont, and when he met this man Satleman lie dropped tliat unfortunate remark: 'Oh, I am looking for Blanche Lamont. I have a clew to follow. She is going to leave San Francisco this afternoon.' "Then came; the query: 'Wheredid you get that clew?' Now, remember, gentle men, that up to that time nothing affirma tive had been shown of Blanche Lamout. A stranger on the street tapped him on the shoulder. "Gentlemen, you who have tried larceny cases know that the possession of the stolen goods by the defendant is the one strong point of the case. And how do these petty criminals set about to clear themselves of that damning evidence— to explain away the possession of those stolen goods? You know their story. They uil the jury about a mysterious stranger" who NEW TO-DAY. Imp's Triumph! 85,000 Residents of San Fran- cisco Have Adopted His New System. Old-Fashioned Drugging Kouted. LOOK OUT FOR IMITATIONS, A 'few years ago Professer Munyon, a man of giant intellect, benevolent purposes and determined character.unfolded his new school of medicine through the medium of the Dress to the public. He d id not come with the flourishing of trumpets, proclaiming the wonders of his cures, but with calm and confident assurance of the curative powers of his remedies, advertised to give thousands of vials of Rheumatism Cure "absolutely free" to the public, and re- quested them to be the jurors to decide upon its merits. What has the verdict been? One continued success throughout I this vast continent. Thousands of suffer- ers, who never knew what it was to be free from pain, bless the name of Munvon, the modern benefactor of the human race. Advertising has its advantages in bringing it before the people, but the unquestiona- ble merit of his preparations has stood the test for the past four years, and now Pro- fessor Munyon's name is a household word in every family in this country, proving without a doubt the efficacy of his cures and the honest victory he has won against bigotry and prejudice. To those who are still in doubt we have this to say: If you are careless about your own health, have mercy on the little ones who know no bet- ter, and do not commit the sin of neglect by continuing to give remedies that will doubtless harm them in after life, when you have in your reach, at a nominal price, cures that will effect the desired result without injury to the system. RHEUMATISM CURED. Munyon's Rheumatism Cure is guaran- teed to cure rheumatism in any part of the body. Acute or muscular rheumatism can be cured in from one to five days. It speedily cures shooting pains, sciatica, lumbago and all rheumatic pains in the back, hips and loins. It seldom fails to 'give relief after one or two doses, and almost invariably cures before one bottle has been used. STOMACH AND DYSPEPSIA CURE. Munyon's Stomach and Dyspepsia Cure cures all forms of indigestion and stomach trouble such as rising of food, distress after eating, shortness of breath, and all af- fections of the heart caused by indigestion, wind on the stomach, bad taste, offensive breath, loss of appetite, faintness or weak- ness of stomach, headache from indiges- tion, soreness of the stomach, coated tongue, heartburn, shooting pains in the .stomach, constipation, dizziness, faintuess and lack of energy. Munyon's Nerve Cure cures all the symptoms of nervous exhaustion, such as depressed spirit?, failure of memory, rest- less and sleepless nights, pains in the head and dizziness. It cures general de- bility, stimulates and strengthens the nerves and tones up the whole body. Price, 25 cents. Munyon's Kidney Care cures pains in the back, loin or groin 3 from kidney dis- ease, dropsy of the feet and limbs, frequent desire to pass water, dark colored and turbid urine, sediment in the urine and diabetes. Price, 25 cents. CATARRH CURED. Catarrh positively cured — Are you will- ing to spend 50 cents for a cure that posi- tively cures catarrh by removing the cause of the disease ? If so ask your druggist for a 25-cent bottle of Munyon's Catarrh Cure and a 25-cent bottle of Catarrh Tablets. The catarrh cure will eradicate the dis- ease from the system and the tablets will cleanse and heal the afflicted parts and restore them to a natural and health- ful condition. Munyon's Liver Cure corrects headache, biliousness, jaundice, constipation and all liver diseases. Munyon's Cold Cure prevents pneumonia and breaks up a cold in a few hours. Munyon's Cough Cure stops cough, night sweats, allays soreness and speedily heals the lungs. Munyon's Female Remedies are a boon to all women. Munyon's Headache Cure stops head- ache in three minutes. Munyon's Pile Ointment positively cures all forms of piles. Munyon's Asthma Cure and Herbs are guaranteed to relieve asthma in three minutes and cure in five days. Price, 50 cents each. Munyon's Blood Cure eradicates all im- purities from the blood. Munyon's Vitalizer imparts new life, re- stores lost powers to weak and debilitated men. Price $1. Munyon's Homeopathic Remedy Com- pany, 1505 Arch street, Philadelphia, Pa., puts up specifics for nearly every disease, mostly lor 25 cents a bottle. SOLD BY ALT, DRUGGISTS. li ,iiwiri^x ill iThxr&TfQdli tt'it? Til .-jwc. I'iii^^^S*!!' taT3 c t If^iiii Bsfore n ill You |!|t H KSiEli ii, liraf! Buy- Ghirardelli's "GROUND':" ' CHOCOLATE IS HEALTH GIVING— MONEY SAVING— IT IS IMITATED BUT HAS no "SUBSTmjTE3 NOTARY PUBLIC. piIAKLKB 11. -PHILLIPS, ATTORNKY-AT V I,*,1 ,*, w ,' go**? I>ublic *™ Market «t,oppi