The Great Guiteau Trial: with life of the cowardly assassin : A full account! A complete history! The judge's charge to the jury. Speeches of counsel on both sides. Likenesses of all the parties concerned. Guiteau as a theologian, a politician, a tramp lawyer, a society beat, and as a member of the Oneida community.

Date:: [1882], [©1882]

Credit: The Great Guiteau Trial: with life of the cowardly assassin : A full account! A complete history! The judge's charge to the jury. Speeches of counsel on both sides. Likenesses of all the parties concerned. Guiteau as a theologian, a politician, a tramp lawyer, a society beat, and as a member of the Oneida community. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

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thority, aud I repudiate it I also want to say in regard to a couple of cranks that I understand have b(en arrested for hanging around here, if they under- take to harm me they will be shot down. I want everybody to understand this. Judge Porter, who had paused to per- mit this preliminary announcement, be- gan by saying, The prisoner, as usual, has made the opening speech. This whole defence. Judge Porter said, had been a sham and an imposture —an imposture which was supposed to have gained a strength of credence from reiteration. The truth asserted by this defence is that truth which is uttered with effrontery, enforced by persistency, and reduplicated by reiteration. This is the truth which they assert in opposi- tion to that truth which you are to ascertain and declare. In my remarks yesterday I showed you how the prisoner has belied by his acts his profession, how he has belied by his acts the char- acter given him by his counsel. I showed you that he had been a liar, a swindler, a murderer at heart from the beginning. That this man has grown worse every year of his life we have all seen and know. Guiteau—That's bosh and you know it, Porter. Judge Porter continued to depict -the character of the prisoner and the falla- cies of his defence, when Guiteau again and again interrupted liim, at one time calling out: Attorney General Mc- Veagh wouldn't have anything to do with it. Judge Porter, half replying to the prisoner, said : And this Christian gentleman would have you even be- lieve that Attorney General McVeagh had dipped his hands in Garfield's blood. Guiteau— Oh, that's very fine. A moment later an allusion having been made by Judge Porter to fthe present Attorney General, Guiteau bawled out, He's a high-toned gentle- man and you're awine-bibber. I've got your record, Mr. Porter. Judge Porter (with deliberation)— Well, perhaps I am. Guiteau (with a drawling accent)— Well, I—guees—you—are, Mr.—Judge Porter. The first serious outbreak of the iiaom-^ ing occurred when Judge Porter, advert-^ ing to the statement of the prisoner's counsel and the reiterated assertions of the prisoner himself, that the notes of the stenographer, Bailey, were destroyed by the prosecution because they would have benefited the defence, denied the right of the defence to expect or de- mand to see papers prepared by the prosecution solely for their own use. Furthermore, said Judge Porter, there was not contained in them anything, as asserted by the defence, that would have improved their standing in this case. Mr. Scoville insisted on being heard, and demanded that the Court should stop counsel from making any such statements on his own authority as to the contents of papers which had not been in evidence before the jury. Judge Porter insisted he had a right to deny statements of the same character made by the other side. Judge Cox thought the counsel had no right to make any statements as to the contents of such papers. Judge Porter, with much feeling, pro* tested that he had been a practitioner longer than the Judge, and had never before heard such a ruling. He (Porter) was, of course, debarred ftom taking ai legal exception, but he must pvi rost against the unfairness of the position which would admit all sorts of state- ments from the prisoner and from his counsel, and yet would debar the prose- cution from all opportunity of refuta- tion. Col. Reed, with considerable excite- ment, but without rising from his seat, said : If I was the Judge, I would put him under arrest. Such insolence ta the Court should be punished.'* Judge Porter resumed his argument, and proceeded to discuss the question of reasonable doubt as an element of the defence of insanity. Referring to the decision of Judge Martin, of New Jer- sey, which had been reinforced by a decision in Ohio, he was again inter- rupted by Mr. Scoville, who desired to know if arguments were to be heard again upon the law points. A sharp colloquy between counsel ensued, when. Judge Porter removed the objection b} handing his authority to the Judge, say- ing: It will answer every purpose of

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