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Curious Spectators Find Sensations They Seek as the Famous Tragedy Is Unfolded in Court 1
WOMEN SEE A MARRIAGE LESSON IN THE GRACE' TRIAL
A Graphic View of the Women at the
Hearing Who Find in It a “Big Show.”
Varying the Monotony of Dull Lives.
By DUDLEY GLASS.
If any spectator at the Grace trial
expected to be awed by the solemnity
of the tribunal and thrilled at the dra
matic stage setting—accused wife and
Wounded husband glaring at each other
before the judge—he must have been
gurnewhat disappointed.
Tile striking detail one couldn't get
sway from was the women in the audi
ence. the poorly clad women who sat in
i :;O s< rear seats breathing that fetid
atmosphere, surrounded by men of
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every stamp, hearing little, seeing less
and apparently supremely happy de
spite the wilting of their garments and
the trickle of perspiration through the
powder on their cheeks.
There were perhaps 50 of them -some
old enough to be grandmothers, some
girls not far in their teens. One wom
an hore a child of five, who fretted and
whined on her lap and begged to be
taken outdoors again. There was a
little girl who ran through the crowd
when the doors were opened, dodging
between the legs of the grownups, gain
ing ground by her very insignificance,
until she found a front seat by the
judge's stand.
Just Ordinary Women.
There were little groups of women,
dull-eyed, who chewed gum incessant
and chatted together in low tones
the ease progressed. 1 saw no wom
an whose garb or manner stamped her
is one of the demi-monde few of the
type the world would call ''refined.”
Tw y seemed just ordinary women,
whose husbands were at work for day
":igcs'. To them the trial of Mrs. Grace
was the great "show" of the year. It
'•is to their starved, sensation-hungry
souls what the grand opera is to the
’over of great music. It was the event
‘if their lives.
And how little they saw and heard!
■Most of them were crowded into seats
1 at the left of the court room, with
Mi' judge’s bench and the railed do
■ tiions of the clerk shutting off their
■■w of all the principals In the drama.
1 "”.v saw no more than if a wall had
been built between them and the court.
F’l’haps they caught a glimpse of a
Hite-covered cot as Eugene Grace was
" rne into the room and out again. Por
- is they saw a bit of brown plume
•Mrs. Grace rose to make her exit.
Rut through all the six hours of the
" Hing they saw nothing more, for the
' 'l ings and the standing men against
were between the audience and the
Rut they did not leave in disappoint.
ut. Xu; they stuck to their seats in
-fi 'i determination. knowing that
■'hotiid they leave a dozen other men
■>' women were waiting for their places.
■ > sat and waited, in the forlorn
'"I'V that something might happen to
it'ak the monotony of the proceedings
lr perhaps satisfied’ with being merely
n the same room with those famous
li-iracters immortalized by the papers.
1 b''.' were like the crowd which gath
r outside the walls of a jail waiting
"i' the moment of the execution which
’h<-y have no hope of seeing.
Drama Strangely Dull.
Rut the drama Itself was strangely
bill and emotionless. I'pon the wit
' stand a policeman in his Sunday
dizen's suit or a negro in worn and
'sty garments answered such ques
’lis as were put. waiting palienti)
- ,K “ vnutur solicitor and the burly
trial lawyer for lire (iefendani quarreled
over the wording of a phrase. There
were questions sot :ningly without a
shadow of importance, answers appar
ently meaningless. There were half
angry altercations between the lawyers
over points bearing no meaning to the
auditor; flashes of rough wit as a cross,
questioner tried to ridicule the witness
into tangling his testimony.
And Mr?. Grace, central figure of 'the
play,” sat at her lawyers’ table, ex-
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pressionless, inscrutable There were
moments when the testirttony became
unprintable; when almost forbidden
subjects were discussed with comment
bordering on buffoonery. But still Mrs.
Grace leaned over her table, her dark
eyes fixed upon the face of the wit
ness, her cheek unmarked by blush or
pallor, it was as though all the smaller
things of life had been forgotten in the
face of the great question the tribunal
had been called to answer.
And Eugene Grace, the “dying man”
of so many newspaper extras; the man
who had descended into the shadow of
death; the hopeless cripple who would
never smile again—he lay on hls cot
and laughed softly as his friends made
comments on the case. He chuckled at
the sharp tilts between the counsel and
commented caustically upon bits of the
testimony. His face was brown, as
though he had been playing golf in the
sun. There was no trace of the pallor
which comes from long confinement
save in the slender hands, which were
white and emaciated. Grace seemed
the merriest man in all the room.
$20,000 FIRE SWEEPS
ONEIDA LAKE RESORT
I’TICA. N V.. July 30 Flames swept
a section of Sylvan Beach at Oneida
lake early today and for a time it was
feared the noted resort would be wiped
out. The blaze started in M. T. Burt's
palm garden, which was destroyed, to
gether with a number of the restau
rants, cases and novelty booths. The
loss is estimated at $20,000.
CHANGE OF VENUE DENIED
IN ALABAMA KILLING CASE
MONTGOMERY. ALA., July 30 Judge
Armstead Brown, of the Montgomery
criminal court, overruled a petition by
the defense for a change of venue or for
a continuation of the case against Walter
Jones, the Lowndes county citizen, who
Is charged with the death of Sloan Rowan.
Rowan was killed on a train as he was
about to leave Montgomery a short time
ago.
MARIETTA SCOUTS ORGANIZE.
MARIETTA. GA, July 30.—A Boy
Scout troop has been organized In
Marietta with twenty members. Suits,
tents and full company outfits are to
be had right away, and some real com
pany and scout work will be done be
fore the boys have to return to school.
Tile boys Will also help care for the
state reunion of Confederate veterans
to be held here August 28 and 29
THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS.
| GRACE IN COURT- -Drawn by P. A. Carter |
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t DARROW. CONFIDENT,
RESUMES STAND TO
< FINISH HIS DEFENSE
'■ LOS ANGELES, July 30.—Resuming
I'
the witness stand when the morning
e
I session of Judge Hutton’s court opened
today, Clarence Darrow expected today
to complete his testimony in his own
1 behalf. Fortified by a good night's rest,
f the famous labor lawyer had a confi
dent bearing.
Rogers, chief counsel for Darrow, and
B Darrow conferred before the trial open
j ed. Rogers in his direct examination
3 wanted to jump ahead to the more im
? portant points, but Darrow protested to
his counsel that he preferred to take
the story up chronologically. He said
( It would be easier that way. and Rogers
„ acquiesced.
j Coincident with the order of the court
that the defense be permitted to in
spect all documents in the possession of
the state purporting to be. written by
the defendant. District Attorney Fred
■ cricks turned over to the defense a
fat envelope today. Before he went on
t the stand. Darrow perused copies of tel
-1 egrams and letters, most of which were
u secured by the Federal authorities orig
] inally.
s It is expected that Darrow's cross
_ examination will begin before the end
. of the day's session
e
BEAUTY DOCTORS DROP
COSMETICS FOR NATURE
• CHICAGO. July 30.—" Back to na
ture —away with harmful cosmetics," is
8 the slogan of the National Cosmeti-
V clans' Society, which has been meet
-1 ing here.
I’
r “Our purpose." said Madame Marie
Malnello. president of the society, "is
to uplift our profession and to weed
s out those who work harm to the pub
lie. Nature is the best guide and pro
vides remedies if worked out properly
that are beneficial."
n BEE IN HIS WINDPIPE.
HE NEARLY SUFFOCATES
0
ITHACA. N. Y.. July 30. Aubrey
Bersonious. of Brockton, seven miles
I. from here, had a narrow escape from
c death by suffocation, when a bee flew
s into his mouth and lodged In his wind
pipe.
LOCONTO DO
SHOE IN 0. S.
Earl’s Daughter Will Dance for
Pay in a New York Vaude
ville House.
LONDON. July 30.—Lady Constance
Stewart Richardson, daughter of the
Earl of Cromartie and kin td many a
noble house of England and Scotland,
is to dance Salome on Broadway, New
York.
This latest plan of the accomplished
but most unconventional young woman
to startle society is not a plan to aid
charity. She sails in a few weeks to
appear as Salome as a strict profes
sional in the production which is
staged by Reinhardt, the great German
"producer," and which will be offered to
the American public at a vaudeville
theater.
New York society has not yet for- I
gotten the surprising appearances of
Lady Constance a few years ago in the
fashionable entertainments given for
charity. Her daring dances in scanty
and filmy garments sent gasps through
even the blase audiences whom she en
tertained.
Since her return from America she
has decided to go in for professional
dancing and has done a turn at the
Palace theater, where Miss Mauii Allen
set the fashion in lack of attire a few
years ago.
WIFE DRUGGED AND THEN
MARRIED HIM. HE SAYS
CHICAGO. July 30.—Asserting that
his wife courted him, proposed to him
and that he was drugged when he
agreed to a marriage. Harry Wolchano
vesky presented a startling defense to
bls wife's suit fm abandonment, heard
In Municipal Judge Scott’s court
TUESDAY, JULY 30.
"7 ’W' *
SENATE BILL FIXES
LAWYER’S CHARGE
IN DAMAGE ACTION
Damage suit lawyers partial to the con
tingent fee method will find hard sledding
if the state legislature passes the Harris-
Hamilton hill.
This measure, which went to the sen
ate yesterday, limits contingent fees
taken by lawyers to 25 per cent of the
amount of the judgment. The 25 per cent
applies to judgments under $5,000. Be
tween $5,000 and SIO,OOO the hill limits
the fees to 15 per cent. On judgments
of more than SIO,OOO a fee of not more
than 10 per cent can be taken.
Senator Harris said the present law
handicapped persons unable to pay law
yers large retainers As a result of the
present system, he asserted, it was not
uncommon for a lawyer to take 95 per
cent of a judgment as a fee
CONVICT CAMP COOK
STABS WHITE YOUTH
CORNELIA. GA., July 30.—Tinney
Woods and \\ . W. Gailey, white youths,
and General Gordon, negro cook of the
Habersham county convict camp, lo
cated near Alto, in this county, were
placed under bond of SIOO each for
engaging in a. three-cornered fight in
the public road near the camp. Gailey
was painfully, but not severely, stab
bed in the back in two places by the
negro. A preliminary hearing will be
held on Thursday.
SAM HYDE. CONDEMNED
TO DIE. IGNORES FATHER
ANDEIISON, S. C, July 30 —“I have
not heard one word from my son,” said
George \V, Hyde, father of Samuel Hyde,
the Anderson man who killed his wife
and father-in-law arid who is In the pen
itentiary now awaiting the report of
alienists. George Hyde spent his small
means in the effort to save his son from
electrocution. Sam left here two months
ago for the penitentiary and has cut him
self off from all communication with hS
home people
HOTEL KEEPER CHARGED
WITH SHOOTING TRADER
Jake Goldberg, proprietor of the Albian
hotel, this afternoon before Recorder
Broyles will fdee a charge of having shot
and seriouslj wounded Jonas Nash yes
tenia y.
Nash was shot in the right thigh when
he mid Goldberg hud a quarrel at the lat
ter'* hotel. 25 South Pryor street. The
trouble is said to have resulted from at-
Untlom paid l>\ Nash to ti young woman
at lh< hotel Nash, a horsetrader, lives
nt 553 West Hunter street
Ihe Probable Causes of the Tragedy
Speculated Upon by Two Women
as They Study Gene and Wife.
By T. B. SHERMAN.
The wife's outward composure, the
1 husband's disdain, the tender care in
the face of the aged mother—each
made manifest in many different ways
hroughout the course of the trial, play
vith strange effect upon the. heart
trings of the women spectators at the
rial of Daisy Opie Grace.
As for the men. they are there to sat
isfy an appetite for details about two
•arsons who have suddenly been lifted 1
to the spotlight by a plethora of news
paper publicity. When the average man
knows the result of tlie Grace trial his
interest soon will wane. But no verdict
of the jury will ever satisfy tlte un
spoken queries which have at isen in
tlte mind of every woman who has read
of tlie Grace case.
No matter what the trial brings
forth the Grace case is but a varia
tion of the domestic equation. The
Graces were incompatible, either by na
ture. or through worldly circumstances
which arose early in their wedded life.
The wherefores of this incompatibility
—the reason for tlte climax, whatever
it was—are the things about the Grace
case which disturb ami compel the at
tention of the women.
But She Wants to Know.
"I object to being classed among the
'idle curious,’" said a well-dressed mid
dle-aged woman who sat in a front
seat at the trial. She was speaking to
a friend.
"Well, ft's hard for me to say why
I came," said the friend. "1 confess to
this—l am not so much interested in
whether she shot him or not as I am
in the chain of circumstances which
brought about tlte shooting.”
“Os course." said the middle-aged
woman, “there was tragedy in the
Grace home -that much is sure. There
are a thousand possibilities. She may
have been undutiful or he may have
been. If so, why? Did their natures
interlock? Or did an outside < ircum
stanee force itself in and disturb the
domestic balance?
"If the full details of the Grace case
were known I don't mean merely the
details which led directly to the shoot
ing—they would show ij, problem which
arises in the lives of every married.
couple. In their case, it might have
been primitive—they might have fall
en out about some petty thing, or they
may not have fallen out at all—it might
have all been under the surface.
“But whatever the trouble was—it
arose because of the inability or the
failure of one of them to bear an equi
table part of the responsibilities of
married life. There are a million ways
in which this old. old formula can be
violated. In some Instances you see a
man and woman, apparently fashioned
for each other. Both of them are gen
tle in spirit, both are considerate, both
allow to each other the little necessary
privacies—and there is enough money
to keep the wolf at a safe distance from
tlie door. Yet there is no permanent
happiness. It may be that one of them
tried to do too much. It may be that
the stronger withheld from the weaker
certain matters which should have been
met by both of them together.
"And so It was with the Graces I
am sure, regardles of what form it
took."
•lust then the bailiff rapped for or
der.
"The spectators will have to keep
quiet and stop interrupting the court,”
lie bawled. The two women were silent
for a moment. .At this particular mo
nwri Mrs. Grace turned her head amt
•gazed for the barest pa i *t of a second
at the cot where her wounded husband
lay.
“Look at her—she can't keep her
eyes off him," whispered the younger
woman.
“Yes." responded the middle-aged
woman. "Elementally she is no differ
ent than she was the first day she saw
Eugi ue Grace. He fascinated her. The
two types point to that clearly—”
"I don’t see how they ever fell in
love with each other,” said the younger
woman. ’
"She Was Fascinated.”
"I don't know that they did," said
the middle-aged woman. “But I can see
this. He had never known much of
her type of woman and she had never
seen much of this type of man. They
wen novelties to each other. She is
clearly a woman of a whimsical nature.
She is the kind who could concentrate
her whole nature in the achieving of
one particular thing. He was tall and
good looking and with tlie unmistakable
marks of Southern breeding—he was a
new element in her life. She was fas
cinated—and still is, down at the bot
tom, regardless of what she thinks she
thinks of him."
“And what of him? What did she
mean to him?"
“I don't believe that the emotions
which she stirred in him could have
been of a very firm texture.” answered
the middle-aged woman. "1 don't be
lieve that he was ever more than mere
ly infatuated with her. And that, I
tiiink. is in a measure responsible for
the present situation."
The women were silent for a long
period. They listened closely to the
evidence. Finally the middle-aged wom
an seemed to lose interest. As if pos
sessed by a sudden thought she nudged
her companion.
Then They Dissect the Men.
“A woman will always know what to
wear." she said. "I'll wager that Mrs.
. Grace picked out the simplest gown sho
could find—although it fits her horri
bly."
“Yes.” agreed the other, “there are
lots of things which figure in a trial
besides the sworn evidence."
“ —But ail mothers are just alike.
They all look the same, they all act
the same. Their actions spring from
tlie one primitive animal Impulse of
protection for their young. The fact
that Mrs. Grace’s mother has rushed to
her daughter’s side proves nothing. If
Iter daughter were innocent as an angel
or black with guilt, her attitude would
be the same. It's beautiful, though."
The two women then fell to dissect
ing tlie men. The prosecuting attorney
was certainly very insistent for a lit
tle fellow—and how Mr. Rosser roared.
Neither one of them could understand
how such a benevolent looking man
as Judge Roan could sentence anybody
to prison. Both agreed, however, that
the jury was a very Intelligent looking
body as a whole.
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