Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. I ENTER DIAGRAM SHOWING DEFENSE'S THEORY OF THE KILLING By JAMES The third week of the molt remark able murder trial ever known In Geor gia opened to-day with no apparent lessening of the acute interest and grim appeal heretofore attaching to It. The public has come to realize thor oughly and completely that the issue Is a battle not only between the State and the defendant, Leo Frank, but between Leo Frank and the negro Jim Conley. Presumably, the defense will take the entire week rounding out its case and perfecting Its undermining of Conley's story. If it does get through within the week, It will have employed approxi mately the same amount of time In telling Its story that the State em ployed In telling the other side. The first powerful and bewildering shock of Conley's tale, unanticipated in its full sinister detail, has passed away in a measure, it seems. It is but the simple truth to say that the day of .and the day following Conley’s awful charge, in addition to the one of murder, marked the climax of the State’s case and the zenith of feeling against Frank. Then it was that the outlook for the defense seemed to be the most dis mal, and then it was that even Frank's most loyal friends and sym pathizers began to grow apprehen sive and sore afraid. Doubt Begins to Grow. Since the defense began its plead ing, however, there has been some thing of a revulsion of feeling—or, at least, there appears to have been cre ated a doubt in the minds of many people as to the complete and con vincing probability of Conley's reve lations. Not that the defense is Out of the woods yet, by any means—as a mat ter of fact, the defense still is very deep in the woods, and while there may be those who think the defens? likely sees daylight and sunshine somewhere through the darkness, .t generally is admitted that the dark ness still very much Is there. As the frightful charge of perver sion was the most prejudicial thing injected by the State against Frank, so, as a natural consequence, is the seeming determination of the defense to put his character frankly in issue the thing seemingly most likely to re move that prejudice, if possible. To put Frank’s character in Issue, in the face of the fact that the de fense alone has that right, despite the dramatically delivered and certainly Impressive testimony of Conley against it, will seem in the mind of many to argue that the defense is in no way afraid to meet that issue fair ly and squarely—and it is not at all illogical to conclude that the success fully tendering of his character as an issue will have the effect,' in large measure anyway, of removing from the mind of the jury the horrible charge of the negro. Depends on Conley's Word. As the matter stands now, the at tack on Frank s character rests en tirely upon Conley's word—Conley has been corroborated not at all on the direct charge, and he has been cor roborated, even indirectly, in the most doubtful way. It may be that, on the other hand, that the State, once given the right to go after Frank’s character ham mer and tongs, will be prepared to attack it with heavy artillery, and perhans demolish it entirely. Cer- Uiulv the necessity of doing this, in the circumstances then, will be ap parent enough. TA* -Supreme Court of Georgia bos held definitely that character may be tendered as evidence of a positive fact, and it asks signifi cantly this question, through the late Chief Justice Warner: "Of what use is good character, which a man may have been years in establishing, if it is to avail him nothing in his hour of periir" It is rather curious, in a way, that practically every vitally effective and controlling point in this case should reduce, itself eventually to a question of truth between Frank and Conley. Nothing Fidgety About Frank. The Leo Frank of this week of his trial is not the Leo Frank of last week and week before last. If spectators were inclined for a time to think the quiet, repressed, spectahled young man sitting over there beyond Luther Rosser and Reuben Arnold, the slight person Im mediately between the only two women in the entire court room, was in any wise indifferent to or unmind ful of the progress of the trial—his own trial, and for a brutal murder, at that—they have changed their mind now. They have changed their minds as completely as Leo Frank has changed his attitude. If there is anything in external appearances and surface indications, 1 should say that Frank is, in prac tically any and all circumstances, a man of very marked patience. I doubt that he ordinarily hurries, or frets unduly, or grows especially festless, any way. He is brisk enough in his move- B. NEVIN. ments, getting up now and then, with a quickness of action easily enough to be seen, either to say a Word to one of his lawyers or to leave the courtroom for a moment —but there is nothing the least "fidgety” about the man. While th« State was making out its case—evan when Conley was on the stand, htirling his charge of im morality against Frank—-the defend ant sat apparently unmoved. Save for an occasional momentary gripping of the arms of his chair, a tightening of the lips, or a slight wrinkling of the crows, the defend ant gave no sign, either of the in dignation he must have felt if inno cent, or the apprehension he must have felt if guilty. Apparent Stoic Under Fire. While the State was making out its case, Frank seemed the personifica tion of patience—or whatever it is one should call it, according to the state of his mind in respect of the de fendant. He sat there—just sat there—to some an apparent stoic, to othersa— what ? Immediately the defense got well under way. directly however, the Leo Frank theretofore known to the pub lic became another person—absolute ly and entirely another person. He seems to have realised that now, at last, has come his day to J'lpeak. No longer must he, restrained by wise and far-seeing counsel, hold back in word of mouth or effort at defense. At last, after all the long days of waiting, of studying the charge lodged against him, of repressing his emo tions and standing aloof from a crit ical and possibly hostile outside world, Frank is saying the necessary word to clear his good name, if it be suf ficient to the undertaking. Where once he sat unmoved and calm, he now takes a noticeably di recting part in his defense. Time and again, he arises or leans over, as the case may be. and whlop^rs words Into his attorney’s ears. On several occasions his whisper ings have been responded to imme diately by approving nods from hi* counsel, and at once thereafter has followed, particularly on the direct examination, a line of questioning evidently enough set in motion by the defendant himself, and by other persons. Seems Sure of Himself. Frank, I think, is rather sure of himself—guilty or innocent, he is there to do battle to the bitter end. to meet hi* enemies in the gate, and to vanquish them, if he find himself powerful enough. He i«i a very small man physically, but I think he has the courage requi site to the undertaking he has in hand. Whether It is the courage of righteousness and a sense of hi* In nocence, or the courage of despera tion and guilt, it is not. perhaps, for me to say. It only seems that he Is eager for the fight, and confident of hist strength to win. No spectator there can hope to rend his heart or rend his mind. Great reams of newspaper space and rep- ortorial effort might be saved hence forth If onlv one might do either of those two things. And whether all the rest of the world be against him, it appears a rttre thing to say that, at least, his wife there beside him and hi?' moth er constantly in attendance upon him. believe him utterly and altogether Innocent. I suspect there Is no question, more over. that both Luther Z. Rosser and Reuben Arnold believe in the inno cence of Frank. Beyond these four and the jury and the judge, however. I doubt if Prank concerns himself extensively nowa day®—unless, of course, he thinks often of that stout-hearted and un afraid bald-headed man. Fimon Marks, and a band of friends who never yet have forsaken him. no matter how- dark the gloom that has seemed .to close, around him. Picked Up State's Gauntlet. Tt may be that Frank in his de fense of himself will disappoint these expectant ones. It may he that he never will come through the fire un- scorched. it may he that and it may be a lot of things, but it will not he denied, when this cane is over, that Frank picked up. full and free, the gauntlet the State threw at his feet The State's case was the State’s business. Frank stood off and let it go its limit. Of course, he hardly could have kept it from going Its Ilmt-—but the pont s, he ddn’t try pa rtcularlv. The defense, however—the defense is Frank’s business, strictly! And he is right there, on the job, as he would be. I take it. had this frightful murder never been commit ted. and were it with him merely a question of catching up with a smash ing and record-breaking order for the product of the factory over on For syth street, where a few weeks ago he was the universally respected su perintendent. Frank will make no balf-wav de fense of himself—that much may he anticipated confidentlv. I aunpect. He will meet every Issue tendered—even including the attack other than the charge of murder How will he fare eventually 0 Well, that is another question—and it is not yet has been approximately an- OFFICE FLOOR To TRAJTKS' - QFTUCT II 11 1CZJI —h V r The defense’s theory of the killing of Mary Phagan is that the little girl, after leaving Frank’s office unmolested, was seized by the negro Conley at the foot of the stairs, crowded back into the rear room and there battered into insensibility, if not instant death, after which ahe was dragged to the trapdoor in the extreme rear and thrown into the cellar below. Later the negro want into the cellar, placed the cord around the girl’s neck, and drew it very tight, perhaps thus snffing out the last fluttering breath of life in the insensible body. The motive assigned to the tiogro is robbery. Grief- Stricken Mother Follows Testimony Without Bitterness That black-clad woman in the cor ner of the courtroom—nobody ha* noticed her much. Things have hap pened 510 swiftly in the Frank trial that all eyes are on the rush of events, waiting for a quiver on the face of Leo Frank, watching with morbid gaze the brave faces of Frank’s wife and hie mother, studying tlie passing show that the numerous witnesses present. And the woman Is so unobtrusive, so plainly out of it all. The tears, whose traces are evident on her face, were not shed as a result of this trial. The lines under her eyes are older than two weeks. Her sorrow—and it is plain that she has undergone sorrow—came some time ago Now. the first poignant pain of it has passed and only a dull ache remains, AH that is plain as she sits in the courtroom in an attitude which be speak* much of listlessness and resig nation. The thoughts that pass in her mind are revealed in that atti tude and in her ptaoid face. And the sum of them is this: No matter what happens, the dull ache will always be there at her heart. Mary Phagan’s Mother. Because, you see, it is her little girl that all this Is about. The black- clad woman is Mrs. W J. Coleman, Man' Phagan’s mother, and Mary Phagan Is dead. Mrs. Coleman has not been in the courtroom during all the trial. Much of the time she ha* been in the room upstairs, kept there because she was a witness. And witnesses must not see nor hear what i* going on in the courtroom before they are called, even if the names of t>eir own little girls are bandied back and forth. But now Mrs. Coleman has testified. Bhe has looked upon the blood stained, pitiful clothing of her daugh ter, the clothing that was publicly shown, the intimate garment* that were upheld before hundreds of eyes. She ha* announced for purpose* of court record that they were Mary’s. She has explained how she last saw her daughter alive. She has told how Mary Phagan ate her last hurried meal of cabbage and bread and then went out to a horrible death. Now. she may come out of the witness room and listen to all that other per sons have to say about Mary, alive and dead. Now she may »it in a corner of the courtroom and hear that her daugh ter was beaten and choked and killed. She may listen, perhaps with a p.ang nf Jealousy, to other persons tell that they saw Mary Phagan alive, happy By TARLETON COLLIER. and serene, long after she kissed the little girl good-by for the last time. It is her Mary that they are talking about, the little girl whom she held In her arms a* a baby, whom she watched grow up to be a capable worker, with a spirit unspoiled, with a laugh as free as In the baby days, with a hundred dreams and hopes there on the edge of young woman hood. Testimony Bewilders. Mrs. Coleman wears a look of be wilderment at times, a9 she trie* hard to follow the intricacies of the testi mony. Sometimes they-are not talk ing about Mary Phagan at all, but about expense accounts and balance sheets and clocks. What has all that to do with her little girl? It is when the witnesses are talk ing about these incidental bit* in the chain of circumstantial evidence that the black-clad mother is most the list less and pagMive figure of resignation. It is then that she looks around, with her wide-open stare, as if in wonder that her little girl could be the cause of it all. But even when the name of Marv Phagan Vs mentioned, the mother is not noticeably* attentive. Her eyes cease their wandering, but her body changes nothing of its posture of list le*isness, loses none of its air of being detached from the courtroom and its incidents. She is there plainly without resent ment toward any one in particular There is no vengefulnes* in her soul —you can read that ifi. her face. It Do You Want an Automobile ? The A u tomob/le Col- umns of The Georgian “WANT AD” Section is the place to find real bargains In cars. If you will read these ads every day you wll eventually find what you want at a price you can afford to pay. Until a short time ago, scarcely one person in a thousand had ever tasted a really good soda cracker—as it came fresh and crisp from the oven. Now everybody can know and enjoy the crisp goodness of fresh baked soda crackers with out going to the baker’s oven. Uneeda Biscuit bring the bak ery to you. i A food to live on. Stamina for work ers. Strength for the delicate. Give them to the little folks. Five cents. NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY is almost as If she, having suffered so much, is unwilling that any others suffer. She sits there and looks, curiously, wonderingly, a little dully. And sometimes they mention Mary Phagan’s last meal of cabbage. It is remarkable that a dish of homely cabbage should become a great thing There is something grimly ludicrous in the situation. And there are some, the irreverent and the unfeeling, who have made It a subject of je*t. Glorified in Love. But to Mrs. Coleman there must be something appealingly Intimate in the subject. She cooked the cabbage. She chopped It and prepared it as her Tittle daughter liked. The simple meal was glorified by the love that must have gone into it* making—house wife love for those in her care, moth er-love for the whims and desires of her children The cabbage subject must be of tremendous interest to Mm Coleman. Whatever her interest, though, it Pond is never keenly shown. Apathy seems to be the chief characteristic of her in the courtroom—no, not apathy, but Just a dull wonder. You read plainly from her worn face and her figure that she Is not seeking vengeance. Sometimes you might wonder why she is there in the courtroom You establish curiosity a* the motive, curlouity and the natural. Jealous, mother-desire to hear directly from the mouths of other* something about her little girl as she last was seen. It must be almost like awaiting a message that she Js there, nursing her dull grief. Some Folks who you are, when j you live, or what you have— •will bring results. We KNOW IT, Jc a Word Looking 1 for Rooms, Apart ments Houses 9 You’ll And a com plete list of all desirable furnished, unfurnished, housekeeping rooms and rooms with board in this page today, and every day. Read The Georgian “For Rent” Ads when ou want to rent any- bing under the sun. $ Still “put a sign in the window” when they have Rooms to Rent or Want Boarders, but the number of such people is constantly diminishing. In these modern times, when there are Rooms to rent or Boarders wanted, in hundreds of Atlanta Homes, the Want Ad columns of THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN are used. The “Fur nished Rooms For Rent,” “Rooms For Rent” and “Boarders Wante^” columns of The Georgian offer the best way to bring together those in search of the above. jX/TANY a good position has *■ ^ been found through the “Help Wantedcolumns of The Georgian. Both Phones 8ooo