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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 22, 1908)
10 , TIIE MORNING OREGONTAN. TUESDAY, DFCE3IBEK 22, 1903. J III : SELF DEFENSE TO BE FINCH'S PLEA Counsel Outlines Story of Struggle in Fisher's Office Day of Murder. PROGRESS SPITE OF DELAY Finch's Allonioj Intrrpo.-o Objec tion and Yranlings, anil Inten tion Seems to He to Make Mt of Every Clinnce for Delay. Whatever hope James A. Finh may have of cheating the callows for the mur der of Ralph B. Fisher is based on a Mory which he mill tell from the witness stand of the State Circuit Court of a deadly arsault on him by the Bar Asso ciation prosecutor. This story was out lined before the jury in the case yesterday afternoon lv the assassin's lawyers. It is denounced by attorneys for the state as a cunnlns: fabrication, devised, by the lawyer murderer in his extremity as the only possible method of saviiiR his neck. The Mory is said to be us much an as sault on the nam- of the victim as an Intended vindication of Finch. That Fisher practically compelled him to shoot will be Finch's declaration from the witness stand, according to the open ing statement presented by the defense. He will tell of a peaceful visit to Fisher, wherein he was seeking- to build up his lost reputation and regain the rood will of the Har Association. He will tell of Fisher having a sudden and " unexplain able tit of wrath during which he at tacked Finch with a notary's seal. Driven into a cornier, desperately assailed by il larger man, and finally compelled to shoot to prevent his own brains from In-ins beaten out. that is the lurid picture as drawn by Finch aiW his lawyers of the scene In Fisher's office at the time of the murder. Much Prnsrcfs JIatle. "We will show that Finch went up in the elevator in the Mohawk building, his hand on his revolver, and that Mr. Fisher was lying a corpse hefore the elevator boy had time to bo to the top of the building and come down acain." was the state ment of Special Frosecutor Spencer, which disclosed clearly that the state is pre pared to meet Finch's weird tale. Completion of the Jury, presentation of opening statements and examination of two witnesses was the unexpected prog ress made in the case during the day. The state occupied hut a few minutes in opening, but the defense consumed 10 min utes in telling of the things that will be developed in behalf of Finch. Hagaling set In when the taking of testimony began. The testimony was of a purely technical and relatively unim portant nature, hut all sorts of objec tions were Interposed by Finch and his lawyers. It is more than likely that the case will be greatly drawn out In this fashion, for Fln h has uifmltted realizing that he lias a hard tisht on his hands and doubtless Intends making the most of ever)' opening. Iefcne Object to Jury. It w as 1 1 ::', n'clwk w hen the jury was completed, and then Attorney I-ord. of Finch's counseT. interposed a technical olje tion to acceptance of W. H. Musser and Albert Sunderland, who had Just been accepted out of the third special venire issued in the case. Ird called 'attention to a provision of law whereby all talesmen on the regu lar panel niust be used up before spe cial venires may be called. Deputy County Clerk I.ounsbury was directed to inquire as to the tlisposition of the regular panel, and he found that all had heen used on the various cases excepting one man. who was excused. Objection to the acceptance of Musser and Sunderland was then overruled. The defense had used 11 of Its 12 peremptory challenges by this time. The 11th was used on T. H. Foster, a native of Scotland. There has been a disposition on the part of the defense to rule out even those of Scotch de scent, because of the nativity of Dis trict Attorney Cameron, who is direct ing the state's case. If. F. Yates, the first talesman called at the opening of the forenoon session, w-as excused, on account of deafness. William Stead was let out because of physical debility, which he said would prevent him from standing the sttain of a murder trial. After Foster had been challenged. Musser and Sunder land were accepted by both sides. The jury was not sworn until 2 P. M., when the 12 men were taken to lialph Fisher's law office to vw the scene of the murder. I'incli to Be Ilumkurfcri. It was asked of the Court that the Sheriff be instru.ted to omit hanucuf ting Finch hereafter. "He's perfectly harmless and there Is no use humiliating him with heavy handcuffs, for he doesn't Intend to try to escape.'; Lord assured the Court. Judge Bronaugh. however, said tlmt i this matter was entirely at the discre tion of Sheriff Stevens. Finch accompaniel the jury to Fisher's offices in the Mohawk building and shower a great Interest in the arrange ment of the fixtures. He gave no sign of any feeling as he saw the spot on which he shot Finher down less than a month ago. After familiarizing them selves with the arrangements of the two rooms, the jurors were returned to the courtroom and the opening statements were taken tip at once. Special Prosecutor Spencer outlined tjie ca.se rfuliout going into the details of testimony to be presenter. Spencer Outlines Cu.se. "Ralph B. Fisher, as we shall show to you. gentlemen, was an ambitious and an esteemed young man bearing the good will of all who knew him." said Mr. Spencer. "In his capacity of prose cutor of the Bar Association it became bus luty to proceer against the unworthy of the profession. It will be shown that It was. necessary for him to file three charges against this defendant Finch for drunkenness, forging a pension cer tificate and " "Hold on, 1 object." said all four of Finch's lawyers in one voice. They went on to say that the previous ciiarges had qualifications, the pater suggester that nothing to do with this triaf and were Fisher wan in. She said she wauld look anil see and as she opened the door to the inner office. Finch brushed past, his hand on his gun. and almost on the instant sustained in their view. "Well, leaving that aide," proceeded Mr. ipeiicer. "I will state that on No vember the Suprtme Court disbarred Finch, finding him unworthy of practic ing law. On learning this. Finch, who was out of the city on business, came back here at once and began circulating a petition for his reinstatement. He asked Mr. Fisher to sign, but this Fisher declined to do. This request was made or repeated on the morning of November IS and we will show to you that Finch left his office at 11:30 A. M.. going to the Hudson Anns store, where he bought a cheap revolver and a box of cartridges, getting the clerk to load the revolver. lolls Story of Murder. "Finch, as we shall show you. then went towards the Mohawk building, where Mr. Fisher had hi offices. He paused at a valoon in the neighborhood to take a couple of drinks or to and then went on Into the Mohawk building, his hand on his revolver. And before the elevator boy who took Finch up had time to get to the top of the building and down again. Fisher was lying a corpse beside his chair and desk in his office. "We will show you that whep Finch reached Mr. Fisher's offile he inquires of Miss Burkhart. the stenographer. If sen a fatal bullet through Fisher's brain. "We expect to show, beyond any ques tion of a doubt." concluded the Special Prosecutor, "and we will show In the minutest detail to the satisfaction of any man who believes in law and the pro tection of human Jlfe. that this man Finch, with vengeance In his heart and revenge in his mind, went up there sneak inslv. cowardly, murderously, and in as dastardly and diabolical fashion s any murder was every committed took away this young husband and father. How well the blind hypocrisy of the man was shown when he snid. Hello, Ralph.' and then murdered him in " "I object." put In Attorney Lord. ' to this unjustified denouncement," and the objection was sustained. Defense Gors Into Detail. "Maybe I was wrong In thinking there was room for another cyclone in the same room with Mr. Lord," suggested Spencer, and shortly concluded his remarks. Lord outlined the case of the defense in greater detail. "It Is my duty, and a crave one. to stand between the defendant and the malice which has just now been shown to you only too well." he said. "In this duty I must ask you to help me, not only as Jurors, hut as citizens. "The facts will not be. I fear, quite as delineated by the Special Prosecutor, and I want to ask you as Jurors to re serve your opinions and Judgment until you have heard the last word of testi mony. Evidence will be presented here to show that the Grievance Committee hail agreed to drop these charges against him, or rather charge, for there was only one. "Mr. Finch was not disbarred, as has been stated here. He was suspended for one year because of drinking. His friends wanted to see him given a fair chance, and many of them called on Mr. Fisher, among the number being C. M. Idleman. About 11:30 o'clock of the day of the killing Fisher called up Finch on the telephone and asked to see him. It was in response to that message that he went over to the office. ' Givc9 Kxplanalion of Gun. "Now. the night before, we will show that C. H. Piggott. a nephew of the man wlw Is appearing as counsel in this case, was called by Mrs. Finch, who was oc cupying his house, and who crfmplained that burglars were trying to get in. She asked him to purchase her a revolver, and so the next day Finch. learning of the incident, went down and bought a gun and went back to his office. It was immediately upon his arrival that he got the telephone message from Fisher to come over. "When Finch entered the private office of Ralph Fisher, who was alone at the time, he said. 'Hello. Ralph: how are vou?" or something of the sort. I don't know his exact words after that, but he began pleading with Fisher for another chance. 'Why can't you give me a show?' he said. 'I'm poor, just married, broke, got a family to support, and for God's sake give me a chance. You can if you want to.' "Thai was the nature of Finch's plea, and in some way Fisher became very much incensed and used harsh language and without provocation or excuse seized a" heavy notary seal with which he struck Mr. Finch on the head, loosening a bone. Tells of Desjierate Fight. "Finch didn't want any trouble and he said. 'For God's sake, don't, don't, don't.' He tried to get out. but their positions were such that he had to pass Fisher, who had arisen. Mr. Finch started to go by him. and again the seal, came into play. Half dazed by the blow and putting aside the insults, he again tried to es cape. "I dislike to say these things against the dead, but It is my duty to this defend ant. Fisher struck Finch again on the back of the head, knocking off his hat and making a slight wound. Then he threw the notarial seal at him. Finch had to protect himself from a man larger than himself. If he had not had the revolver with him It is likely that he would have had his brains beaten out. Half dazed from the blows on the head he put his hand In his pocket, drew the gun and ftred. And the evidence of competent witnesses will show you that he was Justified In protecting himself. "In the meantime the hero you can I have a murder scene without a hero came rushing bravely up in the person of Chester N. Dolph. He seizes the re volver and putrols the corridor until the police arrived and relieved him. Two Witnesses Kxaniined. I.ord concluded by ' saying all these tilings would be fully proved and asking that the jurors be attentive and decide purely on the testimony. He attempted an arraignment of The Oregonlan for Its expressions on the subject of Fisher's assassination, but was interrupted by Deputy District Attorney Fitzgerald. Judge Bronaugh directed him to con fine himself to the case. John G. Wilson, an architect who pre pared a diagram of Fisher's offices for use during the trial, was called by the state as the first witness in the case. He explained these maps in detail and was subjected to a long and apparently meaningless cross-examination. It was made very plain that the case is to be stubbornly fought and that every pos sible technical point within the law Is to' be put to use. J. G. Moreland. clerk of the Supreme Court of Oregon, was the cause of a fresh siege of objections and wrangling. He was called by Mr. Fitzgerald to identify the records of the Finch dis barment proceedings. Lengthy argu ments against tills were made by At torneys Liord, Holcomb and Campbell. Holcomb was particularly sure that the document could not be admitted. Tilt Willi Judge. "You'll make this a mistrial. I'll tell you that," Holcomb ' advised Judge Bronaugh. who promptly ruled the other way and directed that the case proceed. Moreland was used merely to identify the records in the case, and was excused without cross-examination. "Court was then adjourned until this morning at 9:30 o'clock, when the state will proceed to prove the facts of tiie killing. Finch was absorbed in the proceedings all day and watched every move that was made. He made frequent sugges tions to his lawyers, and was jotting down memoranda while the brief testi mony of the 'day was- being taken. Large Crowds Attracted. No murder trial of past years has attracted so many people. Although theS curious multitude was excluded after the seats had all been filled, enough per sons claiming to be lawyers got into the room during the afternoon to jam com pletely every inch of standing room. There were no less than 300 persons in the spacious courtroom and double that number was turned away. The completed jury in the case is: W. G. Ahbett, K. 11 Howes. J. W. Davis. W. K. Charlton. S. I. Ogden. Robert Servlca. Charles J. Bush, C. H. Thomp son. M. I- I-ank. F. W. Hanna, W. H. Musser and Albert Sunderland. GROCERS MIT OF IT State Pure Food Law Must Come From Other Source. DEFEATED TWO YEARS AGO Asocial ion Spent Time and Money n Measure Which Was Beaten In Last Legisla ture by tlie Jobbers. If legislation enlarging the scope of the pure food laws of the state Is presented at the coming session of the Legislature, it will have to originate from less inter ested sources than those that fought earnestly for such a bill at the 1907 ses sion. Two years ago the Retail Grocers' Association introduced and supported a bill guarding against the Introduction of adulterants Into foodstuffs and requiring true net weight of all packages. Jobbers and manufacturers Joined in an assault on this measure, the author of which was D. C. Burns, a Representative from this county. As a result, that provision of the bill relating to weights was elim inated. The Retail Grocers' Association spent considerable time and money preparing the bill, which was modeled after the National pure food law. It passed the House by practically a unanimous vote, hnving been recommended favorably by the committee, of which Mr. burns was chairman, and to which the measure in Its original form had been referred. The Jobbers and manufacturers went before this committee, but could not get the de sired concessions, and when the bill reached the Senate, these forces trans ferred their fight against the measure to the I'pper House. After having been re ported favorably In that body by the Commltte on Horticulture, the bill was rereferred to the Judiciary Committee, where the net weight clause was elim inated and the measure reported back to the Senate late In the session and passed in its amended form. In contending for this law. the Grocers' Association was opposed not alone by the jobbers and manufacturers. Resolutions were adopted by the Consumers' League protesting against the bill. The same action was taken by the Board of Gov ernors of the Portland Commercial Club, with the result that the grocers have concluded that if such a bill is to be pre sented for legislative -consideration this Winter it must come from some other source. "We spent both our time and our money two years ago trying to have this law passed which would inswre for con- sumers full-weight packages." said Charles B. Merrick, secretary of the Re tall Grocers' Association yesterday, "but we received opposition from very unex pected sources. Principal among the op ponents to the bill was the Consumers' League, the verv organization that should not only have been directly interested in the proposed bill, but should have joined with us in our fight. Among the 90 mem bers of the Legislature, at least eight are members of our organization from dif ferent parts of the state. So far as I am advised, none of them expects to father any such measure, although If such a bill should be Introduced they would not only suppdrt It. but do everything In their power to bring about Its enactment." Mr. Merrick said that the grocers of the state are making elaborate plans for the third annual convention of the Ore gon Retail Grocers' and Merchants' Asso ciation, which will be held in this city Januarv 6 and 7. It is expected that 100 delegates will be In attendance. The purpose in holding this convention just prior to the meeting of the State legis lature is to give the members an oppor tunitv to consider subjerts of needed legislation in connection with their rou tine deliberations. It is barely possible that this organization may take the Ini tiative in seeking to extend the provisions of the pure food laws of the state. CHICAGO PARENTS ANXIOUS Send Many Letters I'rglng That Their Children Conic West. The proud parents of promising children in Chicago have swamped the publicity department of the Commercial Club with applications Inquiring for information as to the qualifications that will be required of the 50 Chicago school chil dren whom Tom Richardson, manager of the club, proposed to bring to Ore gon next year as a novelty advertising departure. No..less than a dozen com munications on this subject reached the desk of Assistant Secretary Cris sey yesterday. More are expected to day and daily hereafter. 'One mother, residing In one of the suburbs of Chicago, wrote to inquire If the list to bo selected would be con fined to children residing in the city proper, also to request that her 17-year-old lad be considered an applicant for the transcontinental trip. Another of the letters came from a proud father who described the many virtues of his 16-year-old offspring, who. he wrote, neither drank nor chewed nor smoked the "nasty cipar ette." Possessed of these exceptional qualifications, the'pater suggested that his boy was about the proper type to be recognized in selecting a party of 59. Of the many letters received only one presumed to disapprove of the plan to have the party consist of 50 school children. The author of this one was woman, who formerly re sided in, the West. She contended that a better plan would bo to choose 20 progressive women, believing that from an advertising viewpoint, better results could be expected. Fitted bags and cases, Harris Trui.lii Co. IIRilBIH i i l i-'i. 'i it 'i I, ,. 'I. ! , !iVil I . I ,H . 't i l ' i l'ii ' i.iili in1.: i.i! n i! I ! ii ::: "m.. X-. M ,!!' i i Ui i "iiife --ih.ii: i I l!lilill!!!!:;iiiii,i',!,.!'!!'il;!!!rhiiil IP U :S ::s!! j II 1 . i I,. ll i" ,in .ii : .hi f !!! jj II 1 ill li i i i n" -r :. a.'i ::' DIAMOND You Want SEE US FIRST Be it large or small we have them. Our prices are always lower than elsewhere. 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