The Crime of the Century; Or, The Assassination of Dr. Patrick Henry CroninHunt, Henry M.
History
The Crime of the Century; Or, The Assassination of Dr. Patrick Henry Cronin
Hunt, Henry M.
Cronin, Patrick Henry, 1846-1889; Trials (Assassination) -- Illinois -- Chicago
"What other evidence do you want to show that that trunk came out
of that cottage? In that trunk was found hair. I will not exhibit
it; other counsel in the case may; but there was hair there and
there was a man came here, who has got bald on the hair question,
and says he can not tell human hair from dog's hair. Why a man
should waste the better part of his life looking at hair and then
can not tell one kind of hair from another is more than I can
understand. Why he should go over the country lecturing about hair
and giving instructions about hair, and then, coming here to give
testimony, to say that he doesn't know anything about hair, is more
than I can comprehend."
This sally of the State's Attorney seemed to amuse some of the
audience, and the Judge again threatened to clear the court-room if
any more levity was indulged in.
Judge Longenecker proceeded to ridicule the testimony of the expert
on the question of hair and blood corpuscles. "You, gentlemen, are
the judges of the evidence as to whether that was human hair and
human blood, and you are to take and determine whether that body
that was in the trunk, whether the blood and the hair that were in
that trunk were human hair and human blood. These men called to the
stand as experts give their opinions as experts. The evidence shows
that it was blood; we prove that by chemistry; we called to the
stand Professor Haynes, and he says that it was human blood. Now,
Gentlemen, do you believe there was a dog killed in that cottage?
Do you believe there was an ox killed in that cottage? Do you
believe there was a guinea pig killed in that cottage? Do you
believe it was a guinea pig's blood that was on that cake of soap
or in the trunk or in the cottage? If you do, very well, but the
evidence all tends to show that it was human blood, and not only
that it was human blood, but that it was the blood of Dr. Cronin
that was found in the cottage and in the trunk. The evidence tends
to show and must convince you that it was the hair and the blood of
Dr. Cronin that was in the cottage and in the trunk.
"Why do I say this? Because the evidence in this case must convince
you that there was a conspiracy to take his life; that he was
driven to this cottage; that he was seen alive entering this
cottage; that he was last seen there; and within a half mile the
trunk with that hair and that blood. That it was the hair and the
blood of Dr. Cronin, I think can not be disputed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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