UNDER THE HARROW.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLI, Issue 71, 25 March 1907, Page 3

UNDER THE HARROW.

AND WITNESS,

An interesting .instance of the hopeless contusion to which a clever lawyer can reduce a weak professional witness 'occurred in the opening days of the Thaw case in New York. The defence called Dr. C. H. Wiley, a Pittsburg specialist in mental diseases, to support the plea of insanity. He not only said he considered the shooting of White by Thaw the act of an insane man, but he related how in 1905 he saw Thaw create a disturbance in a tramcar because he could not get a curtain adjusted to his liking, conduct which indicated insanity. Mr Jerome, the- prosecutor, had spent a month reading up mental diseases, and he had by him a leading «expert on the subject. He bowled Dr. Wiley out at once by-getting him to admit that he did not know anything of insanity as recognised by the law of New York State. Then he'induced the witness to advance the opinion that the deduction of faulty conclusions by imperfect reasoning from false premises was one definition of insanity, and wanted to know whether, according to that definition, Christian scientists, and the greater part of the population, -could not be proved to be insane. Mr Jerome then took Thaw's actions on the night of the murder step by step, and asked the expert if each act-was a sign of insanity. Dr. Wiley became more and more confused', and finally Mr Jerome ■forced him to admit that Thaw's conduct in the tramcar was merely noisy ill-temper, and that his conduct in shooting White was not in itself evidence of insanity. Then counsel proceeded to impugn the wit ness's.medical knowledge. "Doctor, does the cardiac nerve connect directly with the cerebellum?" Witness hesitated. " Well, may be you can tell us if the pneumogastric nerve joins the spinal column in the lumbar circle, or the dor pal region?" "The dorsal region," replied witness after a few moment's thought. "Where is the dorsal region?" "I have not read much on that?'/ "Oh, well, never mind. Tell me if it is not a fact that the pneumogastric and cardiac nerves are one and the same thing." "They may be," was the reply. "Do you know of the Argyll Robertson test of light?" 'Yes," said Dr. Wiley innocently. " Did you ever hear of such a thing before I asked the question?" the prosecutor asked. Dr. Wiley hesitated, bub Mr Jerome did not. " Where in any book in God's whole world did yon ever read anything about the- Arpyll Robertson test?" he shouted, but Dr. Wiley did not reply. "Is Argyll Roberston one man or two?" Mr Jerome insisted. " I think two," said the perspiring expert. "Asa matter of fact he is only one man" said Mr Jerome quietly turning' to the jury. The exhibition was so pitiable that that night the command of the legal forces for the defence was placed in new hands.