Nearing The End

THE CBONIN TRIAL. Chicago, Nov. 30.- The strongest evidenoe yet producod against Dan Coughlin carne to light in the Cronin investigation yesterday. On the night of Coughlin's arrest he was taken from Chief Hubbard's office and placed ín a cell by Detective Barney Flynn. The lattei kept his mouth closed concerning tha occurrence until Thursday last, when he reported to Captain Schuettler that thero was a matter connected with Coughlin's arrest which he had forgotten to mention. He said that on searching the prisoner before placing him in the cell he found, among other artlcles, two pen-knives which he now thought might have belonged to Dr. Cronin. These were placed, together with Coughlin's revolver, in a box in a safuty deposit vault at Coughlin's request. The authorities, actIng upon this suggestion, took the kntves from the vault and exhibited them to Mr. T. T. Conklin, with whom Dr. Cronin made his home for years before his death. Conklin identifled them as the property ol the dead doctor, and saict that he had prosented them both to his departed friend on different occasions during their acquaintanceshlp. While the State's Attorney was on his feel maküig the startling announcement that at t&e eleventh hour of the trial the prosecution feit it imperativo to beg to be allowed to introduce fresh evidence, and when the knives were exhibited to the jury, it appeared as if Coughlin would faint under the fearful strain. He shook as with ague. The defense announced it would put in rebuttal evidence. The State introduced B. F. Carberry, a wltness to brean rtown the alibi for Martin Burke. The defense then began their sur-rebuttal, and introduced several witnesses to break down the testimony of witness Swanson, who swors that on the night of May 4 he drove O'Malley to a saloon opening on the West side, and thai on the way he stopped at Dwyer's saloon, into which all went to get a drink. The defense then rested. State's Attorney Longenecker then began his argument for the prosecution. Thanking the jurors for their patience while the case was being presented, he solicited a further exercise of it during the arguments to follow. He said he did not desire that any of the defendants should be guessed guilty or convicted on doubtful evidence. The evidence in the case, he said, showed a cold-blooded cojispiracy, without a parallel, and showed the coanection of the defendants to the conspiracy. Chicago, Dec. 2.- When court opened in the Cronin trial Saturday morning State's Attorney Longenecker resumed his address. Item by item he went over the proceedings in Camp 80 on the nights of February 8 and 22, bringing out the parts taken by Beggs, Coughlin, O'Sullivan and Burke in the flrst steps of the conspiracy. Coughlin's declaration that Dr. Cronin was another Le Carón; O'Sullivan's assertions that he was taking into the Clanna-Gael members of the Order of Deputies, and the statement by Beggs that "a day of punishment would come for Buch men" were set aside as significant utterances. Then he grouped other events around these. The hiring of the Clark Street flat February 20, the purchase of the furniture at Revell's, the presence of Kunze and a tall man in the Clark street flat early in April, the appearance oí Martin Burke as tenant of the Carlson cottage, the meeting of Coughlin and O'Sullivan in Mahoney's saloon four days after O'Sullivan had learned from Burke that the cottage was rented, the payment of a second month's rent on the Carlson cottage almost simultaneous with O'Sullivan's declarations about intending to make a contract with Dr. Cronin, the printing of uew carda by the leeman, the formal making of a contract when the ruse that led the doctor to his death was literally foretold, the flnal dispatching of Dinan's norse and buggy which drove the doctor to death- all these details were rehearsed by the State's Attorney, not a thread of evidence being neglected in the terrible charge. In conclusión Mr. Longnecker said: "These men are the murderers of Dr. Cronin. This contract of O'Sullivan's. this hiring of the buggy, this renting of the cottage, this running away to Canada, all these point to the fact that these men are guilty. It stands up like a mountain built of truth, as solid as the granite hills against which the Coughlin-Burke-O'Sullivan-Beggs-Kunze alibis can not prevalí. I leave the matter now in your hands. When you come to consider the verdict think of the 4th of May; think of that man gathering his little valise and his instruments ; think of him rushing out to the buggy ; think of him rushing to relieve the suffering men; think of him in the cottage- and when you think of him there, may there reverberate through your ears the death cries of this man, who In his last moment called upon his God and his Jesus; think of these men, who without giving him time to pronounce the other trinity name, felled him to the floor with their death-blow9. TUink of the wounds In his head, think of the grave In which he was placed, think of all this in making your verdict, and In the end there will be sueh a verdict as when his honor pronounces his judgment upon it that he, having his heart and eye to God, may say : 'May the Lord have mercy on your aouls.' " Judge Wing, for the defense, began hla address with the proposition that the charge against Coughlin was merely that Coughlin had agreedwith the other defendants to kill Dr. Cronin. Toward the proof of this all the evidence had been directed. Irisbmen, Germans and Americans had contributed to this pile of vldenoe; all professions, trades, businsM interests, and even thieves had been represented by the witnesses. The stories thty had been told had been admitted by the court and labeled evidence. Every serap of this evidence, except the solitary one that Dr. Cronin was dead, was circumstantial. He epoke of the uncertainty of circumstantial evldence and how Hable courts, lawyers and jurors were to make mistakes in judging such cases. Ohicaoo, Dec. 3.- At the Cronin trial yesterday ex-Detective Jake Lowenstein and bis brother, August Lowenstein, testifled that to the best of their knowledge the two pen-knives which were found on the person of Dan Coughlln at the time of hls arrest were the same as two they had frequently geen in the possesslon of the prisoner several times previous to May 4. Judge Wing continued his address to the Jury. As he had ended Saturday, so he began - with the danger and untrustworthiness of circumstantial evideace. The reluctance of Nieman to positively idontify Coughlin and Kunze as the ones who had come Into his saloon on the night of May 4 was argued upon at length. And inasmuch as the witness had not been certain of the men, there was not In the speaker's mlnd any reason to beüeve that he was certain of the date. He argued that Nieman not belng oertain, and the Hy lands, on the other hand, belng most positively oertain, the testimony of the latter should rooelve the credence of the Jury. "On the night of May 4 P. O'Sullivan was fn his home," exclaimed the attorney, in a nolemn tone. "If you do not beüeve it then you must ■et aside the testimony of the entire household among whom O'Sullivan lived." Referring to Dan Coughlin's alibi, Mr. WlBg declured It to be sound. Regardlng the identincatión of Coughlin and Kunze by Mertes and the Identification of Dinan's norse, the attorney malntained that no reliance was to be placed on either Identification. Of the two pooket knives he merely said that if Dan Coughlin was innocent he could not have bod them, and if he was eullty he would not have had them. Judge Wing next disposed of those circumstances which he claimed were not clearly proved. These, he said, must, of courae, be dimissed from the case. Then he took up thone which he admitted were clearly proved, and agued that they were just a3 cuusisUiiit with the theory of innocence as with that of guilt. A conspiracy, he claimed, had not been proveí! by any method the law admitted for lts proof. Therefore the acts of his cliënt. Da Coughlin, must be taken ulone and not in con nection with those of any of the other defeni anta in the considcrution of nis guilt or innocence. The assertioti that the murder of Dr. Cronln had been decided upon at a meeting of fort; persona, many ot them intímate friends of th doctor, and for no other reason than that h had read a report of a trial in anotlier camp the speaker characterized as nonsense and absurdity. At this poinl court adjourned until to-day when Judge WJng will conclude nis addres and Attorney Iugham will begin for the State