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Show these fsets as they now" appear on the record. It is evident that Justice Fitzgerald Fitz-gerald has fully informed himself on the law covering these points, as his ruling yesterday was made without hesitation hesi-tation and after little argument. Ever since the trial began it has been evident that this question would have to be met sooner or later, and. when it did come it was decided with a speed that .was almost al-most startling. . 1 The defense, it is understood,' will call at least a half dozen more witnesses, whose testimony will require probably two or three days Jerome has not yet cross-examined either Dr. Brittoa D. Evans or Dr. Charles O. Wagner, the two alienists' who-have been on the stand for the defense. Then will come the testimony in rebuttal, the extent of which will depend largely on what testimony tes-timony in an attempt to controvert young Mrst Thaw's story is allowed to go in. The trial is mow -in its fifth week, and as yet the end is by no means in sight. ". . JEROME WON BIG POINT BY DECISION OF THE JUDGE NEW, YORK,. Feb. 20. A ruling made late yesterday afternoon, just before court adjourned, may have a very far-reaching effect on the Thaw case. It has been held all along that under the law it is immaterial whether or not the story which Evelyn Nesbit Thaw told her husband was true. If Harry Thaw believed it was, and (the recital aided in unhinging his mind, that was enough. It therefore has been supposed that Jerome would not be able to go into the truth or falsity of the statements which Mrs. Thaw stated on the stand she told her husband. Yesterday soon after beginning the cross-examination, Jerorqe asked young Mrs. Thaw if what she told her husband regarding her associations with Stanford Stan-ford White was true. t There was an argument over the admissibility of the question-, which ended in Justice Fitzgerald Fitz-gerald admitting the question, holding that it was permissible as going to show the credibility of the witness. The great question now is, how far will this throw down the bars and allow the District Attorney to introduce evidence on rebuttal re-buttal for the purpose of showing that the story was not truet The point is almost a new one, and there was no one who could say what the result of this ruling would be. Today's To-day's proceedings were expected to show. If Jerome attempted to take up the statements in detail and ask as to their truth, there would be many strenuous objections and on Justice Fitzgerald's interpretation of the law would (depend whether the entire matter mat-ter of the relations of Evelyn Nesbit and Stanford White could be gone into. There seemed little doubt that if the court would allow it, Jerome would at-t tempt to show that many of the state-' ments young Mrs. Tbaw has testified she made to her husband are not true. If he was able to show this it would, of course, make no difference in the main fact of the case. The law that the truth of falsity of the story makes no difference differ-ence still holds good. The only effect of proof that the story was nntrne, if it can be produced, will be to in a measure discredit Mrs. Thaw's veracity and perhaps rob ber of some of the sympathy she has enlisted by her pitiful piti-ful story. That the District Attorney believed he could prove that some of the statements state-ments were not true, or at least that Mrs. Thaw was mistaken in them, there can be do doubt. The whole question is whether that ruling is broad enough to allow him to put other witnesses on the stand in an effort to controvert ' ' |