The New York Herald (European Edition) - Thursday, May 2, 1895
This report was originally published in English. Machine translations may be available in other languages.
CONCLUSION OF THE WILDE TRIAL.
Jurymen Unable to Agree--The Case Likely to Be Reheard at Next Sessions.
BAIL AGAIN REFUSED.
[BY THE HERALD'S SPECIAL WIRE.]
London, May 2.--The trial of Wilde and Taylor at the Old Bailey yesterday came to a lame and impotent conclusion, the jury being unable to agree, and consequently having to be discharged by Mr. Justice Charles, and as Mr. Gill declared that the case would still be pressed the whole drama will now have to be re-enacted. The result was a great disappointment to the crowd which filled the Court yesterday, and indeed the general feeling of the public is that the disagreeable story has been a prominent topic long enough and that the sooner it can be disposed of the better.
Mr. Justice Charles was quite in favor of Wilde in parts of his summing up yesterday, especially in reference to the literature which was alleged to tell against Wilde. Leaning back in his seat, he briefly told the story of Dorian Grey. Then he said: "You are asked to pass an unfavorable inference upon the fact that Wilde is the author of Dorian Grey, but you were told yesterday that a great author has said: 'Judge no man by his books.' I would rather say: 'Judge no man by, or confound no man with persons he has created, but there are great writers, especially in the eighteenth century, perfectly high-minded and unexceptional men in themselves, yet who have allowed themselves to pen volumes which it is painful for any person of ordinary modesty to read."
SILLY BUT NOT-WICKED.
As to the aphorisms, the phrases and philosophies for the young printed in the Chameleon, what were they? Some of them were amusing, some were cynical and, if he might be allowed to say so, some of them were silly, but wicked, wicked in the sense of bearing the inference that Wilde was capable of having committed the crimes into which they were inquiring -- they were certainly not.
the "Phrases and Philosophies for the Young." printed in the "Chameleon," and upon which they were also asked to draw an unfavourable inference—what were they? Some of them were amusing, some were cynical, and, if he might be allowed to say, some of them were silly. But wicked—wicked in the sense of hearing the inference that Wilde was capable of having committed the crimes into which they were inquiring—they certainly were not.
His Lordship described the story of "The Priest and the Acolyte," which appeared in the Chameleon as disgusting and revolting, but it was not the work of Wilde, and if one was not to judge a man by his own writings to judge him by the writings of another would be absurd. On the question of the sonnets of Lord Alfred Douglas and Wilde's letter to that young man, the judge told the jury to form their own opinions.
His lordship reviewed minutely the evidence of the witnesses who were said to have been the accomplices of Wilde and Taylor in acts of indecency. He described Atkins as a reckless witness, but said the jury would have a terrible responsibility in deciding whether the evidence of Shelley could be relied upon. The evidence of the servants from the Savoy was not tainted like that of some of the others, and it was of vast importance. They could not impugn the truth of those witnesses, and the only thing for the jury to decide was whether it was possible that they had made a mistake.
THE JURY RETIRE.
The jury retired at 1:35 p.m. the judge having spoken for three hours. At three o'clock the jury had luncheon taken to them and eventually they returned into court at a quarter past five o'clock and announced that they could not agree. The judge pressed the foreman several times as to whether an agreement might not be come to after more deliberation, but he repeated that there was no prospect of any agreement and they were therefore discharged.
Sir E. Clarke asked that the verdict should be given on the conspiracy counts. Mr. Gill opposed this, but the judge said he directed the acquittal of the prisoners on those counts. Sir E. Clarke thereupon applied for bail for Mr. Wilde, and Mr. Hall made the same application for Taylor. The judge said he did not feel able to accede to the application, but Counsel might renew it before a judge in chambers.
Mr. Gill said the case would probably go to the next sessions. The prisoners were then conducted from the dock. Wilde listened to the result without any show of feeling.