Q.—Did you contemplate hia removal otherwise than by murder?
A.—No, sir (petulantly); 1 don't like the word murder"; I don't recollect the actual facts in that matter (excitedly if [had shot the President. of the United States on my own personal account, no ment would be too severe nor too ick for me; but acting as the agent of the Deits, that puts an entirely different construction on the act, and that is what want put to the Court and jury, and to the opposing counsel; T say that the romoval of the President was an act of necessity from the situation, and for the good of the American people; that is the idea I want you to entertain, and not to stil down in the cold-blooded idea of murder, because I never had the first conception of murder in the matter, Mr. Porter—Were you aware that it Was against human law?
The Prisoner—I felt that the Deity would take care of me; I never entertained the idea of murder in the whole matter; I never had any conception of the matter as murder; my mind is perfectly blank on that subject, and always has been.
The Court then adjourned.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.