Editing Case File: Dr. Harvey Burdell (section)

=== John H. Thompson ===
John H. Thompson was the next witness. He deposed: I live at No. 129 W. 27th St; I am a medical student; I knew the deceased; I have known him about a year; I have not for some five months visited his house; I have seen him repeatedly since; I used to come and see Dr. Burdell and Mrs. Cunningham, but since my marriage I discontinued coming; I came very seldom to the house since my marriage, and that was on matters of business with Mrs. Cunningham; since the last five months I have seen Mrs. Cunningham often, but not Dr. Burdell; I saw Mrs. Cunningham last Friday for the last time; I came to see her as Mrs. Cunningham, and not as Mrs. Burdell; I always inquired for Mrs. Cunningham; she always came to me as Mrs. Cunningham, and never as Mrs. Burdell; Mr. Snodgrass came to my house last Thursday evening, and asked me to come and see Mrs. Cunningham the next morning; she had given me a bill to be discontinued; I came at half past three on Friday afternoon; she asked me if I had got the note discounted; it was a note payable ot her own order, for $100; as it had no other name on it, I could not get it discounted; I told her I had given it to a gentleman with whom I did business, and that if he accepted it as payment I would give her the money; she said, "Very well" that was all my conversation with her; Dr. Burdell went through the hall, into the street; she asked him at what time he would return; I did not hear his reply.

Coroner: Did or did not Mrs. Cunningham speak to you about certain papers that she was said to have stolen from Dr. Burdell's room?

Thompson: She did not

Coroner: Did you know of any jealousy existing between her and Dr. Burdell?

Thompson: I did not

Coroner: Were you aware of any cause for jealousy in relation to Mr. Ecker, or Mr. Snodgrass?

Thompson: I did not

Coroner: You would not have come to this house subsequent to your marriage, if you had not been sent for on some business, would you?

Thompson: I would not

Coroner: Did you not know that improper conduct was going on in the house?

Thompson: I had very strong suspicions; I did not see Mr. Ecker on Friday afternoon; I heard no angry words between Mrs. Cunningham and Dr. Burdell.

Coroner: Did you not know that there was a certain intimacy, a matter of congress between Mr. Ecker and Mrs. Cunningham?

Thompson: I did not suspect it. 

Coroner: Did you know or suspect that anything of the kind existed between either of the daughters and Mr. Ecker?

Thompson: I did not; I did not know or hear of any intimacy between Mr. Snodgrass and the daughters; I did not hear that Mrs. Cunningham and Mr. Burdell were married; she never told me anything about it; she would ask me to do many little things for her of a private nature, but never told me of her marriage; I heard of the murder on Saturday afternoon, when I went home from the College in Twenty-third street; I heard of a dispute between Mr. Burdell and Mrs. Cunningham; he came to me and told me that Mrs. Cunningham had charged him with a breach of promise of marriage; while he was speaking Mrs. Cunningham, who had evidently followed him, came in and began speaking; I said I would have nothing to do with it; I heard Mrs. Cunningham say she had commenced an action against him; he wanted to know what he should do; I wrote a note to him next day declining to ahve anything to do with it; they went away together on that occasion; I saw that she took his arm; my office was then at No 6 Warren-street; it is since pulled down.

Coroner: By the virute of your solemn oath do you think this is a regular moral, virtuous house?

Thompson: I had suspicion that something wrong was going on between Mrs. Cunningham and Dr. Burdell.

A juror then inquired of the Coroner whether it was proper that the whole of the evidence, take in such investigations as this kind, should be published in the papers. Sometiems evidence so tkaen was of a very delicate nature. 

The Coroner replied that the Press afforded one of the best avenues for the detection of crime. He would not permit that the delicacies of a private feeling should be allowed to suppress the publication of evidence, when the wall of the room in which they sat was stained with blood, shed at the commission of one of the foulest murders ever committed in New York. So bad were things now, human life being a thing no longer safe, no longer respected - that if the avenues to the detection of the culprite were closed, whether at the suggesion of jurors, counsel, or others, we should soon be forced to have recourse to a Vigilance Committee.

The juror did not make any reply.