The evidentiary hearing in Strickland's case comes after months of delays caused by legal procedures and canceled hearings prompted mostly by motions filed by the state attorney general's office. Senate, has said he believes Strickland is guilty of the murders. Attorneys for Strickland and the Attorney General's office indicated during opening statements that statements from Cynthia Douglas, the only survivor of the shootings, identifying Strickland as the shooter would be central to determining Strickland's fate.
Strickland's supporters said Douglas recanted her identification before she died. Andrew Clarke, an assistant prosecutor in the Attorney General's office, said evidence existed to show Strickland was guilty.
He said recorded phone calls between Douglas and her husband while he was incarcerated would show she was not interested in helping Strickland prove his innocence. Clarke also said one of Strickland's fingerprints was found on a car used the night of the killings. It was owned by Vincent Bell, who later pleaded guilty to the murders. Strickland testified that he often drove the car for Bell, who didn't have a driver's license, and he was surprised more of his fingerprints weren't found on the car.
Strickland also acknowledged he gave Bell some shotgun shells two to three weeks before the killings after Bell said he wanted to test a shotgun he was given. But Strickland maintained he didn't know they would be used in a triple murder. Strickland said he drank beer and smoked marijuana before police came to his home to question him about the killings. During cross-examination on Monday from assistant prosecutor Christine Krug, Strickland acknowledged it was the first time in 43 years that he'd ever said he was under the influence at the time.
Strickland, a Black man, saw his first trial end in a hung jury when the only Black juror, a woman, held out for acquittal. After his second trial in , he was convicted by an all-white jury of one count of capital murder and two counts of second-degree murder.
Strickland has always maintained that he was home watching television and had nothing to do with the killings, which happened when he was 18 years old. Her parents were pleased to find she had forgotten all her foolishness for young Strickland and said she was a good girl. Strickland vows that the two months of his service were the most rigid mental discipline he has ever gone through.
Quite apart from the little fact that the wife of one of his fellow-saises fell in love with him and then tried to poison him with arsenic because he would have nothing to do with her, he had to school himself into keeping quiet when Miss Youghal went out riding with some man who tried to flirt with her, and he was forced to trot behind carrying the blanket and hearing every word! Also, he had to keep his temper when he was slanged in "Benmore" porch by a policeman—especially once when he was abused by a Naik he had himself recruited from Isser Jang village—or, worse still, when a young subaltern called him a pig for not making way quickly enough.
But the life had its compensations. He obtained great insight into the ways and thefts of saises—enough, he says, to have summarily convicted half the chamar population of the Punjab if he had been on business. He became one of the leading players at knuckle-bones, which all jhampanis and many saises play while they are waiting outside the Government House or the Gaiety Theatre of nights; he learned to smoke tobacco that was three-fourths cowdung; and he heard the wisdom of the grizzled Jemadar of the Government House saises, whose words are valuable.
He saw many things which amused him; and he states, on honor, that no man can appreciate Simla properly, till he has seen it from the sais's point of view.
He also says that, if he chose to write all he saw, his head would be broken in several places. Strickland's account of the agony he endured on wet nights, hearing the music and seeing the lights in "Benmore," with his toes tingling for a waltz and his head in a horse-blanket, is rather amusing.
One of these days, Strickland is going to write a little book on his experiences. That book will be worth buying; and even more, worth suppressing. Thus, he served faithfully as Jacob served for Rachel; and his leave was nearly at an end when the explosion came.
He had really done his best to keep his temper in the hearing of the flirtations I have mentioned; but he broke down at last. An old and very distinguished General took Miss Youghal for a ride, and began that specially offensive "you're-only-a-little-girl" sort of flirtation—most difficult for a woman to turn aside deftly, and most maddening to listen to. Miss Youghal was shaking with fear at the things he said in the hearing of her sais.
Dulloo—Strickland—stood it as long as he could. Then he caught hold of the General's bridle, and, in most fluent English, invited him to step off and be heaved over the cliff. Next minute Miss Youghal began crying; and Strickland saw that he had hopelessly given himself away, and everything was over.
The General nearly had a fit, while Miss Youghal was sobbing out the story of the disguise and the engagement that wasn't recognized by the parents. Strickland was furiously angry with himself and more angry with the General for forcing his hand; so he said nothing, but held the horse's head and prepared to thrash the General as some sort of satisfaction, but when the General had thoroughly grasped the story, and knew who Strickland was, he began to puff and blow in the saddle, and nearly rolled off with laughing.
He said Strickland deserved a V. Then he called himself names, and vowed that he deserved a thrashing, but he was too old to take it from Strickland. Then he complimented Miss Youghal on her lover. The scandal of the business never struck him; for he was a nice old man, with a weakness for flirtations. They are one. Olsen most certainly adheres to this idea. Then when he proceeds to paint her portrait, according to Helga he paints only that external form, seeing nothing of the person within, "It wasn't, she contended, herself at all, but some disgusting sensual creature with her features.
This link to Stevens can be found through Blanche Stroeve. A man like Strickland would love in a manner peculiar to himself. It was vain to seek the analysis of his emotion. The key to this relationship can be found in Strickland's reasoning for letting Blanche stay with him. When I'd finished my picture I took no more interest in her. He can have her body, but that's not enough for him, he wants more.
So he paints her, he captures her outward form, and, in doing so, captures everything about her that makes her unique. He has captured the form, what more need does he have for the physical reality?
He has the essential, why retain the particular? And so he leaves her. Her suicide can be looked at as a further confirmation of this identity of form and content. The portrait has been painted, her form has been captured and possessed by Strickland, therefore there is no need to continue living. So, she drinks the oxalic acid and thereafter exists only in the portrait.
Perhaps the true nature of the modern artist cannot be defined. Perhaps so many authors used that general character type in their works that any clear-cut definition would immediately be struck down with exceptions from all sides.
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