Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1858-02-15
YIYE's DYGxG DECLARATION.

! YHEs DYISG DECLARATION
/ GeatLeusen-In few minutes of time shall
have answered with my life for the terrible crime
| [ have committed, and which have already
! freely confessed. II must not be supposed from
iyEhat has been published in the newspapers mere
from time to time since my arrest, thaL am m
| different or careless about the awful fate am
now TO suffer, nor must It be supposed that L
| have suffered no compunction of conscience for
| the deed that has brought me to this death.
| Oh no. have already undergone more torture
| Of soul than thousand deaths, and oh, how OF
| ten have wished could restore Geo: Wilson
and his sister back TO life. Vain thought Mad
\ ened with thirst for gold. and stimulated by
drink, / gave them the fatal blow that robbed
them Of life, and sent their souls, without warn
/ ing, to the bar Of God. Ny feryent prayer now
! IS and long has been, that they have been made
lhappy by nv Wickedness, and that their immOr-
| tai souls are among the redeemed Of Christ
and | pray Almighty God for his pardon. and
that may be permitted to hope that IN the
! world Of spirits may be there, and then beg
/ there to be forgiven.
| Since my arrest, much has been done Of which
! I have right to complain: not that was ar
rested tired and convicted, because that Is
/ Just penalty for my crime, but do complain of
some of the means used against me before my
/ trial came on. The public press had SO posi-
i lively condemned me that 1t was next to lmpOs-
/ sible TO get fair and impartial hearing of my
case, and one of the papers, the very day before
/ the jury was empanueied, published nearly two
columns of an article upon me, in which It char
| ged that was guilty beyond doubt How IS
Il possible for prisoners to get impartial jury
if they are to be first tried aud positively con-
demned BY the neTsPaPerss 1t ought to be
sufficient for prisoner to answer for his crime
to an impartial court and jury The prisoner
confined within the walls of his cell has no OPP
portunity to defend himself from these attacks,
and il il is continued the innocent will suffer With
the guilty. do not complain of the jury that
tried my case; believe they did their duty con-
IsciehtiOusly. During the eleven OF twelve days
was on trial, my counsel took great many
exceptions to the opinion of the court on the
admission of evidence, and when the case vas
reported from the Supreme Court, observed
none of those exceptions had been presented or
argued; but inquired of my council about this,
and he told me they had been lost out of the
Clerks Office and could not be found. There
was a large number of these exceptions. Who
carried them off? will not charge that 1ir.
HOrner, the Clerk of the Court, had anything to
do with their being taken away. believe he
is an honest man. do not believe the District
Attorney had any knowledge OF what became
Of tlesr and believe fliat my Counsel has in
al thing good faith towards me. Let
the guilty I.sriF Whoever he fh1y2be, however
high in pow Il. anssEe II his Osh conscience
and TO his God. There VIII be Judgment
hereafter, not only for the poor prisoner, but
| for come of those engaged IN. Judging him.
singing a certain song. in the cell, at the May
or's Office, in which was made to say that
| killed George Wilson and his sister 1t is my
duty to myself and the people that leave be-
hind, TO sOlemnly declare that never sung that
song. did have conversation with Charlotte
and Stewart and among other things said
to Stewart that / would do him justice; and
with the last breath that God gives me IN this
world, will redeem my promise to him. L
| have been charged with the murder OF White,
am entirely innocent and repeat what stat
ed to Mr.. Phillips in my confession, that new
er saw VIM. Jones until the next day alter the
murder of White, and as to any participation or
knowledge on my part as TO VINO murdered
White most solemnly declare Iknow nothing
whatever. During my trial many witnesses were
examined. What some of those swore to they
were mistaken about. But believe they were.
all honest except two, perhaps three. One was
/ sworn, then the others; for he not only makes
ling, RECKLESS fool. But forgive them all, even
him, and hunbly pray Almighty God to forgive
them.
Since my confinement in Jail, have always
been treated with humanity and kindness by
Sheriff Patterson, and God will reward him for
his goodness of heart even 1t should extend a
little humane sympathy TO me, so unfortunate
as to become his prisoner. AS to jail0F Phil
lips. he has always treated me kindly In this
respect have nothing to complain OF; but he
| Snonld oe content 10 guard the oOuY OF the
prisoners, and not try to get confessions ont of
them to be used against them on their trial.
What have here said is from sense of duty,
and not out of malice or bad feelings toward
any one am in no situation to indulge In
words of hatred or revenge, but rather in those
of repentance and sorrow. During my confine-
lment, have suffered moro in mind thousand
times for the crime l have committed, than the
fear Of this death that is so rapidly approach
ling. Here is the fatal rope, and the scaffold,
and the hand that-is to send my soul into eter-
nifty; but do not fear; have made my peace
with all the world, and trust in God. And
now, before these witnesses, and in the pres
ence of Almighty God, before whom in a mo-
ment Of time expect to appear, and with the
last breath that am permitted to breathe on
earth, with full knowledge Of my awful si'ua-
ton and my accountability, soiemnly protest
and declare, that Monroe Stewart is entirely In
nocenf Of the murder Of George Wilson and his
sister. The deed was planned and perpetrated
by myself and Charlotte Jones, without any 9th
Ter human being to plan, aid or assist us For
our crime he has suffered a long imprisonment
but / pray God that the last words Of a dying
Imam, with no hopes or motives TO declare any
thing but the truth, while the just punishment
laef 4