The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1866-02-08
Sentence Of Young Kotchum, the, For
~ ger In NeNk Ynrk. W ~ u

. . j r# =H.
Sentence Of Young Kotchum, the. For
,r ger, in New York. "1'
The Recorder addressed the prison '
or as follows: soiS;5 odj o. bs9HgIs6 0sh7
/ have given your case, Edward B. q
Kctchum, most anxious and careful 4
consideration; not because l. ever I
doubted what the interests Of society
required or duty demanded Of me, but
for the reason thatI we'll know that :
many gentlemen Of high character and'o
excellent Judgment tSoDtortained views od
entirely ut variance with my ewn,---s +,
Occupying, as you did, an exalted po-
sition among the business men Of this
great commercial city; Commanding,
AS you did, unlimited confidence and 2
credit; possessed, as you were, of great
wealth and influence, you became in
volved in speculations as vast as they,
were dangerous and ruinous and then,
to save the financial ruin Of yourself
and house, which seemed imminent, (,
you did what no one Of inferior posi-
ton or credit could have done, raised
immense sums Of money upon paper
which you forged, the genuineness of
which no, one doubted, simply because
you presented it. 1t was the every
day story, varying only from other
stories in the magnitude Of the forge
ries and the greatness Of your fall, and
you gave a shock to credit and to con-
fidence from which the business inter-
ests of thhe city did not readily rceov-
or. Your friends and those who ask
for you the mercy Of the Court say you
were laboring under a mania. But
every man whose personal sympathies
do not to some extent warp his judg-
ment, knows that i, was no other ma
mia than that which seizes ON every
! man who commits crime in order to
avert personal calamity which ho
cannot endure to meet. II, sitting
here as judge. l should mitigate your
punishment for any of the reasons as
signed, or because hearts are aching
and fainting, or because of my own
personal sympathies with those who
mourn for you, | should feel that eve
ry sentence had passed upon q first
offender had been wrong, and that |
was indeed "respeeter ofpersons. -.
1t is my duty so to administer the law
that all men may feel and-know that
none are beyond either its protection
or its power. Itmay be well, as claim
ed by your friends, that if you were
permitted to go free, you would soon
be able to redeem your Fsputation,and
re.establish your position. Butif this o
court should yield to their application,
it would be an official declaration that
men OF influence aud station could of
fcnd against the laws without fear of
punishment, Public interests and me-
cessities. demand that tho penalties Of
violated law should bevisited upon the
offender by way of example as well as
punishment. If you had been put up
on trial upon all the. Indictments
brought against you, the term ofyour
imprisonment would have extended
through the greater part Of your life.
The District Attorney has vindicated
the law by arraigning you upon one
to which you have pleaded guilty, with
full knowledge OF the Consequences,
Upon that plea the extreme punish
ment is five years imprisonment. The
law, however, directs that the term Of
Imprisonment shall not expire during
the winter months. In discharge,
therefore, of my dhty, / must pro-
Fnounce the sentence Of the court, which
is, that, you be imprisoned in the State
prison for the period Of four years and
six months. .5.,..,, ,,-Aitso- 49,,
Young Ketcbum then resumed his ,
seat, when a number Of his friends
came up and shook hands with him be- "
fore he was conveyed to tho City pris-b
on. .,i.is ,..,.,., ii 5a;, sf.,....,
RoNrs An exchange saws Shere ia