The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1873-10-31

the remains of Colyin. Stump
were overturned, cellar holes ex
amined, and the side of the noun
tain back of the premises careful
ly search d, but all to no purpose
nothing resembling human re
mains were found.
But neither the justice holding
the examination nor the peopl
were satisfied. A warrant was is
sued and Samuel c. Raymond an,
Truman Hill were dispatched t.
New York to arrest Stephen Boorn
This was easily accomplished, ant
on their way back they tried K
induce him to make q confession
telling him what Jesse had said
and that the facts were strong
enough to convict him, but Ste
phen maintained his innocence
and this he did when confronted
by Jesse. Stephen was brough
back May Is, and the examination
continued but no new facts were
brought out. They were bott
held to await the action of the
grand jury in the following Sep
TENDER. Barney Boorn, the faith.
er of the accused, was also arrest.
ed as accessory TO the murder, and
brought before the late Hon. John
s. Petitions, than Justice of this
peace, who, after severe examin-
alton, discharged him, much to the
indignation of the public. An eff
fort was also made to get him in
dicted by the grand jury, which
failed. 81
At the session of the grand jury
in September, the case of Stephen
and Jesse Boorn came before them.
The principal witness against
them was one Siras Merrill, who
was confined in the Jail with them,
on charge of forgery. He testi-
fed that Jesse made a confession
to him in June while they were
together in the Jail. Whether any
such confession was ever made in
fact is doubtful. One thing is GER
tain, before the sitting of the
grand jury, Merrill was confined
in chains, after that event his
chains were taken off and he was
permitted to go about the streets.
Judge Joel Doolittle, of the SUI
preme court, charged the grand
jury in relation to their duties, and
after listening to the evidence in
behalf of the State, true bill was
found against both Jesse and Ste
phen for the murder of Colvin.
AS the law then was, capital cases
could only be tried before a full
bench, and the requisite number
of judges not being present the
trial was postponed until the fol-
lowing November. .
In the mean time public feeling
against the prisoners was intense.
Almost without exception they
were believed to be guilty. Many
were allowed to visit them in the
jail, and even persons of charac
ter and influence, and officers of
the law, told them that the case
was clearly against them; that to
confess was the best thing they
could do; that if they made con-
fession an effort would be made to
have their sentence committed to
imprisonment for life. Convinced
that this was the only hope, Ste
phen made a written confession,
taking upon himself the sole re-
sponsibility OF the crime, but
claiming that he and Colvin had
quarrel, and Colyin struck him
first. The confession conceded,
substantially, with the circumstan-
tial evidence previously addicted.
The trial took place in Novem-
ber,. 1919, before Chief Justice
Chase and Judges Joel Doolittle
and William Bratton. States At
torney Sheldon appeared for the
prosecution, and Richard Skinner,
who had previously been a justice
of the supreme court, and was
subsequently Governor of the
State, Wellman and Leonard Sar-
geant, afterward Lieutenant Gov
erner of the State, for the respond
ents. The evidence against the
prisoners was entirely circumstan-
tial and mostly unimportant, with
the exception of the confessions,
which were objected to by the
counsel for the respondents on the
ground that they were extored by
undue influence, and that they did
not corroborate each other. The
objections were over-ruled and the
confessions admitted, though SUBJ
sequent events showed that the
court erred in admitting them, or
allowing any weight to be attached
to them. An effort was made on
the part of the defense to weaken
the effect of the confessions on
the minds of the jury by intro
dusing testimony to show that
they were subjected to q strong
outside influence previous to and
at the time the confessions were
made. f-a'
Large crowds of people from
Manchester and neighboring towns
attended the trial, which was held
in the Congregational church, for
the reason that the court house
would not accommodate the null
titude, and great interest was man.
ifested by all classes in its result,
though but very few could be
found who did not believe the
prisoners were guilty, or who
would venture to say kind word
for them. The case was ably ar
gued for the prosecution by Mr..
Sheldon, and for the respondents
by Messrs. Skinner and Sergeant.
Neither the argument OF. the coun-
sci nor the charge of the judges
was ever published, and cannot
now BE- reproduced except from
recollection. Judge Doolittle
charged the jury in relation to the
law of homicide, and Judge Chase
in relation to evidence. The judge
charmed in relation to the comics
cion that no weight should be at
tached to a confession melted by
hope or fear, and left it for the
jury to determine whether the con.
fessions in this case were SO in,
fluenced. Later rulings would
probably have excluded the con,
fessions from the case on thai
ground, but Judge Chase was re-
garded as one of the ablest jurists
of the time, and was uncle to Sal
mon p. Chase, late Chief Justice
of the United States.
The jury, after an absence o
one hour. brought in a verdict o.
murder in the first degree agains
both of the prisoners, which yer
dict gave unqualified satisfaction
to the crowds in attendance at tn
trial. The prisoners were brough
into codrt, and being asked if the.
bad anything to say why sentenc