Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1876-04-14

er back to Steubenville, and engag.
ed special counsel to assist in the
prosecution of Capon. The latter
was tried and convicted, but, the
jury having to fix his punishment,
at hard labor for life.
The prisoner was overwhelmed
with grief because of his conviction.
He never tired of protesting his in
nocence, aud his eyes were constants
ly red and swollen from weeping.
he was taken to the Penitentiary at
Columbus. where he was at first
rather harshly treated; but his ami.
able disposition was not long in max
ing SO agreeable an impression upon
the keepers that many privileges
were granted to him. These he never
abused; on the contrary, he proved
an efficient assistant to the prison
authorities ON more than one occa-
sion, so that they wondered how this
good-natured man could have been
capable Of committing so heinous a
crime.
Five years passed by, when an
event occurred which proved beyond
a Doubt than Capon was otter al an
entirely Innocent man.
A cctton-broker named Wilson, at
Savannah, Ga, had long-been on
bad terms with his wife. Finally
he sued for divorce. The wife
thereupon accused him of having
murdered man on the 10th of Nov
ember, ls4l, ON the day after leav-
ing Pittsburgh. Pa, aud of having
robbed his victim Of $4,000 in FIVE
hundred and one thousand dollar
bank bills. She said that she had to
wash on next day, when he had un-
expectedly returned to Pittsburgh,
her husbands Shirt, Which had been
blood-staihed, and she charged him
with having killed somebody. He
had confessed to her what he had
done, and they had left Pittsburgh
a few days later and gone South.
Wilson was arrested and the an-
thoritles at SieubenYille at once COM
municated with The Sheriff who
had arrested Capon, and who was
still in Office, went to Savannah will
requisition from the Governor of
Ohio. When he had his first inter
view with Wilson the latter, who
was terrified beyond measure blythe
prospect of the scaffold, asked him
whether full confession would save
him. 'lf you are guilty, it will be,
maybe, the only thing that will save
your life, replied the Sheriff.
ThereupCn Wilson made a clean
breast of it. He said he had way
laid Sammis, who had left his horse
at house three miles from Steuben-
vile, and had attacked him with a
knife. Sammis had offered the most
desperate resistance and had COM
PEELED him to stab him often befor he
mad succumbed.
When the Sheriff arrived with his
prisoner at Steubenyille the exasper-
ated people there could be barely
prevented from lynching Wilson.
The Governor of the State, upon
receiving certified copy of Wilson's
confession, Immediately granted
full pardon to Capon, to whom the
Legislature, which happened to be
in session in Columbus at the time,
voted the sum of $1,000 to indem-
Nifty him for the sufferings he had
innocently undergone. 1t is need
less to try to describe Capen's joy at
this unexpected change in his for
tunes. He returned to SteubenYille,
where the people rectived him amid
manifestations Of unfeigned Joy.
At the next term of the Circuit
Court Wilson was sentenced to be
hanged, the Court saying that the
-enormity of his crime had been aug
mented by his suffering an innocent |
man to be punished for it.
Capon gave proof of genuine
magnanimity by going to Columbus |
and asking the Governor to spare |
Wilson's life; but the Governor re-
fused to interfere. So Wilson was
hanged at Steubenyille on the 4th
of January, ls47, ssaH
.NeD York Times.