The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1878-09-19
miscellaneous.
THE CALIFORNIA MURDER.
THE UNPROvOKED AssAssINA-
TION OF MORE.
Full and Interesting Account Of the Trial and
Conviction Of the Murderers.

Some time since we published the facts In the
case Of the murder of Il. Wallace More, ESQ. late
of Medina county, who was living at Santa Bar.
bara California, at the time OF his death, The
entire history Of the case from the murder, in
cuding the trial to the passing of the death SEN
tence on sprague, the murderer has been cleaned
from California papers received at this office, and
forms an interesting chapter of crime and It's dis.
closure. On the morning Of the Oath of March,
1917, about TWO o'clock, Mr.. More, who was large
land owner on the Pacific Slope, woke up to find
his barn in flames. Rushing out he received two
bullets in the throat one in his bowels and seven
In his head. The COr0ners inquest only devel.
oped the fact that four men masked exactly alike
had hand in the bloody deed. Detectives were
employed, but nothing public resulted until
March 2Sth Of the present year. when, on aCharge
by A. P, More, brother of the murdered man, the
marshal and his posse arrested f, s. sprague, ].
s. Churchill, j. D. Ford, Jesse Jones' John Curlee
j. A. Swanson and Mr.. Cook In connection with
the arrest report was prevalent that Austin
Brown, farmer on the Sespe Ranch had dis.
pute with Curlee one ofthe prisoners who threat.
ened to kill him, Believing he would execute
his threats, he dvuged all he knew OF dores
murder and moved into town the night the ar
rests were made. At preliminary examination
the case was appointed to come up for trial April
9th. The Postmaster received the following let.
ter
SAUNTA PAULA, March 31.-I am convinced that
there is plot laid to assasSinate Brown, MOre's
witness, either to night, or sometime shortly after
that Parties here are making desperate attempts
10 mature plan Tor that purpose, Desperate men
are engaged in the undertaking.
CLAW AND ORDBR"
close guard was accordingly put over Brown,
The first witness called at the trial was ~ H. Hick-
erson who was sworn and said, Sprague told him
he had assisted in the murder and gave him the
whole particulars. He said that More when shot
down and the crowd came running up to him
said For Gods sake, don't kill me you see
am shot" Splague said, Damn you take this"
and fired the bullet into his head. HCkersOn WAS
sick when he testified aud died shortly afterward.
Austin Brown, sworn, testified that Sprague had
diyulged to him the plan of killing More, and had
asked him TO stand guard while the deed was be-
ing done. Sprague related to him the grievances
of the settlers saying Moore was gObbling the wa
ter, and as soon as he was done shearlng would
turn his sheep loose on their grain and grasses.
The witness stated thatafter the murder, Spraguc,
Churchill and Swanson met and passed a set OF
resolutions denouncing the murder and had them
published as the proceedings of settlers indig-
nation meeting, On account of the illness Of one
of the jurors, the case was adjourned and did not
come up again until July 70. c. A, Stark son-in-
law Of the deceased was called and proved per-
sonal quarrel between the prisoner and the de-
ceased few weeks before the murder, which oc.
Cured on land claimed by sprague which was
outside of the claimed limits of the grant and for
which the magistrate refused to hold sprague for
trial. Austin Brown testified that Sprague told
him, More ought to be killed and said he and an
other man had been detailed 10 do it. Jesse
Jones, one Of the prisoners, turned States evil
dence, aud confirmed the testimony for the pros
ecutlon. A rigid cross.examination failed to
materially shake his testimony. On July 18th,
Greed Haywood opened the case for the defense,
said he could show deceased was bold unBcrupu-
lOus and aggressive His stock had been permit.
ted to destroy the crops of his neighbors thus in
tensifying the indignation against him. He had
brought all sorts of harraSsing actions, injunc-
tions and suits of all kinds for years, scarce one
of which was bona fde. That the case so far as
the defendants were concerned, was fabrication
and that long before the prisoners were arrested,
IA
Hickerson's and Jones exact language, and closed
with the terrific denunciation Of the Mores. Wit.
nesSes for the defense were then called. Church.
Ill, one of the defendants testified that he was at
home the night Of the murder and did not see
Sprague that night. Curlee, McCort and Lord
seyerally denied any knowledge of the murder
John G, Thompkins, an unimpeachabe witness
fatty eontradicled some of Browns story July
%, the case against Sprague was finished and the
jury after an absence of an hour and half
brOughtin a verdict of guilty of murder in the
first degree" His counsel Immediately moved
fora new trial The prisoner Churchill, who was
to be tried the same day being in dying Condi-
ton, his case was postponed The case against
McCort also went over to the Fall term of Court.
The passing of sentence on Sprague was appoint
ed for August 5. The case against Curlee then
proceeded and on July 81 the jury brought In a
verdict ofguilty, and fixed the penalty at impris-
onment for life. The trial OF Lord then COM
menced and considerable testimony was intro
duCed favorable to the defendant. Monday morn
ing, August 8, Sprague was brought into court.
The motion for a new trial was taken up by the
Court, reviewed point by point, and then over.
ruled. The Judge then turning to the prisoner,
said; "F. A. Sprague you have been convicted Of
the highest Offense known to the law You have
been skilliul1y defended and every device has
been exhausted to save you, In the dead hour Of
night you the leader of band of masked Sssas-
SINS applied the torch to the premises of your
VICTIM and as he rushed startlediand half fnsked
into the light of the flames, you shot him near to
death. He attempted flight You pursued. He
fell before you with pleading voice that should
have wrung pity from breast of iron, but you re-
morseessly riddled him with bullets as you would
the carcass of Ia dog. There is no language strong
enough to depict the atrocity of such crime. l
feel deeply for your faithful wife and children.
They are the ones who need end who should re-
cieve the pity and sympathy of the kind hearted.
II only remains for me to formally conclude this
painful duty. The judgment of the court is, that
you, on the 9th day of September next be hanged
by the neck until you are dead" The prisoner
displayed no emotion until pair OF. handouts
was snapped on his wrists, and then he turned
deadly pale, but only for a moment. An appeal
will be taken from Judge Fawcetts decision to
the Supreme Court, but probably with no success,
for It has been one of the most cruel and unpro-
voked murders that has disgrsced. the annals Of
the Pacific coast.
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WORDS OF WISDOM,