Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1881-04-19
THE CASE OF FREESE.
ON TRIAL At The CIRCUIT COURT,
The Case Opened sAd the Evidence all In
What freese Testified In His
Own Behalf-The Other
Witnesses.
THE FORGERY PUT ON MYERS, BY
THE DEFENSE.

Inc U6r KNOX.
The Circuit Court was occupied all
day yesterday, in bearing the case OF
the Statevs. John Albert, or Count,
Freese, charged with forging an endorse
ment Of Geo. f. Boyd to promisssry
note for $3.50 and utt ring the same as
true, The offence was alleged TO have
been committed in December, 1879, and
the Grand Jury, at the following term oil
court, returned four counts, viz. Forg-
ing his mothers signature and uttering
il as true, and forging Judge Boyds
endorsement and uttering it as true.
The facts in the case are perhaps re-
memb, red and were about as follows:
For quite time Freese, who was then
page in the County Court. had been
obtaining money from Mr.. Higgins, the
photographer, and from Mr.. Holiday,
employed by him. The money was ad-
yanced in small sums and the
loans secured by various articles,
such as opera glasses, rings, ETC., the
most valuable being gold watch. This
was kept up until Freese owed each oil
the persons mentioned a sum IN the
neiehborhood of $50. They were grow
ing tired OF it and requested him to set
tie up and remove the pledges or they
would dispose OF them. He responded
that he had not the ready cash, but
would bring them negotiable paper, II
that was sufficient. Stories differ as to
whether certain r ote was brought, but
suffice il here to say that note, Tor
1850, PAYABLE to Geo. + Boyd and sign
ed by Mrs. f. ]. Freese was given. Upon
this was the endorsement OF Geo. +.
Bovd.
Freese desired Mr.. Higgins to have
this discounted, and out oil the proceeds
pay himself and return the balance.
Mr.. Higgins went to Judge Boyd and
from him learned that the en-
dorsement was a rank forgery.
Mr.. Jordan was notified, warrants
were issued and Sheriff Jingle
put on the track. Mr.. Higgins had told
Freese the note was not good, where
upon the latter demanded it, saying that
il was good and that his mother would
paw il. 1t was retained, however, and
turned over to the Sheriff.
A youth named Jesse Myers was
mixed upin The transaction somehow.
and warrants were issued for the brace,
but when the Sheriff came TO serve them
he found the laddies had gone toward
Columbus. A dispatch headed them Oft
at that point, and from there Sheriff
Jingle brought them home Freese
waived hearing and gave bond for his
appearance, ami Myers was examined
and discharged. Such was the story
generally known to the public.
The case OF Freese came on before
Judge Melvin yesterday morning, and
trial was begun before the
following jury: Eugene Ridglty,
Charles Fisher, George w. Long, Henry
Truxell, VIM. Frtsch, Daniel Foster,
Ell. Clator, A. S. Wells, J. w. KEENAN,,
Thos. Glasscock, Robert Crawford and
John Hiener, Jr. Prosecutor Jordan
announced that two OF the four counts
of the indictment would be passed, VIZ:
those OF forging and uttering the sigma
ture OF his mother, as it was known
that her testimony would be that she
had given him full authority to sign for
her. The case accordingly proceeded on
the first and second counts.
Mr.. Jordan opened by reading the in
dictment in full, following it by long
definition OF forgery, both in the writing
and in the uttering. He then made
plain statement OF the case, setting 1t
forth much as told above, and declaring
that the State so expected to prove.
When he closed, Mr.. Cracraft, for the
defense, moved to exclude all witnesses,
which was done.
Mr.. Good then opened for the prison
er. = He made very sympathetic appeal
to the jury in behalf OF Freese. He pic
tured him as a page in the County
Court, struggling to support his mother.
Judge Boyd was his benefactor, he said,
and the last man in the county whose
signature Freese would forge would he
Judge Boyd. He would prove, he said,
that it was not Freese who had forged
this endorsement, but Jesse Myers.
"For three terms Of Court" said he, I'VE
have been laboring TO get Myers here,
but he has kept beyond our reach.
But now a means has been raised up by
which innocence may assert itself.
The last Legislature passed an act by
which Allie Freese may go upon the
witness stand and testify in his behalf"
etc.
All being ready for testimony, Mr..
Higgins was called and took the stand,
but at this point an incident occurred.
Mrs. Freese, mother of the accused,
came in, clad in deep mourning and
heavily yelled. As she took a seat near
her sons counsel, she began to cry hys-
terically. She had been summoned as
a witness and Mr.. Jordan promptly
asked that she be excluded with the
others. Counsel on the other side held
that she was the mother and the natural
and legal guardian OF the prisoner and
as such should stay. Finding that
under the motion offered by themselves,
she must 20, the defense asked to with
draw the motion, and in consequence
all of the witnesses were readmitted.
Mr.. Higgins then gave his testimony,
about as given above. The defense, in
cross examination, pressed him upon
several points, to all OF which he re-
turned very decided reply in the neg
alive. One was, whether he had sug-
gested to Freese to get Judge Boyd's en-
dorsement; another was. whether, after
Freese presented the note, he (Higgins)
had said: "Your mother will have to
pay great deal more than the face OF
this note before i give it up" To both
the witness answered, positively, "No."
Mr.. Holidays testimony was very
similar TO that Of Mr.. Higgins. He was
very closely cross examined by Mr..
Good, but no material fact in addition