Omaha daily bee., 1883-03-13
IN PRISON 27 YEARS.
Story Of Samuel Ulum, Of st.
Joseph County, M Oh.
How the Crime of Murder was
sworn As ainst an In
nocent Man.

Inc story OF tne murder charged
agains Samuel Ulum has been hereto.
fore related, but perhaps never 30
completely s by Judge John B.
Shipman, of Coldwater, in q letter to
the governor soliciting Ulum's pardon.
The letter Is As follows:
JUDGE sHIPMAN's NARRATIVE.
l have been requested to make q
statement In the case OF Samuel
Ulum, now ii prison on conviction for
the murder of Esta5rook, and l com.
ply cheerfully.
AT the time of Ulum's conviction /
was reading law with Chester Carney
and took the evidence for the defence.
1 write now wholly fcom recollection,
having no papers to refreoh my mem.
DRY. The leading facts are these:
Estabrook was an old bachelor In
Vermont engaged to be married to
Miss Woods, an old maid, living
about three or four miles from Leon
idas, in st. Joseph county. He sold
his property east, got his money and
with it started for home. He arrived at
Burr Oak on the Chem Michigan
Southern railroad Saturday, Novem.
Der IL, 1858.
Sunday morning, the 18Th, he
started With a team and driver to go
to Miss Woods. houfe, taking his bag
gage with him, consisting of one large
and one very small hand trunk.
He arrived at Leonidas at noon, put
put up the team and had dinner, but
intending to go on after dinner to her
house. He put up at a tavern kept
by Haywood & Stilwell. For some
reason never explained he went no
further that day, but char cling his
mind he sent the team back 10 Burr
Oak. Observe, he was YET over three
miles from his avowed place of desti-
nation with q heavy trunk to carry
and q hand trunk also, and the roads
heavy from recent rains. Neither by
evidence nor theory was this sudden
stoppage accounted for. Neither
Ulum nor White (his alleged associate
In crime) we're at the hotel that day,
all admit, The third confederate,
Giles Harding, said he was
there ct at noon when Estabrook,
arrived, but Immediately left with
out speaking to him, and did not re.
turn. No arrangement or plan or
connection whatever, vas claimed to
have existed between any of the muir.
derers and anyone at the hotel. MOI
did the evidences show clearly that
Estabrook aver left the house, al.
though the p%roprietors testified under
very evident embarrassment that they
rather thought he left the hotel just
after dusk on foot with a stranger
who carried a carpetbsg, and who was
to show him the way to the old maid
Woods. No one else testified to this.
From this point the point the case de-
pended almost wholly, and entirely, so
far asidentifying the men is concerned,
upon the evidence of Giles Harding.
He said that White and Ulum, with q
team and lumber wagon, met Esta.
brook on the road to Miss Woods
when about two miles from Lsonidas;
but the stranger who left the hotel in
his company had disappeared, and no
one ever saw him afterwards or heard
of him. That they took Estabrook In
q wagon, merely asking him to ride,
and promising to take him where ho
was going, Harding being more than
forty rods distant when he heard this
conversation, besides having to con.
tend with the noise of water pouring
over q mill dam between him and the
people talking. That when the wagon
arrived with Estabrook In II nearly to
where he was standing the course was
changed to . square turn at right an
giles with the proper (straight) road to
Miss Woods, and driven up In the
woods two or three miles, and there
Estabrook was killed Harding getting
into the wagon over the tall board %
1t was moving. The body was never
found, nor q vestjge of Estabrook's
garments ever seen afterwards. The
whole story is improbable and incredi.
BILE on Its face, besides being told
and depending for Its truth wholly
upon the evidence of this Harding
Harding himself being q thief and in
jail when he divulged it, besides being
. person whom twenty. seven of his
neighbers swear to be q notorious liar,
30 much 80 that they would not believe
him under oath. 1t also appears that
he had . personal animosity against
both White and Ulum. In addition
to this Harding once, at least, stated
In the jail that the whole story was q
fabrication. I am told he has since
SO stated In the prison, but know
nothing of this except by report.
When he swore to 1t he undoubtedly
thought he would not be punished,
but allowed to 60 free. He was .
sort of semi.idiot, with much cunning,
but without any Visible moral percep.
lions whatever.
Another fact not proven upon
Ulum's trial is also significant: The
next morning, viz, November 14th, q
teamster on his way to q place beyond
Miss Woods stopped at the hotel and
Haywood, n of the proprietors, EN-.
ployed him to carry Estsbrook's trunk
to her house, giving him two shillingu
to do so, sending by him this word to
her; that the trunk belonged to a
stranger who would be along In a few
days. He also told the tesmster that
the stranger hsd left the two shillings
to pay for carrying the trunk there:
The inquiry suggested is: How could
this be SO If the stranger had gone to
Miss Woods the night bsfore2
/ do not and never have believed
that Esta brook left that out of the
way lonely country tavern. If not,
Ulum knew no more of the manner of
his taking off than l. In the spring OF
1867 l ran against this Haywood In
the United States land office for the
Turkey river district, Iowa. He, II
seemed to me, avoided me; certainly