The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1886-06-04
wAL.TMAN's LETTER.
INTERVIEW WITH soMR OF THE PERSONS
COMPLAINED OF.

A letter dated at the county prison, May
"a, and signed by Isaac Waltman, was
published In the Republican and Sentinel last
week, in which the writer charges that
since his commitment to Jail on the 9th OF
March, the prison doors were closed
against all his friends, no one was allowed
to converse with him except through the
bars of the outside prison door, and then
only in the presence of an official. He
says he was not allowed to hand written
statements to his friends concerning his
defense, and all avenues of preparing a
defense were arbitrarily closed. Letters
written by him were opened by the prison
Off cials and the contents made known to
the prosecution, and he accuses the officials
OF acting as spies for the prosecution.
The substance of the letter is that he be-
lieves he would not have been convicted If
he had not thus have been prevented from
preparing his defense.
The attention of Sheriff Smith was
called to this letter. and he was asked
whether the allegations were true. We
give his answer in his own words.
at is not true that Waltman was allowed
to see no one alone. HIS counsel saw him
whenever they came, and had private con-
sultations with him every time they asked
it. The first day Waltman was IN Jail he
gave my son, boy Ia years old, a bottle
with an order for hydrate of chloral, and
asked him to 60 to the drug store and get
the bottle filed, at the same time caution
ing him particularly not to let any one else
at the Jail see the bottle, but bring it di-
rect to him (Waltman). The boy had re-
Gently had the measles and couldn't go out,
so he gave it to the keeper, VIM. Barrett,
who took it to Meyers drug store, where
he was told it was poison. This fact was
communicated to the Judge and the Dis
trict Attorney, and we were cautioned to
keep a close watch on him, as it was a sus-
picous circumstance. | knew afterwards
he tried to get the same drug through other
parties, and those were the persons who
were not allowed to see him alone. l do
not know what Watman wanted to do
with chloral, but considered it my duty
to watch him, after his effort to obtain the
poisonous drug in secret way.
1t is true that some Of Waltman's letters
were opened. 1t is the practice at the Jail
to read all letters to and from prisoners, as
| understand it is done in nearly all pris-
ons. This is done to prevent prisoners
from planning escapes with their friends
outside We had had some information
through letter written by another prison
er that there was scheme on foot to break
Jail, though there was nothing in particular
to connect Waltman with it. Nothing con-
tained in any of his letters was ever made
known TO the prosecution by me, and all
he says in the letter published last week
about the Jail officials acting as spies is
false"
w. w. Barrett, keeper at the Jail, was
interrogated on the subject and said; "The
Sheriffs daughter heard Waltman tell the
boy not to let any one see the bottle, par
ticularly myself. The bottle was given to
me and inside of it was a paper on which
was written "Chloral Hydrate, 10 cents
worth. Please give full amount" The
bottle is wide-mouthed one, and looks
like pill bottle. took it to Meyer Bros.
drug store, and L. N. Meyer asked me who
it was for, and told him. He refused to
let me have il, and said that one-fourth the
amount ordered would put man to sleep
so that he would never wake.
then went to c. A. Klein and he told me
the same thing. The next day took the
bottle to the Judge and he said that moth
ing of that sort should be permitted to be
passed in, and that we should keep close
watch so that no one should supply him
with it secretly. For that reason we were
very careful about who saw him alone.
saw most of the letters written by Walt
man, but nothing contained in them was
ever told the prosecution. | never had
any conversation about Waltman with the
prosecuting attornies, except to inform the
District Attorney Of his effort to get chlo-
ral"
District Attorney Billmeyer was asked
whether he received any information from
the Sheriff or any of his officials concern
ing Waltman's defense, and he replied en-
phatically, "No, l had no conversation
with any prison official about Waltman,
concerning any matter that was made use
of in the trial, There were IS witnesses
examined for the defense, most of whom
live in upper Columbia and lower Luzerne
counties and this fact of itself refutes the
allegation that all avenues of preparing a
defense were arbitrarily closed.'"
Col. Freeze also stated that any allega-
ton as to the prosecution receiving infor-
nation of Waltman's defense from the
Sheriff or anybody else, were false as far
as he is concerned