The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1889-06-22
A NOTED COURT.
Dispensing Justice at Fort
Smith, in Arkansas.
Fifteen Hundred Criminals
Tried Every Year.


noted in the world, chiefly because of
the large number of criminal cases that
stain its dockets. Not less than 1900
criminals are brought before it for trial
every year, and an average of fifty of
them are charged with murder. Judge
Parker, who has presided over the court
for fifteen years has, during that time
disposed of SA1 murder cases. He has
pronounced the death sentence on 100
convicted murderers, II of whom were
hanged just outside his court room, the
Others being pardoned by the President
or receiving Communication of sentence.
There promises to be an unusually large
number OF hangings this year. There
are now in the Federal prison AZ pris-
oners awaiting trial for murder, and
deputies are on their way there with fif-
teen or twenty more.
The court has almost exclusive iuris-
diction over the Indian Territory, and is
the only terror that the desperadoes of
that crime infested country know. Take
it away and crime would run rampant.
As it is, forty mounted deputy marshals
are kept busy the year round making ar
rests, and the court grinds without
cessation from one years end to the
other. The docket is never cleared.
One term runs into the next, and ses-
sions are often held until midnight.
There are no vacations. Most of the
trials are for criminal offences ranging
all the way from selling liquor to muir
der, and the punishment is severe For
merely taking bottle of whiskcy into
the Territory men are sent to prison for
three months. 4 horse thief generally
gets ten years in the peniten larry, and
hanging is almost invariably the verdict
in the case OF a convicted murderer.
Judge Parker, personally a pleasant
ana genial gentleman, and not at
all the stern magistrate one might
expect, says that severe punishment is
absolutely necessary in order to hold the
criminals Of the Indian country in check,
anu Is so many escape through lack of
evidence, he almost invariably, in case
of conviction, pronOunces the extreme
sentence allowed by law. At the time
he was assigned 10 the court murders in
the Territory averaged nearly one a day,
and in order 20 check them he began
his first term by pronouncing the death
sentence on every convicted murderer
that came before him. At the close of
the year he had sentenced Is men to be
hanged, and had sent about 200 of them
to the penitentiary, many of them for
life. The desperadoes became terror
stricken, and some of them, rather than
come before him for trial, killed them
selves
The room in which Judge Parker
holds his court is located in the barracks
of old Fort Smith, which was aban-
doned as a military post in 1873. The
fort hal quite a history. 1t was cstaD-
hshed In 1920, and was the scene of nu-
mcroEs thrilling engagements with In
dams. At the beginning of the late
war the Federal troops were driven out
by the Conlodcratcs, but the fort was
recapiurcl in 1852, and was hel until
hnally evacuated by the Government Il
years ago. The barracks, or Court
House as 1t is now called is surrounded
by high stone wall, now in a state Of
decay, bu: the battered portfolio, tell
The story of many hard-fought battles.
HE western wall runs almost up to the
Boundary line of the Indian Territory,
ana one can stand upon it ana throw
stone INTO the nation of either the Choc-
law or Cherokee tribe. Adjoining the
court house Is the Federal prison.
Massive structure of brick and
non that is at all times
crowded TO overlooking with Grim
-na!s. 1t now contains 1856 prisoners,
some Of whom are among the most
noted desperadoes of the Indian coun-
Try. Most Of them are whites, the aver
age being seven whites and two negroes
10 one Indian. This is partly account