The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-05-30
THE HILO MURDER TRIAL.
Acquitted-Address Of the
Chief Justice to the Convicted Muir
derer-The Death Sentence Pro-
nOunced Against Him.
TWO TRIALS.

derer-The Death Sentence Pro-
nounced Against Him.
TWO TRIALS.
The case OF the King vs.. Yagi and
Yagachi (Japs), charged with a murder
GUS assault on a Chiuaman at kohala,
came on for trial and a verdict Of guilty
was rendered. The Acknowledgement
and Mr. Creighton Tor the Crown; Mr..
KatsUra for the defense. The next was
that OF the King vs.. Wo Sau, tor the
murder OF QuOn Zip at HonCmu, HilO,
last july, and indicted as accessories
with him were Lam Gee, alias Aki, and
Ten Yick. Seventy-hye persons were
examined, and a day or two elapsed,
before an unbiased jury was obtained.
The Attorney-GeneraI assisted by Mr.
Creighton was for the prosecution;
Messrs. Neumann, w. Ashford, d. H.
Hitchcock and Miss Hitchcock for the
prisoners. The jury have been quartered
in the Old COney premises, when out OF
Court.
The following was specially written for
the z. G. ADVERTISER.
The May term of the Circuit Court of
the Third Judicial Circuit was held at
Hilo, Hawaii, opening on May 9TH and
closing May 27, 1899. Fifty-nine cases
were disposed OF, there being fourteen
Jury trials. The "HOnOmu MURDER
case occupied eight days and resulted in
va verdict OF conviction against WO Sau
of murder, and of aCquittal in favor of
Aki and Ten Yick, charged as access
cries before and after the fact. On SEN
fencing WO Sau the Chief Justice said
Wo Sau: You have been convicted
by the jury of one of the highest crimes
known to the law, that of murder. The
jury which heard the evidence in your
case and found you guilty of this awful
crime were selected after a day and d
half spent in examining some seventy
five persons summoned to serve, and
none were accepted in your case who
disclosed a bias or prejudice from what
they have heard against you. The main
evidence against you was that OF accom-
plices with you in this crime, but this
oral evidence has been subStantiated
and cOrrObOrated in so many particulars
by undisputed facts and circumstances as
to leave no doubt in the mind of the
Court that you were one of those ten
who killed Kwon Zip.
| am OF opinion that this man rend-
cred himself obnoxious to you and others
of your class by reason of his having be-
come an informer to the authorities of
the offenses too common among the
OF gambling and illicit selling OF intOxi-
eating liquors. | think there is no doubt
that this murder was planned in a
room of the zee Wo Hing Co.,
in this town, a society formed from
among the Chinese, with a large
membership, with Ostensible objects
which are good and praiseworthy as,
shown by its rules which were hung in
its hall where the public could see them.
Enough has been shown during this
trial to create a strong suspicion that the
real character OF this Society is of a far
different nature than its public rules
would indicate, and certainly ii such
bloody deeds are cOncOCted in its sane
tuaTy as that shown to the jury in your
case, it is a most dangerous organization
and a standing menace to the peace and
good order of our community. TheSieath
of this obnoxious man was deliberately
planned and he was by you allured to a
lonely place in a valley away from public
notice, there toasted to sUrIeItiug,
drugged with Intoxicating liquors and
opium and his life crushed out OF him,
and his poor body carried like a dumb
Orute's and buried disnterred and buried
again in a secret and secluded spot But
conscience hdunts the guilty, and to
avoid the detection OF this crime, the
bones OF the victim were again dlSln-
TERED and buried in secret and unlikely
places and distributed where it was
hoped they would not be brought to the
hight Of day. But these very means of
avoiding detection have proved in the
Providence OF God to be the means OF
your conviction. [ think the thanks OF
the Government and the community are
due to the Sheriff Of this Island whose
patience and skill finally brought Chi9
t.rl, md v,,;cl,ad deed to HgLlT. 1t is
- -, be resesretted tir1at no others of
vonr co-cZ224z1IT5p1TatOrs and cO-murdereIs
have been arrested. All who took part
in and witnessed this murder have es-
capped, as is thought, from this kingdom,
except you and those who have been
used as witnesses for the State.
The law says that your life is forfeited
as the penalty for having participated in
the killing of Kwon Zip. ] earnestly
exhOrt you to prepare for the eternity
into which you will soon be ushered by
repentance OF your sins and faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ.
Prisoner at the bar. Listen to the
sentence of the law: 1t is that you be
taken hence to the place of your confne- !
ment in the prison of the island of Oahu, /
there to remain until the first Monday /
in the month of August next, and that !
on that day between the hours of s |
O'Clock in the morning and II o'clock at |
noon within the walls of said prison, you
be hung by the neck until you are dead !
and may God have mercy on your soul |
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