The Redwood gazette., 1891-04-02
W. F. HOLDEN'S STORY IN THE MIN
NEAPOLIS TRIBUNE

w. F. HOLDEN'S STORY IN THE MIN |
NEAPOLIS TRIBUNE
Iu VERNE, Mimi, March 25.-Where
as I, the brother of Clifton Holden,
who is to be executed the Sd day of
April, 1891, deem it best to let tho peo-
pie of the state of Minnesota know the
undue means used to convict him on
circumstantial evidence:
First, the coroner's inquest was not
half held. Second, ON the Saturday of
his arrest his clothing was taken away
from him, and he was not allowed any
until the following Monday, when he
was taken to New Ulm. Also, on Sun
day following his arrest, one F. E.
Warner, we'll known i'm St. Paul for
his truth and veracity, was allowed to
go into his cell to get statements from
him to contradict the one made at in
quest and was let in three or four diff
ferent times during the day and even
ing by the sheriff and his deputies, al
so was allowed to have whisky to try
and get him to partake of some. Now
this statement was written up all ready
for the occasion and ready to have him
sign, but it took said Warner the day
and evening to get him to partake OF
the whisky and then he induced him
to sign the statement that had been
prepared. Now if Mr.. Warner is low
and degraded enough to give him
whisky under the circumstances he is
low enough to drug what he did give
him. as he had no friends or counsel
at the time. At the time of the trial
the man that found the corpse should
have been the states best witness, but
no, he was not subpoenaed, nor was he
put on the stand till put on by the de-
fense. Now, when a sheriff is put on
the stand he is supposed to answer all
questions in a straightforward manner,
no matter who it hits, but such nas not
the case with Sheriff Mead; he evaded
all questions all he could. Also, there
was some witnesses put on by the state
that swore to a falsehood from the
start. Now we put on one witness by
the name of j. F. Drake that he was
positive he saw the party who was
found dead the evening previous in
one saloon in Redwood Falls. When
on the stand he was given photographs
to pick out the man that he saw, and
he picked out one he said resemblad
him, and it was lis brother, but Frank
Dodge's photograph was not with
them; if it had been he would have
picked it, but Mr.. Madigan had with
drew it and put the same in his pocket.
Now, at the close of the evidence there
was word sent in by six jurors for
neither lawyer to make a plea Now,
all any one could infer from same was
that they were for aquittal. Now, the
first ballot was cast between 8 and 9
o'clock in the evening and they stood
about evenly divided and at half past
10 in the evening they stood the same.
Now the jury was in charge of one Nc
Kenny and Brooks. Now, at half past
| 10 Brooks was on the outside of the
jury room and at this time entered the
jury room and found said McKenny
arguing the case with the jurors and
contrived to for one-half hour or more,
then sat down to the table in the jury
room and argued with said Brooks for
one half hour or more in the hearing
of all the jurors and during this time
there was some papers sent in from the
outside or carried in. One of the pa
pers falsely purported to have come
from Judge Webber and stated that
he in his charge to the jury had deenlt
too leniently with the prisoner, and SO
on in that strain and was thus left to
the jury to see, and lne other paper we
could not find out what it contained.
Now, the way it looks to me, no woman,
man nor child should be executed when
such undue influence is used by the
county to convict. Now, l do not up
hold any person, brother nor no one
else, to shoot or kill his fellow men in
cold blood, but before anyone is SEN
fenced to hang and is executed | like
to know that he did the same beyond
doubt, and not have jurors bulldosed
to bring in verdict of murder in the
first degree as in the present case. Now,
if the governor of the state of Minnesota
had commuted his sentence to imCr:s-
onment for life, l should have been
satisfied, because then, if some one else
had done this work which three or four
parties had sworn to do or any one, it
would have come out sooner or
later and would have given me chance
to make thorough investigation. But
being without means 1 was not given
the chance.
Now how often do we read of cases
where persons are hung on circum
stancial evidence and s. me time after
some one else confesses to the crime.
Now for instance l will cite one of re-
cent occurance. Now here is one where
man made confession on his death
bed that he killed man some fourteen
years ago in Iowa, now there was
man tried and convicted CT murder and
sent to states prison for life and has
served fourteen years of his life and
was an innocent man. Now what res
titution does he get? None. His family,
if he had one, turned out without
penny. Now if the man had been hung
and some one had confessed to have
done the killing after, l should look
upon the whole officials as bad as the
one that did the killing, although 1
suppose it would not trouble them as
it was an official hanging. Now as
this is all wish to say l remain, your
humble servant. W. F. HOLDEN.