The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-11-04
GROVER CLEVELAND.
Incidents in His Life Before He
Became Famous.
Legal NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. tho Ex-Presi-
dents Former Lawyer Associates Have
to Say About HIS Methods In
the Court Room.
IoorYn1cHr, 1892. l

10 sly ABOUT 11D III CbhO0D A
the Court Room.
IoorYRIGHT, 1892
Despite the publicity that inevitably
hedges about the public man and the
successful politician, there is usually
one side of his story that is imperfectly
told, if at all, and that is that which
more, perhaps, than any other tells the
impartial and simple story OF the man
as he is or was. It is the evidence of
his intimates, unconsciously and anec-
dotally relating what manner of man
was their friend before the coming OF
that tidal wave which swept him from
them to fame, and, perchance. to that
apotheosis of endeavor where burns the
bright light which falls upon throne.
The folk lore of country indicates
better than the historian its mental
characteristics, and what may be APP
propriately called the folk lore Of a
man is a better index to his character
than volumes of caustic blame or full
some panegyric.
Grover Cleveland has his folk lore.
It has been the province of the writer
of this article to gather together these
fragmentary testimonials of the men
who were of old his dearest disciples
and present them as a whole. They
concern the man as he was, and must
be found amusing since they are abso-
lutely authentic and hail from brother
lawyers in Buffalo who were the life
long friends and associates of the pres
ent democratic standard bearer and ex-
president
Franklin D. Locke, chairman of the
Erie county provisional committee,
through whose efforts largely was
brought about the famous 'Anti-Ko-
bakers" May convention who fought
the Sheehan-Hill men tooth and nail
at every point until the final coalition
following the Chicago convention, has
this story to tell:
ct have known Grover Cleveland a
great many years, and could, sup
pose, tell many anecdotes of him. The
leading one in my mind, however, con-
Germs the case of man named Flanac
gan, whom he saved from death on the
gallows. Flanagan, while drunk, had
killed his landlord. I believe they
were both creatures of low intelligence,
the one stevedore, the other para
site of stevedores who boarded the
workingmen and charged them for
their living all they earned to
the uttermost farthing. Grover
Cleveland was so identified with
the case that never hear the name of
Flanagan mentioned but l think of
this Flanagan and how Cleveland saved
his neck from the hangman's moose.
Certainly, if Providence ever interfercd
in mundane affairs it interfered this
time to save this wretched Irishman.
think the year was 1881 or 1882. and the
man in question had been sentenced to
death. He had been defended by the
late Ammi Cutter and the late H. B.
Greene. and the jury had condemned
him. He was to have been executed On
a Friday. The preceding Wednesday
night a man who boarded ut the Tiff
house heard certain lawyers discussing
the case, and heard them say that had
Flanagan been a man of means he
would never have been convicted of
murder in the first degree. This
wealthy man had occasional streal1s of
kindness and generosity, and the words
fired his blood. He left his dinner and
proceeded to look the matter up. He
came that very evening to my house
and got me to interest myself in the
matter / went with him and saw Mr..
Cutter, Flanagan's lawyer, and got
what light on the subject could be OBJ
tairstl from him. Ee stated Ills sincere
conviction that TIE degree sho~so have
been the second and not the first Of
criminality. as generalization or any
thing like generalization had not been
even imperfectly proven. When we
left the lawyers house my friend said:
Il won't see this man die without an eff
fort We must write dispatch to Gov
Cornell Mind you, this was Wednes-
day night, and the execution was fixed
for Friday morning and time was
precious.
I'VE framed telegram asking the
governor for respite on the ground OF
evidence newly discovered that Flana-
gan was not guilty of murder in the
first degree l signed it and so did he,
but that was not enough, He insisted
on invoking official interference, and
we hunted up Grover Cleveland, mayor
of the city, and got him to sign it, too.
That was his first connection with the
famous Flanagan case. From him we
went to Willard Powers Fillmore, son
of the ex-president, who also signed the
telegram. and it was sent. 1t resulted
in the obtaining of a respite for two
weeks, but the executive command was
followed quite promptly by an order
from Gov Cornell. addressed to Grover
Cleveland, commanding him and the
other subscribers to the telegram to
show cause at once before him at AL
bany why such telegram had been
sent, and appointing very early day
for hearing We ali four went 20 AL
bany and appeared at the stipulated
time. Mr.. Cleveland told me afterward
/, that his appearance at that time was
his first in the executive chamber or
even in the capitol at Albany.
And it was he made the argument TO
save Flanagan's neck, and saved it. too.
Cleveland had a hard judge to plead be-
fore. Cornell was very disagreeablc
and made every effort to accentuate the
position against the application and the
people who were before him in its be-
half. but Mr. Cleveland kept his temper
rrlaryelously and concluded his arpJl-