The Pacific commercial advertiser., 1892-12-30

Illinois Wise Has q Narrow Is
cape From the GaUoWs.

Illinois Wise, the colored cook
who was accused of numbering o
Chinese on board the bark w. Il.
Dimond in April last, has pleaded
guilty to a charge of manslaughter,
and was sentenced to ten years
imprisonment. The following par
ticuIars are taken from the San
Francisco Call:
There was an interesting case before
Judge McKenua Of the United States
Circuit Court yesterday Goth inst,) when
Illinois Wise, 4 COlored man, was called
! for sentence.
Wise was indicted for murday on the
| high seas and pleaded guilty to q charge
! Of manslaughter, which was accepted by
! the Government His case had been
| heard before the United States Commis-
| siOner, and yesterday the testimony was
| rehashed to the Circuit Judge.
The charge against Illinois Wise was
| the murder Of a Chinese in April last on
! board the American bark w. II. DimOnd
/ while living in the harbOr Of Honolulu
| According to the testimony yesterday,
Wise secreted the Chinese on board the
w. II. Dmond few days previous to
sailing, having agreed to import him to
America for 4 sum OF money.
The Chinese was duly taken on board
and hid in Wise's room. About two days
before sailing Wise killed the Mongolian
with a croWbar and threw the remains
overheard. He also threw the bed
clothes in which the Chinese had slept
INTO the harbOr after putting pieces of
coal in.
The body Of the murdered man was
discovered as was also the bed clothing,
and the crime was fastened on the col
| Ored cook of the vessel.
As the murder was committed on an
! American vessel the case had to be tried
! in this country.
| When the case was called before the
! Commissioner, Wise told an improbable
! story about another Chinese and the
watchman of the vessel having killed the
! man, and that he had arrived on the
! scene just rs the crime was being com
! mitted. While the Chinese was still
| gurgling on the floor the men dragged
| him and threw him overheard. Wise
! assisted because the murder had been
! committed in his room, and he was
| afraid to be implicated in it. For this
| reason he pleaded guilty to the crime oI
! manslaughter.
Yesterday Carroll Cook made plea
| for ClemenCy on the part Of the court fOl
| Wise, but Attorney Lindsey, represent
! ing the Hawaiian Government, strongly
! objected, and showed by the testimony
| how the crime had been a cowardly anC
| bloody one, the Chinese having beer
murdered in his sleep by being struck or
! the head with a crowbar. During the
! remainder of the voyage Wise refused tC
| sleep in his own room.
United States District Attorney Garter
| stated that as Wise had made a plea o
| guilty TO the crime of manslaughter auC
as it would cause the Government much
trouble and expense to press the charge
| OF murder, the prisoners plea had beer
accepted
Judge McKenna ordered the prisoner
! TO stand up, and said that ii he deserved
| any ClemenCy he had got all due to hin
| when the Government accepted his pleG
| on the lesser charge. He then sentenced
Wise to ten years Imprisonment in Fol
! som prison together with fine OF $1,000
| Wise escaped very luckily, as there
| was a dead case OF murder against him
| Carroll Cook was jubilaut at the lucky
| escape Of his client, and on the COnclu
| sion OF the courts remarks said he leI
! "bully.' The sentence with credits Onl,
means six and Il half years imprison
/ ment for the crime for which Wise cs
/ capped hanging.
/ -->s-p-S---
Gold lettering at the GAzErTl
! . y