The evening world., 1894-06-05
INNOCENT, YET A PRISONER.
HEMINGWAY SUFFERED FOR AN
OTHERS CRIME.
Convicted Of n Theft which He
Never Committed.

Ex-State Treasurer Hemingway. OF
Mississippi. has been trying for four
years to work out n most awkward and
difficult problem. says the Springfield
Republican. He has kept every cell In
his brain substance buzzlng and every
conyolutior In It's gray matter active In
trying TO make clear to his conscience
Just how he. an innocent man, who never
defraudad his State or any one else OF a
cent, should be locked up In prison, u
convicted embczEler.
True. there were awkward facts against
him which were skilfully used at his
trial by the prosecution and which con
WINGED the jury Of his ~guilt-facts which
he really admitted, but which did not re.
move the reasonable doubt OF his guilt
from hts own mind. Somehow, as he sat
in the courtroom n listened to the
evidence and the pleas, II seemed clear
enough that the man on trial must be
until he remembered who the man on
trial was and knew that he knew hat
man to be innocent.
1T was proved on the trial that he,
siss!ppi, and In that capacity had in his
charge several ..undreds OF thousands Of
dollars In State funds. 1t was further
proved that when his term expired and
nv "i' "ti'u uloii - " i''i'h
over to his successor, his vaults were
empty and the States money gone:
Still further II was proved, and he ad-
mitted It in his testimony. that nobody
but himself had access to the vaults, and
no one else knew the combination to the
safes In which the stolen money was
kept. His books were correct. and they,
too. proved the shortage and Heming-
ways responsibility for 1t.
With all this mass OF evidence before
1t. what could the jury, do but bring in a
verdict Of guilty while the one man in
verdict. because he knew better, was
Hemingway. There was a lingering
hope in the mind Of the Judge. who knew
thai there was some horrible mistake
somewhere. because, for one reason, the
missing money could not be traced to the
convicted ex-Treasurer-not a penny OF
It. He had made no Increase In his eX-
penditures. had not speculated nor de-
veloped any bad habits.
Everybody gave warm testimonials to
his character, and to justify them he
sess freely and willingly to the state to
make good It's loss. All these things
weighed with the Judge, who made the
sentence sensIs.snt he w} R%F0n wSsf ses ss l1sh ,se as en was
years in state prison.
Four Of these Ave years are nearly
gone, and the problem which has turned
exhausted his brain power is finally
solved.
How the clue vas found we do not know,
but found II was ana followed, and now
all Mississippi knows that jury and
Judge and public opinion were wrong
and Hemingway right In his persistent
assertion OF his innocence.
Instead of being the robber. he was
robbed, almost before his eyes. When
he 'swore on his trial that he alone had
access to the vaults and knew the com
hlnation to the safes which held the
State funds. he did not know that this
knowledge had been stolen from him.
and that the. thieves were stealing the
money ne had sworn to guard.
Now he knows that this was the case,
and so does the Grand Jury which In
dicted him, the District-Attorney who
prosecuted him. the petit jury which con-
victed him and the Judge who sentenced
him. All these, with thousands OF citi-
zens all over the State. are asking the
Goyernor to pardon him. n soon he
been all the time had he been as vigilant
in the execution Of his trust as he Is
honest. He has paid u heavy penalty
for his carelessness.