The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-08-22
ALL SAY NOT GUILTY
Accused japanese Murderers
Tell Their Story.
SUSPICION CAST on ANOTHER.
An Interpreter Hears Their nefense
and Learns why Saksmnrs
Attempt-a saleads-


been enabled To tell their sids Of the case.
an interpreter IN the person Of c. C4rrosh-
sFs having bad an intervlsw with them
yesterday. They ell deny their gait OF
the crime, and one Of them throws saspie-
Ion on another japanese named TomisA,
who has not been arrested Mr.. Carroth-
ers Is sell equipped TO serve as interpreter.
having lived twenty years ia Japan as
tesehe. and speaking japanese like . ma
tive, and the three prisoners were much
cheered up 10 End 9 white man who could
naenily converse with them in their own
tongue A reporter OF the Posr-IsTEIIr-
GKseEz saw Mr. carrotheTs after MS visit
10 the Jail, and secured an interesting in-
terriew from him. lie said.
SIN the FIRST place you want TO get their
several names correet. Not one paper has
60 far published any Of their names as
they really are. All japanese names are
made mp Of compound words. embracing
men, cities places. The name OF this man
who attempted suicide Is Nakamura-
Naka means interior and mnra village;
Yokohama means across seashores lokio
To Is eastern and kio capital Satkto.
Sal is western and kio capital. and so on.
Well. I was sent for TO see these men and !
was first taken To NakamuTa's CELL i
found him in bed, gloomy, respondent.
aud the very picture OF despair. told
him TO get up, wash himself, brighten
himself Tor long talk. Finding white
man talking his native language 10 him
AZ first assonished hIm, but IL soon acted
on him like rag Of sunshine, and he soon
after became quite communicative,
answering all my questions freely
and without any hesitation and doing so
in such q free manner as 10 impress me
fAvoTably as 10 his innocence lie firmly
protested that be knew nothing of the
murder He had lad but slight &C
quaintanoe with the dead man and had
never had any quarrel with him whatever.
The only business transaction they had
ever had was that the dead man loaned
him little money, ali OF which Naka-
mura had returned with the exception OF
Is cents, so there was no possible incentive
on his part, he SAID, 10 murder Nageda.
j then questioned him about his at
tempted suicide, be hung bis head and
said that shame, disgrace and utter de-
spondency were the only cause. lie had
never in his country been In prison on
account Of q crime and rnding himseii
suddenly locked mp charged with murder.
not knowing the English language, LETT
alone, seemingly deserted by his own
counlrymen, despair seized him and, not
knowing the laws and fearing they were
taking him TO Auburn to hang him. he de-
termined by suicide to save bis people at
home the disgrace OF an ignominious death.
/ then told him what his countrymen
were doing for him; that they had en-
ployed tirst-class lawyer TO protect his
interests and see that he got fair trial.
This seemed 10 cheer him up at once.
"'If they give me fair trial, he said, 1
am not afraid of the results, for am an
innocent man.
II found Nakamura q fairly well edu-
Gated man, of spirited and highly strung
nervous temperament, and above the
average Of the iaboring classes. OF which,
however. he Is not exactly q member. His
father, he told me. IL O rich farmer At
home. He. NAkamura. came to this coun-
try two years ago TO learn the language
and acquire some business knowledge that
ne could utilize 10 advantage at home.
Hard times, however, forced him TO do
lsborer's work, and be has been getting
along the best ne possibly could This is
the substance IF what he said, and when l
left him be expressed himself as feeling
much better satisfied with the outlook.
The other two Japanese in Jail for COM
plicity in the murder were brought out 10
me simply In the iailers room. They are
Sstow and Aoki. Both men are OF the
laboring class of japanese. somewhat older
men than Nakamura, bat both can write.
as was evidenced by their giving me their
names on paper. In fact they would rank
as among the more intelligent class In their
own country Both men Tidicuied the idea
of their being connected with the murder
and gave such fair account OF themselves
as TO leave strong impression on my
mind that they are innocent. am not
quite so positive about Nakamura though
his story had the ring OF truth about IT,
"Aoki, the frst man brought out in the
iailsr's Office. said ne had been working
Tor Mayeda the man who was murdered,
ever since be came 20 this country last
April and remained with him until some
two weeks before the murder. when he
left Mayeda's service because there was no
more work for him. lie said he mad never
qaarraled with Mayeds. although Mayeda
failed 10 nav him his three months salary.
which was still due. something ike $50.
When be first went 10 work Tor Mayeda
he had five Japanese At work for him.
Mayeda was RAINING ranch and had
a large potato crop, the understanding be-
Ing that Mayeda would pay the wages out
of the proceeds Of the sale OF hts CROP.
Three OF these FIVE japanese left Mayeda
and two remained with him and were IA
the building IN = separate room st the
time Of the murder. AoKi claimed that
not one OF those three Japanese who left
MayedAs service had any quarrel with
him.
The third Jap. satow. said he had
never worked for MAyeia. though he had
visited the house frequently. aud on one
occasion had remained al night with the
other men one of the i've men who had
worked for Mayeda had told him, Satow.
after the murder. that Jap named
Tomlta. who had az one time worked for
Mayeda, had had a quarrel about wages
after having been discharged BY him.
Tomita. he said. was now At work for an
other japanese some two and a half miles
away from the dead mans ranch. aud
Satow limited that Tomlta might be the
man who committed the murder
Neither sAtow nor Aoki had heard Of
NnkAmura's attempted suicide, and shen
/ told them Of is they admitted that it
looked SUSPICIOUS. but could reconcile u
on the ground 81 despair and dependency
becanse they said they felt very bad them
selves. confined a. they we're, and. as they
thought. friendiess and deserted. They
also felg relieved when informed Of the ac-
ton OF their friends and eountTymen AID
the protection 81 lawyer.
suicide i. q characteristic Of the Japan
csc peaple, and when a man fees that he
has eixgrAced hss family or relatives be al
once ends his iite.
.No. not by shArl-kari,' as you call II,
nor ~ hara-kiri. TIE correct name.
either. bat by the most ready method az
bsna by which 10 Shuttle OF The mortal
yapauess coil. Hara-kiri l. n compound
Of Two wnr.ts, meaning hara. stomach. and
kfrf. cutting. That method OF suicide -
no longer IA use. and Is strictly forbidden
BY las"
The three Jarznsse. Nzksmura, sAtow
ana Aokt, wlll Re taken 10 Aaburn az 3
o'clock thls morning, where NakamurA
vii be given = preliminary hearing. Mr.
Cerroshsgs has been secured As "a serprs-
ter. ana wiil accompany the officers.