The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-06-21
HE FELL BY THE WAY
AGREES TO GO TO THE PEN BUT
TRIES TO SAVE HIS PARD.
oe Ray Pleads Guilty to Larceny bnt Tries
to Save His Friend Ed Smith--Ray Is
Black while Smith Is White--OHcers
Get Word that Smith is Wanted in Illi-
nois for Murder--Smith Says he Robbed
DIR Trice After Singing a Song, "Fell by
the Wayside"--Ray Says Smith was not
with Him on south Fourth that Night.

Joe Ray, colored. and Ed Smith.
white, were brought into the district
court yesterday for trial, charged with
burglary and grand larceny.
On the 18th day Of last March DR..
Trice and his wife boarded a sleeper at
the Santa Fe depot. They were start
ing for trip 70 Europe and they depos-
tied their baggage, such as they would
need for every day use in the sleeper
and went out on the platform of the car
TO bid their friends goodbye and when
they returned their baggage was gone.
They notified the police of their loss
and that night Bedford Wood and Har-
ry Sutton dug up the goods down at
Pearl SaSlfords on South Fourth avenue
Pearl is a thrifty colored woman and
she claimed that she had bought the
goods of colored man, "Shine," and a
white man. Miss En- Armstrong said
the men had offered 10 sell her the goods
and she gave Woods and Sutton a de-
scription of the men anA-he officers ar
rested Joe AIRY and Ed Smith.
When the trial was called Joe Ray who
is rather bright colored man said he
would plead guilty to larceny if County
Attorney Davis would drop the charge
Of burglary, The county attorney did
that and Judge Reed sentenced him TO
two years and six months in the peni-
tertiary after which Smith entered
his plea of not guilty and then Joe Ray
went on the stand and swore that he
and Tommy Houston stole the baggage
and that Smith knew nothing OF il.
The officers say there is not ward Of
truth in Rays story about Houston
being with him. Rohrabaugh & Rauch
defended Smith and they made good use
of Joe Ray. Ray said his home was in
Pensacola, Florida, because, as he ex-
planned, he could go there when he
could go nowhere else.
In giving his history on the witness
stand Ray said he was a race rider and
had rode horses five years for Ed Corri-
gan In Kansas City. He rode one sea-
son for Young Brothers of st. Louis
and six years for Matt Fisher in Chi
cago.
The theory of the officers is that the
colored man is smart and he saw that
both he and his partner would get a
heavy term and he confessed thinking
he would get a short term and clear
Smith. He explained that he had never
seen Smith until that evening of the
robbery when he went into a joint on
East Douglas avenue and Smith treated
him to get him to sing song and that
AFTER ne got ire drink ne went out ana
stole the goods from the car.
The court asker Ray what song he
sang and he answered Failing By the
Wayside." Ray Joined in the laugh
with the spectators a t the apparent ri
diculousness of the situation. The coun
ty attorney wanted TO corner Ray and
make him admit that he had planned
to clear Smith but the colored man was
an expert at getting out of corners He
asked Ray to state at what particular
time he had made up his mind TO plead
guilty and Ray declared with much
the very moment that he stole them
things"
EN- Armstrong ard her colored cook
Maggie Reyes '-tifed Ed Smith as
being the white man who was with Ray
when they came to their place to dis
pose of the goods. Pearl Sanford and
Jessie Wilson also recognized Smith as
the man who came to their place with
Shine" that was their name for Ray.
Pearl said she never knew for one min
ute that the goods We're stolen but
shine" said he told Pearl all about ii
and that the people were gone off on the
train and that Pearl had said then If
they were gone she would buy the goods
The case was given to the jury last
night and they were instructed to re-
turn a sealed verdict and in the mean
time the officers claimed to have receiv-
ed intelligence that Ed Smith was want
ed in Illinois for murder and that if they
failed 10 convict him they would turn
him over 10 the Illinois authorities.
Smith has only been in Wichita a few
com ing here from Chicago.