The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-03-18
POWERFUL SPEECH
BYJ. GREEN.
A Forcible and Telling Argument
For the Defendants in the
Hillmon Case.

OF Plaintiffs Attorneys and Calls
Attention so Their Weaknesses and
Alleged Discrepancies OF Statement.
LFrom the Court stenograph er's Reportl
Gentlemen of the jury, the attorneys
for the other side tell you that this is a
fight between a weak woman and three
of the weaIthiest corporations in the
world, this | deny, rather is it, gentle
men, a fight based upon murder, be-
tween grasping attorneys, who have put
this woman up in front for them to fight
behind, u fight to obtain $4,000 of the
sacred trust funds belonging to and held
in trust for the future widows and or
phans of American citizens-mayhap
gentlemen. your future widows and or
phans-that is the real meaning of this
fight which has been continued for fif-
teen long years. This gentlemen. is no
fight between a woman and corpora
tion-which these attorneys would make
you believe.
John w. Hillnnon insured his life
for $4,000, an unheard of amount
for man in his condition of life, which
insurance was obtained by reason of
conspiracy to defraud these defendants,
the conspirators consisting of John w.
Hillmon, Levi Baldwin and John Fl.
Brown, a conspiracy which is proven by
Levi Baldwin going to DIR. Phillips and
ascertaining from him how long it takes
q body to decompose after death and
burial, how insurance money is obtained
after death, and then saying, doc,
wouldn't it be good plan to insure ones
life, get a.Greaser and pass it off on the
companies" There is the first step, gen.
tlemen, in the conspiracy. We next see
this man Baldwin, accompanied by Hill
fc AffnFunu RIvth0 of Ton a
noxie. to find out how life insurance can
be obtained, and how, in the event
of death, it can be collected. We
find Blythe recommending them to see
certain life Insurance agents in Law
renee, aud in pursuance thereof we find
the same Baldwin and the same Hiilmon
calling unsolicited upon Mr.. Selig and
Maior Wiseman; we find them before in
surfing DESTROYS of knowing how the
money could be collected in case of
death; strange proceeding, gentlemen,
for death is the last thing Que thinks of
wneu insuring. We find them solicitous
of the policy conditions and calling upon
Lawyer Shannon. Passing strange to
have insurers hunting up agents; rather
should it have been agents hunting up
insurers, for you know gentlemen, that Is
the usual way.
When HilImon insured he stated that
he was cattle ranch owner, whereas it
turned out subsequently that he was a
simple herder, miner and teamster, and
when he was married he and his wife
kept house in a single room; Mrs. Hill
mon doing the cooking on the landlady' S
cook stove. God forbid, gentlemen,
that I should blame anyone for being
poor, as am poor enough myself pow
erty is no disgrace, but poor people earn
ing $50 to $50 per month, do not insure
their lives Tor the enormous sum of $685.
OOO-requiring annual payments of over
$500. Consider, gentlemen, that bIr.
Hillmon. while in Medicine Lodge, stay
ed and lived in Ileff's livery stable on
the first trip, first trip which resulted
in nothing being accomplished SO far as
procuring a body was concerned. On
his arrival at Wichita he ascertained that
the companies objected to his not having
been vaccinated and he returned to Law
renee for the purpose of acceding to
this stipulation. You will remember
gentlemen, that this killing occurred on
the 18th of March, and that it was first
heard of in Lawrence on the oath of the
same month. And, gentlemen of the
jury, strange to relate, the first person to
inform Mrs. Hillnon of the shooting was
Levi Baldwin. Levi Baldwin, you see,
gentlemen, crops up at every turn of the
game. You find him here, there and
everywhere. How did Levi Baldwin
learn thisf
Then the companies learned of it, and
the attorneys on the other side would
have you believe that the companies
then tried to cheat this poor woman out
of tho insurance on her husbands life
which was rightfully hers if that was
Hillmon's body. Think of it, gentlemen
companies which are paying one million
dollars per month to their members
cheating this poor woman out of $25, 900
which is a mere bagatelle to them. Why
should they do this? These companies
are not corporations, but mutual benefit
associations whose trust funds belong to
their members, the custodians of which
are bound in law to protect the members
money from such similar frauds as this
The gentlemen on the other side tell you
that it was wrong for the companies t
inquire into and investigate the cause
of death. They tell you that because
Wiseman, the agent of the Mutua
Life, and Colonel Walker, the noted
frontiersman, went to NJ edicine Lodge
to see whether it was the
body of Hillmon or not that these
companies, forsooth, were conspiring t.
defraud this woman. On arrival at Medi
cine Lodge they found there Levi and
Alva Baldwin and John Il. Brown. al
three of whom refused to allow the bod1
to be taken to Lawrence for indentifica
tion. And, gentlemen, you will remem
Der that when that body YVES taken up
the coffin opened, the cloth removed
from the face, that Alva Baldwin, tn,
brother of Levi, who was not in the con
Bpiracy, Immediately exclaimed. HI
that isn't John HilImon." There wa
the truth spoken, gentlemen, if eve
truth was spoken by the only man VIII
was not conspirator.
''The body was then taken to Hutch
inson by wagon, and from Hutchinson
to Lawrence, and the attorneys on tn
other side, gentlemen, exclaim, IF tina
were not HiIlmon's body why did no
Brown fly instead of bringing it t,
hutchinson? And answer, gentlemen
that be did not fly because that was tn
surest proof of his guilt If the conspir
Icy should succeed Brown must accom-
many the bodv to Tawranca. hut routIo