The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-07-21
DYING MAN CoNFEssEs PERJURY
And a. q Result Four Convicts are Let
On, ,hs K ansas Penitentiary

Topeks kan. July Ex-Governor
Morrill, Yesterday signed four pardons.
| which will Immediately release from
the state penitentiary William Judd,
Oliver Ellis, John Surnecn and George
Yeager. who were sent up for white
Gaping, Joseph Bielman and his wife
near Strong City early in 1894.
II was claimed and believe by the
people in rhe vicinity of Cottonwood
Falls and Strong City that Bielman
and his wife were guilty of consider
able crooke6nesS, and they were order
| ed TO leave the county This Bielman
refused to do and showed fight. In the
excitement which followed the skull
| and crossbones sign of the white caps
were placed on Bielman's door. Still
| he was firm and refused to heed the
| repeated anonymous communications
ordering him 10 get out and take his
wife with him.
His persistent refusal 10 leave Chase
county and the continuation of the
crookedness which was attributed TO
him and his wife aroused some person
or persons in the county who went TO
Bielman's house one night and called
upon him TO come forth, bag and bag
gage, prepared TO unceremoniously va
cate the house and latter TO leave the
county.
In the row which followed Bielman
his wife was more or less used up,
though she made a hot fight to remain
at home. and they succeeded, from the
fact that when the husband was shot,
the assailants Withdrew
Subsequent trial of the case resulted
in the conviction Of the four men men,
toned on the testimony given by Bel
man and his wife. The entire proceed
ings created great excitement in Chase
Tended Bielman. Now another turn
is given TO the affair by the fear of
Bielman that he is about to die and he
has made an affidavit in which he sets
forth the facts that he testified false
ly and that the men who were sent to
the penitentiary TO do service for the
crime. so far as he knows, are wholly
innocent and that he was unable to
identify them in any particular as the
persons who assaulted him on that
eVentful night.
The affidavit is as follows:
Il do not think that ! can live and
now feeling that l am dying 1t is my
desire and wish TO say that on June
IS, 1894, in Chase county, Kansas,
was shot by whom 1 cannot say and
that / now feel there is being a great
injustice done to William Judd, Oliver
Ellis, John Surf ech and George Yae-
ger; that 7 could not and did not iden-
tify any OF the parties and can not say
that they Were at my house at the
time 1 was shot
Il have caused my own death by not
obeying my physician, and now fully
realize that l am at deaths door"
County Attorney Butler makes the
following addition to the affidavit:
''That the said Bielman tried to sign
the said statement but from loss of
blood and weakness was unable to do
so.'
His wife. Erminia Bielman, also
signed the affidavit in which she says
that she could not identify her assail-
ants and that her first testimony was
false. In addition 10 the affidavitS of
the two most interested parties, the pc
titon for the pardon was signed by
eleven members of the jury which re-
turned the verlict of guilty and by
600 citizens of Cottonwood Falls, Strong
City and Chase comfy.
Under the recommendation of the
state board of pardons Governor Nor
rill issued an unconditional pardon to
the four men.