The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-10-02
LIES BROUGHT HOME.
Champion of Murderer Craze
mer Writes SANDERS.
STILL SEEKING JACK QUINCY.
Facts Grossly Misstated I'm an Appeal
for Funds - Mayor Phelps and
Chief Rogers Answer.

The impression which prevails among
many eStimable but only half-educa-ed
5 people il the far East that as soon as
white man goes west Of the Rocky mount
: aims he lapses into barbarism has received
considerable support from a disloyal citi-
zen OF Seattle who has been carried away
BY his zeal to save the neck Of Henry
Craemer, the condemned murderer. This
man has written letter to the New York
/ Stats Zeitung. the most influential Ger
man-American newspaper in the country,
/ in which he begins by falsely claiming that
Mayor Phelps has verified his statements.
AID then goes on 10 picture Craemer as an
innocent man who is being railroaded 10
+ the gallows by bloodhound detectives and
corrupt judges. urged on by blood-thirsty
/ press. The man who has taken up Craze
mer's cause most actively is Otto f. Wege-
ner, and the article in the Stats Zeitung
/ bears internal evidence OF his authorship.
/ translation follows:
Some time ago We published an article
I on the unjust sentence of German
| named Craemer in Seattle Washington,
/ and on the efforts Of his fellow country
| men in that place 10 save him. This
| movement has so far failed, chiefly from
| lack of the necessary funds. The COM
mittee which has taken the cause in
hand has sent US an article verified by
the mayor Of that place with a request
TO induce humane people here 10 give Pc
cuniaTy aid 10 the effort TO save hin. " e
are ready TO receive subscriptions and 20
forward them 10 the committee"
From the article we extract the follow
ing points:
Tale of Craemer's WRONGS
"On August Is. 1894. a woman and her
child residing in the most unsafe portion
OF the city were found murdered ana their
house plundered. On August IA an hon
| est German workman, Henry CraemeT,
living in another part of the city was ar
rested on suspicion of the crime on the
false complaint Of a characterless detec-
tive and taken 10 the city jail, where he
was Immediately confined in the sweat
box That is the torture chamber fer
imprisoned suspects, which has come into
use under the present police board. II is
small pitch-dark cell with cement floor
and walls. without any furniture, foul
smelling and fun of vermin. There Craze
mer had no help for il. but the chief OF
police threatened TO make d chain Of CIR
cumstantial evidence TO hang MIN, ana
next day made a sworn complaint that
Craemer had committed the murder
Sixteen days after the complaint had
been filed against him by the chief, Craze
mer was arraigned. on the day after
| Craemer's arrest the chief took all the
money Mrs. Craemer had. S29, under the
pretext that IL was stolen from the muir
dered woman's house Thus robbed of
all means and not in a position 70 en-
gage a lawyer OF ability, Craemer was
obliged to let a defender be named for
him by the court. He appointed Swede
| Of very small legal knowledge
THE lawyer did nothing for the defense
! of Craemer until the beginning of the
| trial, and, although il would only have
cost him a couple Of hours and couple
of dollars to find evidence for an alibi in
the neighboring city of Tacoma (where
Craemer had been at the time the murder
| was committed In Seattle) he conducted
the defense without any evidence what
| ever The city government had been pro-
yided by the chief Of police with numer-
| Gus witnesses, chiefly bought. Craemer
and his wife went voluntarily on the wit
| ness stand and publicly told what they
| had 10 say without contradiction. Thelr
statements made very favorable impress
| sion on the public. but the native Ameri-
can newspap ers cried: 'Craemer Is gull
| ~ He is a monster" And so the limo
| cent man. against whom there was no
| trace OF direct evidence. almost without
| defense. was found guilty and sentenced
| 10 death.
A Screed Against Everybody.
'.The chief of police IS a pillar Of the
ruling Republican machine, through his
| influence with the owners of the gambling
| heus .tingel tanger and ether dives in
/ the whitechapel district. The city gov
eminent and Judges are OF the same po-
| Ntical color and category, the supreme
/ Judges likewise. The latter gentlemen
| aid not read the testimony through even
| once but based their decision mainly on
| the living statements of the local Iepub-
lean daily press and therefore refused
| the appeal for a new trial
This judicial abomnaton vas made
| clear to the supreme judges from the
| text OF their own decision and from that
| ~ the articles in an English-Amer!can
| nd rhNr a0neai Tor re-
| hearing was made in order TO give the
! ;uagos an opportunity TO repair their
! criminal negligence. But all I'm vain! The
! anneal was rejected. the death sentence
| confirmed and November 1 was set for
| the execution.
Funds Wanted for New Appeal.
J ..The means Of those who have for ten
| months lahored for the unfortunate man
/ ara exhausted. and more money Us now
! rsr1sd for II. our lawyer Will appeal 10
/ the United States supreme court To do
this our laws require that the state SUI
| prcrne court give its consent. II thls Is on
! tanned considerable funds are needed Tor
/ the expenses OF the appeal If consent is
/ refused nothing remains but 10 Law before
! the governor ali quickly obtainabie evil
/ dence Of Craemer's innocence and thereoy
/ 70 obtain his parglon or at least commuta-
! zion Of his sentence from death 10 trpris-
( ornent until full evidence OF his innocence
! can be given and his release procured
I'm the expectation that. Judging by the
( manner in which the state supreme court
{ has hitherto handled the case. the appeal
/ 10 the United States supreme court VIII
. rot DC granted and a pardon will remain
( the only means 81 saving him, we have
I em3Ioved detectives 20 seek ont the neces-
; sarv evidence to prove Craemer's abb
/ Some minor witnesses have already been
found. bat not the principal witness, who
I in the meantime has gone into the gold
, and silver mines in the mountains and IS
( therefore hard to find. And the detectives
( 5o not undertake such labCr.cus ard
/ costly search after witnesses without good
+ nav md we have no NOR money. and
stul worse. TO time 70 walt long FOR it.
"fr THIS extreme necessity We turn to
/ tha tftrmaus % She whole country WITH tie
fnclose3 appeal for help
What the Mayor Did Write.
The mayor vas seer 81 regard - the
I statements made oy WtErner and referred
the reporter 20 the copy book 10 which was
( copied letter written by him Septrrr2e~
.. tn response 20 inquiries sent from the
Fast on tae subscription matter The iet-
ter. after reviewing tae case, briefly tells
Of WfEsDers Nls+t 20 the mayor about a
w-fk previous asking him Tor a letter
touching an his ~ EEnrr's} honesty in
closed ,u ths letter was ore written hv
chef 90 Police Rogers touching on ne
case. ana N-l-'e7 a. tse request OF Mr.
Phelps. The letter written h. the rlsvo~
vas as follows
In reply 30 yoGr favor y the e-.h tns-
CT t.4f - =