The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1896-08-25
KENT IS SENTENCED
NOV. II Is THE DATE SET FOR THE
EXECUTION.
The Twice Convicted Wife Murderer
Death, but So Large and Infiuen-
tiaI Are the Petitions for Execu-
tive Clemency That Gov. Allin
May Commute the Sentence.

Fargo, n. D., Aug. 23.-To-day My
ron r. Kent, alias William Wiley Pan
coast, twice convicted of murder of
his wife in Mandan, three years ago.
was brought into court before Judge
W. b. Mcconnell and the third date
for his execution was set. The court
named Nov. u, at 2 o'clock p. M, as
the date for execution.
The case las twice been appealed to
the supreme court and the only hope
now left is executive clemency. Pc
titions are being circulated all over
the state on behalf of the condemned
man, and State Attorney Vose has
been legally notified that the defense
will seek a commitment Of the SEN
tence. 1t is said that Juror Newman,
who held out for more than fifty bal
lots against the death penalty, Will
personally appear before Gov, Allin in
Kent's behalf. He will claim that he
was coerced into bringing in a YER
diet for the death penalty by the
threats of other jurors, and w. j.
Price of Fargo is named as one of the
men who assisted in forcing his vote.
1t is the general opinion that Gov.
Allin cannot disregard the large Pc
titions so infuentially signed, as will
be presented to him, and that Kent
will not hang.
History of the Case
The conviction Of Kent was, in both
trials, on the uncorroborated testi-
mony of Thomas Swidenslzy, supported
by the circumstance of Kent's not re-
turning to Mandan after the murder of
Mrs. Kent All the testimony bearing
on the relations existing between Kent
and his wife were to the effect that the
couple had always lived happily to-
gether, and even Earl Kent, who was
supposed to be one of the star wit
nesses for the prosecution, testified
that mamma and papa never used to
quarrel. SWidensky claimed that
Kent promised him $4,000 to murder
Mrs. Kent The famous little black
book was presented in evidence, in
which SWidensky alleged he wrote the
plan of the murder at the dictation of
Kent. The writing Of the book was in
Bohemian, and was very elaborate in
detail A very remarkable feature in
the case is that the alleged confession
and true version, as given by the ac-
complete on the witness stand, bears
striking similarity to the tale con-
tanned in the black book. The defense
has always claimed that Kent is the
victim Of a conspiracy, and that the
writing was done long after the arrest
of the cold-blooded assassin of Mrs.
Kent, and was from the original story
told by SWidensky at the coroner's in
quest.
Kent explains his absence from home
for the months following the murder
of his wife, by the statement that he
had embezzled the funds of several in
surance companies, whom he repre-
scented, and it was on this charge that
he was originally placed under arrest.
He has always claimed that he knew
nothing of the murder until more than
a month afterwards, and that then
it. would have been useless for him
to have returned.
The theory of Attorney Hildreth is
that rape was attempted by Swidensky
on that fatal night, and that the muir
der was committed to hide his crime,
but this has never been made promi-
nent because of the entire hopeleness
of proveing the claim