The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-09
FIFTEEN YEARS HARD LABOR.
THREE OF THE LOUISVILLE ROAD
HIGHWAY8IEN SENTENCED.

| Three OF the highway TOODersi VINO nave
been committing lurid deeds of crime in
the suburbs OF Savannah for the last few
weeks. pleaded guilty in the superior
| court yesterday and were quickly disposed
! Of
! They were John Bennett, Joe Green and
Elmer Stevens. The court made quick
work with their cases. They were arrest
ed last week and are now under a sentnce
Of fifteen years each In the penitenuary.
When the three bury negroes were ush-
cred into the court room there was a great
crowd in the galleries, and the interest in
the cases ran high. More than a hundred
negroes looked on in eagerness when
the judge faced the three criminals and
heard their pleas of guilty.
Turning to the culprits Judge Falligant
said: you are brought before the court
on one Of the gravest charges that could
be presented against men. You are accus-
ed of violently holding up citizens of this
community at the point of pistols and
guns and other death dealing instruments,
and taking from them that which was
theirs. 1 cannot conceive of a crime more
outrageous, nor can I fancy a violation
Of law which should receive so firm a rep
rotation from a civilized community
am determined that such crimes shall be
checked, and were it not for the fact that
you have made a plea of guilty to the
charge and spared this court the time
and labor of a trial I would give you the
full limit of the law in the punishment of
your crime. But since you have done this
l have decided to modify the sentence that
l would have given you and now SEN
tence you to fifteen years at hard labor In
the pententiary of the state of Georgia"
Immediately there was a loud murmur
in the galleries among the negroes, who
had gathered there but it was in the ma
ture of approval. The limit of the punish
ment for such crime is twenty years in
the penitenuary, and Judge Falligant
made only reduction of five years in his
sentence to those who have pleaded gull
~ of the charge. It is clear that the re-
naming two now held for trial. who have
sentence.
Judge Falllgant said that he Is determin-
ed to break up such lawlessness, and the
court will make such quick work of the
guilty that it will be a lesson to others.
Peter Bacon and Abram, alias "Boisey"
Bacon are now in jail awaiting trial Hen
ry Edwards, who was also arrested on the
charge of highway robbery, was released
yesterday at the order of the solicitor gem
eral, there being no evidence against him.
He is the negro who was shot by the de-
tectives in their efforts to capture the gang
OF highwaymen. It seems he was standing
aside at the time, and was not guilty. of
the crime the others are charged with,
although he was thought to be guilty at
the time Of the capture by the police and
detectives.
The superior court disposed of a large
number of cases during the day. James
Small and Dan Dickerson were sentenced
10 pay fine of $lO0 each, or serve twelve
months in the county chain-gang, having
pleaded guilty to the charge of burglary,
thus bringing their punishment within the
jurisdiction of misdemeanOr cases.
Twenty-one negroes pleaded guilty to
the charge of selling policy tickets and
were fined $25 a piece and costs. There are
a number of other cases of this kind to
come before the court this term, sixty
four in all having been made out.
BristoW Graham, convicted OF the muir
der of Ben Wilson last September was
sentenced to be hung July %. This is the
second sentence that has been rendered
in this case, the prisoner having been
found guilty at a previous term, and there
having been a motion for new trial. The
appeal from the decision of the court was
of no avail and the judge rendered the
| second sentence. When the accused MUIR
derer came into the court room he gave
| every evidence of having already suffered
| torturesome punishment for his crime He
| looked more like a wild brute than like a
human being, there being a wild stare
from his sunken eyes and his hair hank
| ed in "a great matted bulk about his head
| When the sentence was pronounced he
simply bowed his head.
The case against Graham showed that
he and Ben Wilson began quarreling over
a game of craps. Wilson made a break (
him with a club, and he escaped. He
went deliberately to some neighboring
house, procured a shotgun and returning
to the scene of the quarrel fired upon VIII
son while retreating and dashed his
| brains against the side of the house with
a great load from the double-barreled
shotgun.
Nearly all of the forenoon session of the
| court was devoted to the taking OF YER
| diets in divorce cases. There was a big
| batch of these cases, most of them being
| for total divorce. Those obtaining di-
vorces on second verdicts We're as follows
| John Simmons against Anna Simmons.
| Joseph Davis against Amanda Davis. IDA
Z. Mather against Cotton Mather, James
| NJ. Sutherland against Jessie NJ, Suther-
| land Julia Holmes against Joe Holmes.
Edward j. Seymour against Laura l.. Sey-
mour, Albertine Harvey against Charles
| II. Harvey J. b. Sweat against Minnie
Sweat, James Butler against Mary Lou
Butler, and Bessie S. Shields against Will
| lam +. Shields.
Those obtaining first verdlcts for divorce
| were: John Harden against Queen Har-
| den, Henrietta r. Sanders against Robert
| W. Sanders. Mary Norton against A. II.
| Norton. A. A. Coleman against r. $. Cole
man. Taylor Williams against Georgia
| Williams, and Julia Brown against George
! Brown.
In the suit against Maggie Clark 10y Zeb-
| adeo Clark for total divorce. a counter
| suit was filed by the defendant asking
that divorce be granted her, on the ground
| OF adultery and il-treatmcnt. She also
asks that her child. Lucille. who. she
claims was taken from her by her hus-
| band by strategem and foul play, be given
/ back into her custody by the court. Tho
| court gave the hushandNuntn June p 10
| show cause why such an order should
not be granted in favor OF the wife.
An order was granted by the court dis
missing the certiorari case OF l.. J.
Brown against L. Muhlberg.