The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-08-24

roguery Of the conSplrators. lney III
turn enlisted the machinery of intlnlda-
ton an,. malediction. But Colonel Hlns-
dale. undaunted by threats of most are
revenge, calamity pressed on to splendid
victory The following extract from q
letter of warning to Colonel Hlnsdale
from a friend at Beaufort, will throw
light upon the bitter feeling engendered
and the superb nonchalance of the Col
onel who treated the matter with SUI
preme indifference.
Il take 1T upon myself to inform you
of what has been said or spoken by Dr.
T.. r. Delamar of this place. lie mas
expressed himself i'll public to this eN-
tent, that, if it should he that he be
tried again and was convicted, that when
the judge passed sentence upon nm
then it would be the last one that he
would ever pass upon anyone, for he him
self intended TO be prepared that IT con
victed to kill the judge, and the lawyer
who appeared against him, and then he
would kill himself and all would go to
hell together"
T.. i. Delamar was one of the prime
leaders Of this great fraud, and it is an
amusing fact that during the trial the
ferocious Doctor sat next TO Colonel
Hinsdale at the dining table and was
quite ohsequious i'll his attentions, pass
ing the butter and vinegar with utmost
courtesy.
In pronouncing Judgment upon the con
spirators, Judge Graham said:
III the evidence in these cases be
true, the most stupendous crime ever
committed in North Carolina has been
unealthcd. | suppose there is NOBODY
that had any conception of the degree
to which this rascality had gone. ! can
see how people could be drawn into this
nefarious business of procuring or buy
ing these policies upon these dying peo-
PIE. and people who are likely to die, but
few could be innocent. In order t0 pro-
cure these policies, forgery, false pre-
tense and conspiracy were all committed
There has rnvcr hccn, within my iSnowi
cGse in the criminal annals OF our whole
country, more gigantic conspiracy
than this. Here we Save the greatest
crimes known except RAPE, n2;lrdcr. ar
son aud burglary. II seems to baye
been gc:ng on for years. ai,l il has
drawn in q great aaany nnSuaaectng rcc-
pie, and these, In order 10 rake Nancy
either L commissions, or ont or TIN polls
has been enough forgery proven AGAINST
Ar. I. Il. Delamar to send him to the
penitcnt;ary for one hundred and City
years, II all tie cases Of forgery were
prosecuted against iim and the extreme
lnishm NJ ;aiiictcd 81 him igi each case.
II regret circumstances are such that
these ircn haze not all heen convicted of
CRIMES for which ] could impose nun4
tNbY oil.
cf many cases or forgery and false pre-
tcnee Eoing proven. though not cliarg-
cd. But the cfsIre ef consjiracy is a
nlisdeneanor aud punishable only by
Imprisonment in Jail and by fine. The
crimes Of false prctenses and forgery
are both Jelonies and can he punished
by imprisonment IN the penitentiary,
and though | regret the same punish
mcnt cannot be meted out to ali the
defendants alike in these cases. still
when this conspiracy is proven. when
false pretcnses are proven, when for
sr! IS proven TO have been committed.
then | must discharge my duty in each
one of the cases under the law Of North
Carolina a. find it laid down III our
statute books.
Ut las been proven that these men.
Levi L. Noe. j. G.. Delamar and Sci
den -. Delamar were agents doing
tins fraudulent business; that DR.. 7. j..
i)elamar was their medical examiner:
that David Parker and William Fisher
were their hCnchmen and went ont and
got the names If those people who were
~ the last stages Of disease. as Parker
said, would die soon, in order. as one
Of the witnesses said, they might make
little quick money
In the case of G. r. Hassell. if the
evidence is to be believed, he is the arch
conspirator of the whole lot. He seems
to have been engaged in this business
for years, and his success for time
seems to have induced others to 90 into
it. Then Noe took il up and after pur-
suing 1t for year he took the Della
mars in with him. They are all induced
by the success with which he has met
to engage in this disreputable business.
Then Bill Fisher comes in and forged
the name of Florence Chadwick and
others, and David Parker also appears
as an agent and one of the conspirators
Their particular conspiracy was to de-
fraud in probably twenty-five cases by
the use Of the names of large number
VI HtODlt, VINO vert III INT last SldSeS
of disease, many Of whom were produced
before the jury by the State.
AS much rs | sympathize with the
families of these defendants i'll the mis-
fortunes that have oyertaken them, as
much as | regret the disgrace which
will have TO attach TO them the balance
of their days. and as hard as it is for
me to pronounce sentences in cases of
this kind-for it is the hardest part of a
Judges life-I am bound to do my duty
The Judgment of the court is that c.
X. Hassell be confined in the State
Penitentiary ut hard labor seven years !;
that Bill Fisher be confined in the peni-
Tertiary at hard labor five years; that
Selden -. Delamar, T. b. Delamar,
j. c. Delemar and Levi T.. Noe. becon-
fined in the common Jail of Craven
county for a term Of two years and
pay a fine of three hundred dollars each,
that being the limit of Imprisonment
allowed by law"
In 1878 Colonel Hinsdale published an
annotated edition Of Winston's North
Carolina reports, thus adding to his rep
utatin as sound and discriminating
attorney.
He is the author Of the "Non-Suit Act"
which permits defendant to move for
IA non-suit after the plaintiff has offered