The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-07-16
THE WOMAN. SHE DID IT."

| Breach Adopts the Excuse Given by
Father Adam in the Garden. : 9
| The News and Observer is in rece1p.
Of long letter from j. Il. Breach, the
| ex-conyict who was convicted and sent
| to the roads for ten months for sySre-
| matte stealing from the pententiary.
| Broadh's accomplices in these offerings,
| it will be remembered, We're Mrs. john
| IIolderfeld, at whose house he lived;
| two TRUSTEES, white man and a negro,
| who stole the goods from the peiiten-
| tiary comnrissary and carried them to
| Holderfield's. There Mrs. Holderfield
and Breach took charge Of the stuff
| and sent it over to the store of w. "A.
| Phillips where it was sold.
| Phillips was acquitted, but Mrs. Hold
erfield and Breach were found guilty.
| Judgment OH Mrs. Honlderfield was sus-
| pended on account of her feeble health,
while Breach was sent to the roads
| for ten months.
| 1t is of this that Breach bitterly com
| plains in his letter.
/ After filing half dozen pages with
| complaints OF the hardness of the world
| and the softness of his heart and tell
| ing of his friendless condition and how
| he can now expect no friends or help
| from any source save that of high
| heaven" he says:
"On Thursday evening, March 10Th,
| 1894. | witnessed a scean that sent n
| thorn to my heart that nothing but my
grave can heel by an accident discharge
of revolver the nearest and dearest
on earth to me was swept in to eterni-
| no fn Of hpS
the ONE above all the world | loved
best and held dearest sank from my
almes in death. What l have suffered
| since No tongue can ever tell. / was
| among strangers and short acquainted
| friends. And while the great anguish
| that tore my heart drove me demented
and the people said, made conflicting
statements about the sad, sad affair.
| was prosecuted for murder think of it.
| for numbering one whom l would freely
gave my life to have save. | did not
| try to defend my self, for death would
| have ben q relief to me when / was
| tried. l let them fix it as they would
have it, and the jurors brought a verdict
against me. Guilty Of murder i'm n sec
ond degree. / receive sentence TO 10
years in States Prison. | have walked
"'s Ncii II U1SuC wien NJ
seemed every bone i'm my body would
break from pure heart felt pain. Who
cared for what | suffered* Who gave
me word of consolation? Did mot all
faces frown on me? Then my new
made friends thought the sentence too
long and they prayed my pardon. And
| our noble Governor ID. l.. Russell saw
cause to grant my pardon on March
the 3rd, 1899.
u go away into slavery ten months of
| shame, scorn and disgrace must | daily
race for doing favor for others. Ii
may be that | deserve this punisbmen,
for allowing my self to do such a favor
as TO sell stolen goods for others. A
man could not have persuaded me to
have done such a thing. and when
was doing the favor locked at the mat
ter as ! really had nothing to do with
the III Leagle part of the conspiracy.
anu ! was promised should not be hurt
II any trouble came up. but where am
today and where are the most guilty.
| parties. All seems to be enocent
Breach did it all. Well / will saw IN
the authoritiesi1 saw my danger and T
submitted to the lower part Of the CHARGE
and went on the stand to tell the Stata
the whole truth of the matter and what