River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1900-08-23
POWERS FOUND GUILTY.
Jury In the Famous Case at George
town, KY, Returns verdict OF
Life Imprisonment.

Georgetown, Ky, Aug. 20.-"We the
jury, find the defendant guilty and
fix his punishment at confinement IN
the penitentiary for the rest OF his
natural life" This was the wording
of the verdict in the case OF ex-Secre-
tary of State Caleb Powers, charged
with being an accessory before the
fact to the murder of William Goebel.
The jury retired at 1882 p. m. Satur-
day and returned its verdict at 2:25
o'clock, having been out only So min
utes. Juror Craig stated afterward
that the verdict could have been re-
turned even sooner, but considerable
time was taken up in reading the in
structions. The vote in favor of life
sentence was unanimous.
The assassination of William Goebel was
the climax of the contest growing out OF the
state election in Kentucky last fall the
crime was committed while the contest COM
mittee of the legislature was considering
the evidence presented by Goebei, VINO
claimed the office of governor then held by
Taylor, republican. According TO the evil
dence the murder was the result OF a plot
among the friends of the incumbent.
Senator Goebel was walking through the
capital grounds to the statehouse on Janu-
airy 80 when rifle bullet fired from win
dow of the building penetrated his side.
When the serious nature of the wound was
discovered the contest committee resolved
TO take no more evidence, but render de-
cision at once The ruling was in favor OF
Goebel, every democrat voting for MIN, the
two republican members standing by ray
lor. On his deathbed Goebel was sworn In
as governor and J. C. w. Beckham as lieu
tenant governor.
With the death of Gov. Goebel the at
tempt to hunt down his assassin became the
one object of his friends and followers. III
was claimed the plot to put him out of the
way had been arranged by or with the ap-
prevail of several of the state officials whose
positions were threatened by the contests.
A large reward was offered for the arrest OF
the slayer. and every effort possible was
made to unrayel the details of the alleged
conspiracy. Men said to have uttered
threats against the democratic contestant
were arrested. a peculiar feature of the
case being the fact that several had on
their persons official pardons signed by
Gov. Taylor, prepared seemingly for just
such a contingency. Evidence involving
several of those in the statehouse at the
time of the assassination accumulated until
finally three of the accused men, Wharton
Golden, w FL. Culton and III. E. Youtsey,
made confessions which connected officials
with the crime.
According to the statement or these VIII
nesses the conspirators' original plan was
to fill the town with armed mountaineers,
friends of Tayor. start a riot in the state
assembly and during the excitement to XIII
Goebel and other leading democrats. When
that failed of execution, the witnesses said,
a man was hired to shoot EoeDel from a
room in the statehouse.
Powers, with six others who were in
volved by the testimony, was indicted by
the grand jury and placed in jail at Frank
fort. A bill holding Gov. Taylor impli-
Gated as an accessory after the fact also
was returned, but In the meantime the re-
publican executive, ousted from office by
the state court of appeals and the United
States supreme court, had left the state.
and extradition was refused by Gov. Mount,
of Indiana.
The trials of the alleged conspirators
were transferred from Frankfort to George
town, the prisoners claiming they could
not get fair hearing In the state capital.
1t was decided to try each case separately,
some OF the accused men hoping to prove
innocence If given a chance for defense
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