Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1900-07-21
WILL HIS SENTENCE
Be COMMITTED?
Case Of Young Abe Majors Before
Board Of PardOns,
TOM FITCH TALKS FOR HIM,
Ills Mother Arrives from California;
and spends HAIR an flour Win
Condemned Youth.

The application Of Abe Majors, con-
yicted and sentenced TO death In Box
elder county. IN May. 1899, for the muir
der Of Captain William r, Brown, for
commutation Of his sentence came up
before the state board Of pardoBs to-
day Those present were Gov Weis,
Chief Justice Bartch, Justice Baskin
and Attorney General Bishop. The only
absentee was Justice Miner, who is IN
California.
Hon. Thomas Fitch and Attorney J.
D. Call appeared I'm behalf Of the appu-
cant. and Attorney i NJ. Allison rep
resented the family Of Captain Brown,
and was present 10 oppose the granting
Of the application.
MAJORS MOTHER ARRIVES.
The mother OF the condemned youth
arrived from Oakland, California, this
morning, and was driven out 10 the
state prison. where she spent half an
hour with her boy The meeting be-
tween mother and son was am affecting
one. Majors was surprised 10 ind his
mother looking so poorly and told her
"a cheer up, that all would yet come
out alright
Mrs. Majors was present when the
board convened this forenoon. She Is
rather a tail woman. and appears 70
be In the last stages Of consumption.
She was attired IN deep mourning. Her
nerves are completely shattered. and IL
IS with the greatest difficulty that she
is able 20 maintain c0mpOsure. When
addressed by a representative OF the
News" she trembled like a leaf, and
begged TO be excused. She did not want
her name mentioned IN the papers,
neither did she want Il known that she
was In Sal Lake. II love my boy as
only a mother can love her child said
Mrs. Majors II love him beyond this
lie" she continued. He Il not a bad
boy as some people say he Is, he's been
misrepresented ] want him 20 live and
be a man. and II he has 20 die 20 die
like a man. Please don't say anything
in the paper for you men never ger
anything right" Attending Mrs Ma
jors are a number Of lady members OF
the Christian Science church. and a
Mrs Lulu johnson OF De MoInes. Iowa.
The latter Is paralyzed from head to
foot, and ls scarcely able % walk alone.
MR.. FITCHs STATEMENT
II was expected the n.ptter would
come up this morning. but there were
so many other applications ahead OF
Majors that Il was not reached until
nearly 3 o'clock this afternoon. MI
Fitehs statement TO the board was as
follows:
"The Constitution and laws Of this
state confer upon this board a power
over persons convicted Of crime that
IS limited only by the conscience and
Judgment OF its members, and cannot
be reversed by any judicial tribunal
This board is a criminal court In equity
with even greater power than Is pos
sessed by chancellors in civil cases.
II In the trial Of q criminal case
there have occurred errors Of law, err
rOrs of fact, or errors or iniustices Of
any kind that were or might have been
prejudicial TO a defendant II facts ma
terially affecting him have been dis
covered too late for presentation 10 the
courts II there have been omissions, or
errors TO his injury that would have
been corrected by the supreme court II
they had been presented To It's notice
II there nave been errors which, though
not sufficient 10 warrant a reversal OF
the judgment have yet been preiudi-
Cial 10 HMM any such case your hon
Ors who are members of the supreme
court will do here what 10 was not with
in your power 20 DO on the henCh-cOn-
slider those errors And YOU, Mr. at
tOrney general. VIII do here what u
would have been a violation Of your
duty 10 do before the supreme court
confess those errors. And your eXCell-
ency the governor who, although not O
lawyer. possesses a trained and logical
intelligence, viii in the exercise Of the
power which the Constitution Confers
upon you, remedy the injustice which
has been done 20 this young man. and
not suffer him TO be bIundered and pet
tifogged into his grave.
THE applicant in this case did not
have a fair trial / have never met
him and I have no knowledge Of the
facts In his case except such as ] have
gained from d perusal OF a record
made almost entirely by his prose-
Cutors, and that record demonstrates
10 my mind that he ala not have a fair
trial. / 90 not assail the technical ac-
curacy OF the rulings Of the judge be-
fore whom he was tried. ! do not
criticize the action OF the counsel who
prosecuted him. They ala their duty
zeslously and mercllessly and swiftly,
and they evidently did not consider Il
any part OF their duty 10 guard the In
terests Of the defendant against the In
experience OF his own counsel, or
against the passions and preiudlces OF
a community incensed against him on
account OF the death by violence OF one
Of their justly-valued citizens. but new
ertheess, whether the fault be with
men or with circumstances the lad did
not have a fair trial
"The particulars In which injustice
H.H.. H.. l. u HrH#f nm. naN -
your honora. To four OF the members
OF this board the explanation / am
about 70 make will be q thrlce-told tale,
but not 20 his excellency the Governor,
who must, under the Constitution, be
one OF the three members whose de-
clsion must either send the applicant |
10 his death or mitigate his sentence
to life Imprisonment:
ABE Majors. lad eighteen years Of |
age, In company with his brother |
Archie. FIVE years his senior. 20 whom |
he was warmly attached. and by whose |
superior will he was probably domluat- |
ed, on the 29th o. April, 1899, In the |
suburbs Of Brigham CITY BoXelder |
county, Utah. robbed one Fred Hanson |
OF a dollar and ninety-flve cents IN |
money, a pair OF shoes and socks, some |
trinkets OF trlnlng value and a drink Of |
milk. Hanson reported the robbery 20 |
the officers at Brigham city, and the |
sheriff Of Boxelder county, Mr.. Herbert |
II. Gordon, reinforced by others. among |
whom were Deputy sheriff Joseph Rel |
KNAPP OF Weber county and Captain |
william Brown Of the Ogden police |
force, started IN pursuit Of the robbers. |
1.-THE three officers named overlook |
the sugiiives on the afternoon Of April |
30ih. and on their dlsregardlng a COM
Five shots We're fired b. the sherlfs
posse and two shots by one Of the fugi- |
tiyss. Captain Brown and Archie Ma