The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-12-19
GETS LONG TERM
Robinson Goes to Saltwater
for Nearly Five Years.
Makes a Statement to the Court, in
Which He Asks for Justice,
Not Leniency.

D. G. Robinson, for forgery in the
second degree, of which he stands
convicted by the verdict of the jury,
was last Wednesday sentenced to i'm
prisonment in the state peniteftiary
at Saltwater for the term of four
years and ten months.
As soon as the motion for a new
trial had been denied last Wednesday
in D. @. Robinsons' case, an account
of which appears in another column,
County Attorney Wilson moved for
sentence. He stated that this was not
a case that meritoriously appeals to
the court for any particular leniency.
The conviction was had in only one
of several cases with which the de-
PENDANT had been connected that, to
say the least. bear the earmarks of
crime. Any appearance of over zeal
BUSINESS on his part in the trial of the
case. If there was any. as charged
by the attorney for the defendant dur.
ing his argument to the july, was
based wholly on his position in the
case and on no other ground.
Robinson answered the usual formal
questions put to him by the court,
that he was forty years of age, that
he has followed the life insurance bus
mess for six years, that he has no
trade. that he has taught school, and
that the only manual work that he has
ever done was to farm some.
When asked whether he had any
thing to say why sentence should not
be pronounced upon him, Mr.. Robin
son addressed the court in an impress
sive and eloquent manner, showing
the defendant to be good speaker.
He opened by saying:
81 feel that there comes a time in
the life of most men when feeble
words come family up for utterance,
when the human soul refuses to meet
it's agony in empty phrases. Neither
tongue can tell or pen portray the
calm that overshoows the soul. l am
conscious that this suffering is not
merged in general sorrow in this
case, and as I read the simple SEN
tence, Robinson found guilty, pail
settles =, 10y spirit and thers seems
on earth scarce single ray of light -
Continuing. he said in substaic e:
eff speak of persons who have
taken part. active or private, in
the trial of this case, 1 hope not to
be rankly' eulogistic nor fagrantly
unjust. 1 feel that all the judicial
rulings of the court have been rem
dered in apparent fairness. No one
was more surprised at the verdict of
the jury than 1. and I am somewhat
surprised at being denied new trial.
l don't know what new evidence could
be discovered in case that would not
be corroborative. 1t Sc ems to me that
the evidence of the complaining wit
ness in this case ought to convince
any reasonable person that her act
was not that of sane bust ness wom-
an, if her evidence was true.
81 desire to pay my respects to one
whose zealousness in this case has
been such that his whole character
has been changed almost into the very
essence. as it were, of incarnation.
AS pass by the names of everything
in the category of things foul and un-
clean. think of him as the foulest
monster of them all. Compared with
him the James brothers are gentlemen
and satan has pinions of snow white
ness. This perfumed protector of
public purity may be politician.
member of a church, member of
lodges but there is not a penitentiary
in the whole world that holds his
compeer in depravity."
After delivering himself of this saw
age and uncalled for attack on the
prosecuting attorney, Mr.. Robinson
turned to his own case and said that
he did not ask for leniency nor plead
mitigating circumstances. All he
asked for was justice.
W. L. Comstock, the defendants at
torney, said that he felt that he
should, Notwithstanding the sugges-
tion of the defendant. say something
in his behalf in the nature of extenua-
tion. He never believed that Robin
son Intentionally committed crime
against society. Our public system
provides for treating prisoners in
two ways, excluding some from So
ciety and applying reformatory meas
ures to others. He felt that the latter
should be applied in this case. The
defendant has been a man who has
stood well in the community, possesses
fair ability, and was successful bus
mess man until too much politics in
terfered with his business. He was a
victim of unfortunate circumstances
that may creep unawares upon our
best citizens.
Mr.. Comstock said that he had
known the defendant long time, and
while not close companion, thought
he understood him pretty we'll. He