The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-01-10
BLACKMAILER GOT
SIX MONTHS TERM
j H. Morrison Confessed; Brother
HonorabIy Discharged.
SAVED BY ONE CENT
had Prisoner Received Even Penny In
Answer to His Letters He Would Have
Been Sen, Away for Three Years at
Least-Sunday Opening Alleged
SAVED BY ONE CENT


After confessing the attempted black
mailing of four saloons in this city, !.
II. Morrison WIS yesterday sentenced 10
six months in prison, while his brother'
w. T. Morrison, was honorably dis
charged. it being shown that he had no
connection with nor knowledge OF the
scheme 1t developed in the Police Court
that Morrison had never before been ar
rested and that he came of an exceiieiit
family in Pittsylvania county, but jus
tice crutchfield said he would make an
example OF him, and gave him the max
mum penalty. The Morrison FANNY is
well known to Mr.. Eugene Withers, the
Father of the Constitutional ConFeli-
ton
,Morrlson's plea of extenuation was
drunkenness. He had, he declared, been
on a spree for some time, and was pfac-
tically irresponsible when he wrote the
letters demanding hush money. In sup
port OF this Lawyer Harry Smith, who
appeared for him, declared that the
transparency Of the attempt showed It's
origin to have been in a drunk-teVered
brain. OF else the mind of fool. Incl
dentally the fact was brought out that
&c Morrison had received as much as one
cent as a result of his letters the least
the court could have given him Woulo
have been three years
WROTE FOUR LETTERS.
So far as known Morrison wrote threat
euinE letters to four persons, these pel1ls
C. Onesty, Pat McDonough. the triangle
Saloon and G. l.. Howard. These letters
are all practically the same. alleging
that Morrison had been in the saloons on
Sundays, and as he was hard up the
owners would have to pay him In ms
letter to the Triangle Saloon MORRISON
stated that he was paid for reporting
saloons which kept open. and that ne
would as soon have tho saloon money as
ANYBODY else's. To the Howard letter he
signed the name r. H. Robertson, this
being the only attempt he made at con-
cealinE his identity.
In court yesterday there was produced a
letter purporting to be from Fat Nc
Dcnough, in reply to Morrison's first let
ter. 1t was as follows:
please call at my office, 700 West
Bread Street, or appoint place to meet
you, so we can arrange matters between
U.s. I am, very respectfully.
PAT McDONOUGH.'
It was In reply to this that Morrison
wrcte another letter of warning and
threats, declining to meet NcDonoush
anywhere. To trap the young man, there
fore the saloon-keeper sent letter TO
Morrison. at the same time lnstructinG
two of his clerks to go down to the post
office and seize the man who called Tor
the letter. This is how w. L. Morrison
came into the case. He had been asked
nv his brother to go by the post-office
and get his mail, and innocenuy he did
SC He had no idea of the letters that
had been written nor of the replies eX-
pected. -
On the witness stand j. II. Nor
risou admitted that he wrote all the let
tiers. but that he had been drunk LOT
.cne time. and must have written them
while drunk His brother. he said, had
only arrived in Richmond about week
aro-after the letters We're written-and
could have known nothing about them.
ne said he came to this city from Ports
mouth and worked for the Nowlan Com
many. in East Main Street. His brother
came here to attend the Massey Business
College. 80
This statement was corToborateo
through other sources, every parucle Oh
guilt being removed from l. w. MOTT
SON Then Attorney Harry M smith
made his argument for the two young
mon He dismissed in d, few words the
..sa of r. w Morrison, expressing his
aS,,oion that he was entirely guitless.
.nd argued in extenuauon OF }. IL MOT
rison.
He said that the attempt at blackrlal'
ha6 heen transparent and childish, snow
s,, that Morrison was either fool OF
6rnnk and as no one had lost through
tha letters he asked clemency Tor MS
client. He maintained that no man III
,,i- ,-oner senses would have written such
t,criminatine letters signing his own nam
.o them. Knowing full we'll that he coulc
I'm traced, The crime consisted only OF
,nisdeueanor. the failure OF the purpose
or the letters making the maximum pen
.lt,, six months, while admitting that i
nrorr,son had obtained one penny through
the letters the least that the court conle
have done would be to send him TO prison
for three years.
urSTIGE CRUTCFIFIELD'S OPINION.
After hearing this argument Justice
r-rutchfield held that the crime had beer
none the less. to all intents and purpose
lecause it failed, although technically DIFF
sarent ,ylnishments were provided. ID
,aid II the saloon men keep open on Sun
raw It is for some one to bring the mat
fer to his attention and they will be fin
on but that he felt compelled to protec
theu In so far as lay IN his power an'
would make an example OF MORRISON D.
giving him six months.
1sfolciu nIlc ESTtDE