The Savannah morning news., 1902-08-27
TURNED HIM LOOSE
NO EVIDENCE THAT SULLIVAN
ROBBED THE MAILS.
PRICE PLANNED IT HIMSELF.
sULLIVAN's MOTHER AND SISTERS
AT THE HEARING.

ment Made in JaiI-Father of the
His Sons Arrest.
John NJ. Sullivan. the young white
man from Liberty City who had been
implicated in the sensational mail
robbery at that place by the confessed
robber, his cousin Howell Price, was
released by Commissioner Ryals yes
terday, after a hearing lasting three
hours, the evidence being insufficient
to warrant his being held for trial.
Fully fifty spectators, most of whom
had come to Savannah from Liberty
county to witness the trial or to tes-
tify in behalf of young Sullivan, were
in the Commissioners office The wild
owed mother of the accused, his two
sisters, one of whom is an invalid,
and his brother, were among them.
They were excluded from the court
room during the hearing. Their pres
cence could be of no avail to the
young man, and the semi -hysterical
state in which the mother and sisters
were, would, the Commissioner
thought, result in scene.
Waited for the Hearing to End.
They waited in apprehension in the
adjoining room. and often the mother
gave vent to her anxiety in a fit of
weeping. Throughout the three hours
of the trial they waited fearing lest
some evidence be introduced which
would cause the incarceration of the
young man whom they believed to be
innocent of the charge hanging over
him. When at length the door between
the two rooms was opened and the
young man entered, his face beaminG
with the joy which came with his re-
lease, his mother and sisters read the
result of the hearing, and. embracing
him, kissed him fervently again and
again.
Another touching scene connected
with the trial was when, after the
hearing, the father of Howell Price
babe his son goodby. The mother of
young Sullivan, though rejoicing in
her sons release. was no less grieved
than the father at the detention of her
nephew. Before leaving the marshars
office, she kissed the lad goodbye and
slipped into his hand a dollar or more
in money. The invalid sister of young
Sullivan was no less demonstrative.
She limped to the side of the unfortu-
nate young man and talked with him
for some time. The brother of the ac-
cused took no part in these express
sions of sympathy.
Story of the Testimony.
The trial, though lengthy, was at all
times interesting. The various details
of the robbery of the mail pouch sew
eral hours after midnight in Liberty
City on Aug. 10, which are familiar to
readers of the Morning News, were
gone over. Many witnesses were pres
ent to vouch for the good character of
the prisoner, but only few of these
were deemed necessary to establish
that fact. The prisoner made his
statement, which was in effect, the
same as he told to the marshal when
arrested. Although he had since that
time acknowledged that his charge of
implication against his cousin was the
result of spite, he said that those ad
missions were only made after he had
been advised to keep quiet. When
urged to a confession, he said that he
followed the suggestion of some of the
white prisoners in the Jail and Just
said anything"
At Home When Robbery Took Place.
The testimony developed the fact
IndI 0ulllNdu was at monte III D6u DIT
the time the mail pouch was cut open,
one witness testifying that shortly af-
ter that hour Sullivan came by his
house at daylight, as was his custom,
and they together went to their work
in brickyard near by. The testimony
further showed that at that time Price
was seen riding down the road toward
Liberty City on his fathers mule.
Price admitted that he buried the
pouch, and said that after he had done
it he slept the remainder of the night
in a church back of his home.
Price said after the trial that he
hardly hoped to get out of the trouble
he was in. He stuck to the assertion
that Sullivan put him up to the deed.
He said that he did not think bond
could be arranged, though he knew
that his father would do all that he
could to help him. and that he was go
ing to write to some of his friends
to nelp him.
Price claims that he is sick and
that the Jail is not a fit place for
him. The services of no physician has
as yet been required, and unless more
potent symptoms of disease present
themselves it is hardly probable that
he will leave the Jail for some time.
unless his bond is arranged. The bond
is in the sum of 5000.
Young Prices Arrest.
Mr. w. c. Price the young mans
father, who was at the hearing, said
after it was over that there have been
so many conflicting statements con-
corning the manner of his sons ar
rest that he desired to make a state
ment, which he did, to the Morning
News. as follows:
II was informed on Aug. q that the
Liberty City mail sack had been stolen
two nights before. and hearing
that my SON had a check in his pos
session. l went Immediately in search
of him. On learning that he and John
NJ. Sullivan had gone towards Savan-
nah. l stopped at Johnston Station to
meet the train, but was a little late
and was told they got off and had
gone to C. ]. McDonald's store. 1 went
there and found them in the store
l concealed myself in a dark. place and
waited until my son and Sullivan came
out and seated themselves on the store
shed, where they had a low CONVEX
sation. l tried to hear the conversa-
ton, but could not. Then 1 walked
up brislly to my son and seized him
and from his pocket l took a check
for $143.50. l declared then that he
should meet justice.
Il told j. T. Gill. the Moody boys
and Mcdonald to help me watch him.
l tried to get some one to swear out
a warrant. but failed to do so.
About this time Mr.. T. F. johnson
arrived and said he had been talking
TO the authorities of the postofice in
Savannah, and they gave him the au-
thority to arrest Howell without a
warrant. They advised Mr.. Johnson