The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-08-14

find them to Je from the testimony the
law as you receive it from the court,
land return a verdict of guilty or not
lguilty. AS l have said before, your
Verdict may be guilty as to both de-
PENDANTS. or it may be guilty as to
label 3. Register and not guilty aS TO
In. Register, or you may acquit both or
1.-THE defendants, but while you may
~lconvict j. q. Register n acQuit II.
IL. Register, .Non cannot convict H. e.
Register unless you convict J. 3. Reg
ister."
After the judges charge h jury re-
Tired and court took a recess
JURY'S VERDICT.
Court reconvened at 4 o'clock and ten
minutes thereafter it was announced
THAT the jury -had agreed upon its YER
dict. An omincus silence, broken only
lby the m~etthodical tick of the old
o'clock that adorns the western wall of
1.-THE our room, pervaded the air as
the twelve jurors went to their places
lin the jury box to enact one Of the
closing scenes in the terrible drama
The solemn necessary pCcliminaries
were soon over and then, as Jab
Register stood erect and faced the
twelve jurors who were about to decree
ibis fate, the verdict of guilty as to the
defendants vas declared in a steady
tNolCe ~ lit 1OISilldl.
Not a muscle Of labels face moved
las the verdict fell upon his ears. The
same Indifferent was still
with him and he calmly reseated him.
self.
With Buck Register there was Z,
Tightening CT the facial muscles and Il
nervous hopping of the brow.
Hon. John D. Bellamy at once made
IA motion for a new trial, which was
Ioverruled, and he then appealed the
ease to the supreme court.
He was given twenty days to file
statement Of the case o N appeal and
the solicitor was allowed twenty days
thereafter to pile counter-statement
DEATH SENTENCE.
AS calm and as immovab;e as be-
fore label Register received the death
sentence.
Judge Moore's manner in passing
sentence was very impressive and bis
remarks were truly touching.
He spoke of the sad duty he had to
perform ans pathetically alluded to
the prisoners wasted life. The last
Icrime, he said, had been the result OF
a laWless life. Some people, he said,
would probably say that the world
would hav been better had the con-
Ivicted man not live in it but this he
would not say as he believed thai
every man was placed on earth for q
wise purpose.
you ave sacrificed your own life"
Ihe said, and your end will serve as a
fearful example to all. The certainty
lof your destruction would not have
been much greater had you turned the
weapon with which you shot two I'M
.Isuspecting men upon your CWn self.
The crime of which you stand convict
ed is n of the most dastardIy and
one of the most horrible recorded in
the criminal history of the state"
He then sentenced label to be hang
led October 9Th between the hours of
10 a. m. and 2 p. m, and sentenced H.
e. Register to life imprisonment in the
~Ipenitentiary.
Upon conclusion of the sentence Mr..
IBellamy made application for bon for
H. &. Register pending the appeal.
The bond was fixed at $4,000.
ACCOMPLICE SENTENCED.
After the case a"ainst the Registers
had been disposed of Solicitor Lyon
announced to the court that Cross
EdmOndsOn, the Self-cOnfessed accom-
plice of the convicted murderer n the
accessory. wished through his counsel,
Irwin 3. Tucker, Esq, to enter a sub
mission to murder in the second de-
gree in the cases charging hin with
the murder of Jesse Soles and Jim
Staley.
The court accepted the submissions
and then heard from the defendants
counsel, Mr.. Tucker. who made a
splendid speech in his clients behalf
and strongly appealed for a light sem
tence, saying that the defendant was
a young man and wished to lead a
better life.
Solicitor Lyon stated to the court
that Edmondson lac mad his IN
fessiOn voluntarily, no hope of reward
having ever been held out to him as an
inducement to do so, and that with
out his testimony the state would new
er have convicted the Registers: that
he had conferred with Mr.. w. A. J.
ISOles. a, brother of the deceased, Jesse
ISOleS. and that he had expressed the
wish that EdmondsOn be dealt with
lightly. He said that he and Mr..
Tucker had thought that six years in
the penitentiary-fOur in one case and
two in the other-Wouid be sufficient
punishment under the circumstances
land recommended such a sentence to
the court.
Judge Moore accepted the recommen-
ldation and sentenced Edmondson to
six years in the states prison.
SMITH WENT FREE.
In the cases of murder against the
Iold white man. Coleman Smith. the
IcOurt. at the solicitation of his jealous
lcounsel. Homer Lyon, Esq. took a mol
hprCS and the prisoner was discharged.
smith was the first man suspected of
killing Soles and Staley. as he was
the last mar seen with these two at
the home of the former. and had been
in Jail several months.