The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1904-01-02
is A PRISON CHILD
PATHETIC HISTORY OF LITTLE
ALMA GREASON
Born in Jail at Reading, Pa, she Is
the Pet of All Who Know Her
Her Mother and Reputed Father
Under Sentence of Ceath.

Alma Greason of Reading, Pa, is a
child with a strange history. She mas
never been outside of prison walls
She is two and half years old, and
her mother and her reputed father are
in now the same Jail under sentence
of death.
! Alma is dark skinned, bright and at"
tractive and she. speaks two languages
English to the prison visitors anti
the Pennsylvania German dialect to,
her mother.
Being a pet of the jail, the child is
daintily dressed and has the run OF
the prison. She spends an hour down
stairs with the warden's family and
the next hour up on the second tier OF
cells with the death watch in charge:
of her convicted mother.
In all her jail liberty she is never
permitted to see Samuel Greason, her
reputed father, in another part of the
jail. Greason is negro. Alma's
mother is white. The murder or
which the two were convicted was
that of the woman's husband.
The story of this prison child's life
is unusual, even in criminal history.
Her complexion at birth was to deter
mine the life or death Of her mother.
John Edwards, the husband Of the
woman, was a white laborer III the
quarries of Stouchburg. Being out OF
work and shiftless, he failed to sup
port his wife, Kate, and their chill"
dren. Greason, also la5orer, had
money. When he saw Mrs. Edwards
children going barefoot in winter he
provided money for their needs. In
this way their mother came to have
kindly feelings toward him.
Edwards suspicious were finally
aroused. He accused his wife OF haF-
ing been unfaithful and declared that il
the child soon to be born was black he
would murder her.
Now Mrs. Edwards is dark skinned
woman. 1t was evident, therefore,
that whether her husbands suspicious
were we'll founded or not, the com
plexion of the child might cost her
her life. -.
Some time before the child was
born in July, 1901, there was party
at the Edwards home. Edwards drank
II Sof Il
HIS body was found in the cistern>
near the house. He had been struck
on the head with some blunt lnstru-
ment while sleeping on the porch after
the party.
Mrs. Edwards told variety OK
l.: o.l1J G q
accused Greason Of being concerned IN
it. Both were convicted Of murder in
the first degree.
The child@mas born in prison. AS
has been said, she has a dark skin,
and they christened her Alma Graason.
Her reputed either has never seen her,
Thrice Grsason has been reprieved.
Churches, Sunday schools ard cake
walks have raised money to pay his;
lawyers to save him from the g. lows.
He declares that he was not at the
Edwards home on the night of Ed
wards MURDER ~ :
He says he does not know WIN
killed him, but the theory Of his friends
is that the wife and her eldest dangh-
death of Edwards. 1t is generally be-
lieyed that Edwards was murdered be-,
cause it was feared that the chlIn
would be black and that he WoulG
carry out his threat to Kill his wife
And while Greason ar3 Mrs. Ed
wards are growing fat in the shadow
of the scaf1old the little child is JOY
o1sly nrattling about the prison cor
ridor: by day and sleeping in the
bosom Of her mother by night il a.
cell. Some say the child will grow
up in the Jail and never leave it. II
the love that is shown for Alma con-
tinues developing, it will be very hard
to part with the child in the years to-
ccme when her parents have paid the,
penalty Of their crime.