Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-04-13
HARD ON BURTON.
Six Months in Jail, $25OO Fine and
Forfeiture Of Office is the Penalty
for his Corruption.

Senator ]. r. Burton was SEN
fenced to pay fine of $4,000 and
serve six months in Jail, at St. Lou
is last Wednesday. He Immediate
ly perfected an appeal to the U. S.
court of appeals and executed
bond in the sum of $4,000.
In pronouncing sentence Judge
Adams said:
CATER fair and impartial trial
by jury of exceptional intelli-
gence, you have been found guilty
of the offenses charged in the in
diCtment against you.
GA motion for a new trial in
your behalf has afforded me an op-
portunity to carefully review and
consider the evidence. AS a result
Of this | am satisfied that the Jury
reached the just and true result.
The evidence abundantly warrant
ed their verdict and | find no rea-
son, either in the law governing
the case or in the proceedings at
tending the trial for disturbing it.
"1our conviction necessarily re-
suits in your punishment. Its i'm
portance, in my opinion, is not con-
fined to its effect upon you.
"Your exalted station in life and
the character of your offending,
gives unusual significance to your
conviction. 1t demonstrates that
the law Of the land is equal to any
emergency and can be admin
istered regardless of the PERSONAL
ty or station of the accused. 1t also
demonstrates to all the people that
public office cannot be prostituted
to self-Serving purposes, and that
public office is not a sure or safe
passport to private thrift.
"The humiliation attending your
conviction and the statutory dis
qualifications resulting therefrom
which forever incapacitates you
from holding any office of honor,
trust or profit under the govern
ment of the United States are in
themselves heavy punishment for
your ofenses and leave but little in
the way of severity which could be
added.
cit is neither my purpose nor
pleasure to impose any unnecessary
punishment.
81 think the majesty of the law
will be sufficiently indicated and
the public welfare sufficiently safe
guarded by imposing a single SEN
tence, warranted, as it is, on any
one of the six counts of the indict-
ments on which you were convict
ed.
"This sentence will be that you
be,conflned in the Iron county Jail
for a period of six months, and
that you pay a fine of two thous-
and, five hundred dollars
Mr.. Burton's appeal, of course,
allays the effect of the courts judg-
ment until the case is finally dis
posed of. He will continue to draw
his salary and enjoy his freedom
tIIlIl tlldI llIlG, Out lie IS forever
finished politically without regard
to how it eliminates.
There is lesson in this incident
which every public officer may
we'll study with profit. Human ma
ture is weak and prone to err but
the public service demands men of
honesty and integrity. 1t is pity
that there are not other prosecu-
tions in other cases-men who are
as high up in authority as Burton
and members of the same party
which Burton has disgraced.
There is also lesson which the
people should learn. The rotten
ness of the republican party has
been uncovered in numerous in
stances and it is the duty of the
voters to install a new regime.
Will they be brave enough to do
it?