The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-05-30
BOYD IS MERC|FUL
CONTINUED from First Page.)

| were charged with, and good citizens
| related that they kept an almost open
bar room, retailing liquor 10 all, de-
bauching the people within their reach
and defying both state and federal
liquor laws.
Judge Boyd sentenced one to thir-
teen. the other to fifteen months in the
| ~penitentiary at Atlanta. it being rep
| resented that nothing but the absolute
deportafion of these men would up
root the business and demoraiiZe their
irtrencIed ratification of influence
| among a certain class Of aidors ana
aDettorS.
Then came the spectacular denoue-
| ment. The names of w. w. McEwen,
Jesse McEwen and Frank Forster
/ were called. w. w. Barber and X. y.
Uackett. as counsel for these defend
| ants, arose and announced that they
| had concluded to plead guilty to the
| charge of illicit distilling, and submit
! to the mercy of h court. 1t was re-
lated that these men. aside from their
| illicit distllling proclivities were among
the best of citizens in every other re-
spect. \ list Of petitioners for clemen-
| CIV and testimonials to their high har-
| acter, signed by AMY of the best
men and women of the town and cOun-
ty was presented 10 the judge. The
aged father Of lne two brothers, Me-
| Even, Il Democratic eX-sheriff of the
county and Il revenue officer nde
Cleveland, stood up and plead for his
boys until the eyes of the judge ana
all present were suffused with tears at
the pathos of his rugged el%oquence.
Then followed the Rev. Mr.. Fardue,
the Baptist minister. respected by all
for his fearless and honest fight
against iawlessness II sin. He II
like john the Baptist of old, had stood
last summer in the streets OF Wilkes
bOrO, and cried out against the viola
ton of the revenue laws in the county,
telling officers of the law they Were
~shamelessly neglecting their duty,
and citing as an instance of an open
defiance of law, the II OF a
steam blockade distiliery on the public
road in -four miles of WilkesbOro and
Offering to lead the officers to it II
they would follow him, but no man
followed, while many jeered. The pub
lished report Of this street sermon met
the eye of judicial officers, n with
the testimony of this minister, added
to that of many others, a bill of in
dictment was found against the men
standing there for judgment, and they
could not go on trial. Addressing
Judge Boyd, the minister recounted
conditions in Wilkes county past and
present, showing greatly to the credit
of the present. Then turning to the
men ready for sentence he old OF
their otherwise correct and honorable
lives, their high family connections,
the environments which had led them
into crime, as the government sees
crime, of their being possibly tempted
by officers themselves into its COM
| mission or continuance, and when he
| concluded with a plea for mercy n
compassion, there was not a dry eye
in the room. Women openly Wept,
strong, grizZled mountaineers rubbed
their shirt sleeves sheepishly across
their brow. Judge Boyd's eyes were
swimming in tears, lawyers were over
come, of them, sympathetic souled
Hub" Greene reaching the shifting
stage, where he was compelled. hand
| kerchief to his face, to retire from the
scene. But district attorney sat there
calm, cold, austere. and not
his prayer for Judgment
In pronOuncing sentence Judge Boyd
| said he had never in all his life been
embarrassed or more impressed with
the need for strength to resist the nat
ural impulse of kind humanity. Out
of Difference to these appeals, he would
| forbear sending these young men to
| the penitentiary. And here there was
q sigh of release from tension which
sounded like a rustic all over the room.
He spoke of how the plea of the old
man, the father. that his family name
be not ~dishOnored, n his young sons
future disgraced for the commission OF
an offense which custom had not class
ed as crime-Of the intercessions of
the minister and the appeals Of the
pubIic-and then he said, that crime
had to stop. That the people Of Wilkes
had cruelty suffered in reputation
which was not deserving, Of siding
with l~awlessness; that public senti-
ment alone could permanently control
public conduct. and give healthy re-
suits; and the prosecution n convlc-
ton Of these men had shown courage,
while petitions for mercy had shown
forbearance on the part of the citi-
zenship of the county. For these rea-
sons he would sentence the men to
terms in Jail.
Walter McEwen was fined one thou
sane dollars. which was paid at once
in court, and sent to Jail for five
months; Jesse was given six months
in Jail. This ended the court, and this
example of a determined but a forgiv-
ing people and judge will probably for
a decade end the open defiance of the
revenue laws in Wilkes. country.
There is much that could be written
of the rumors of revenue changes in
this territory. 1t is said that within
the past two weeks a new deputy col
lectOr sent there by Collector Harkins,
named Green. has broken up and de.
strOyed fifteen di%stilleries, and it is
openly stated that the young McEw-
ems, who have been Democrats al
their lives, voted last year for the
first time for the Republican congress
sional and county officers.