Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1906-03-08
WARE SENTENCED
ONE THOUSAND FINE AND ONE
YEAR IN JAIL.
ALL MOTIONS BRUSHED ASIDE
An Omaha Minister Volunteers Saori-
flee In Behalf of His Brother of the
Cloth-Wife of the Accused Weeps
AS Sentence is Pronounced.


OMAHA. Neb.-The remarkable in
cident of one clergyman offering to
serve the Jail sentence of another was
presented in the United States district
court when Judge Munger sentenced
Rev. George G. Ware to serve one year
In the Douglas county Jail, in addition
to paying a fine of $1,000 for conspir-
acy to defraud the government out Of
titles to public land. No sooner had
the court imposed sentence than Rev.
George A. Beecher, dean of Trinity
Episcopal cathedral OF Omaha, arose
and expressed his willingness to so to
Jail for his brother in whose innocence
he professed absolute confidence.
Judge Munger said, in reply to Dean
Beecher: 1.-THE court deeply appre-
ciates this situation and shares in the
personal feeling prevailing but the
court has a duty to perform that it
cannot avoid"
The court room was early crowded
with friends Of Rev. Mr.. Ware and
others, drawn there to witness the eli
max OF the case which it was known
would be reached Tuesday morning.
Beside Rev. George Z. Ware and his
wife, many prominent Omaha citizens
were present in the court room.
Judge Munger overruled in full the
motion of Wares attorneys for new
trial and imposed sentence. Attorneys
at once filed an appeal to the United
States circuit court of appeals, and
the appeal bond was fixed at $4,000
with Thomas B. Mcpherson and John
Roach of South Omaha as sureties.
There remained but one point in the
motion for a new trial to be disposed
of, and that was in reference to the
point bearing upon the statute OF limi-
tation. Judge Munger said, in effect:
"It is true the court failed, to give
the jury any instructions regarding
the statute of limitations However,
the evidence showed the offenses were
committed within the statute, and for
that reason the motion must be denied
as a whole"
Judge Munger then addressed Ware,
asking him if he wished to say any
thing. Mr.. Ware then arose and said:
81 wish to reiterate, the verdict of
the jury Notwithstanding, that | am
not guilty of conspiring with Frank
Lambert or anyone else Of any inten-
ton to defraud the government out OF
one acre or any number of acres OF
land. l am not guilty of making one
or any number of fraudulent filings on
government or any other lands. / have
availed myself of the privileges Of the
public domain for the last quarter OF
a century in the cattle business in
Nebraska, but in all that time | never
made or caused to be made any at
tempt to defraud the government OF
the United States out of one acre OF
land. Had I desired to procure fraud
ulent filings I could have done so fol
$14 per filing. On the contrary, paid
Frank Lambert $50 and an additional
ings on lands.
Crank Lambert put the $50 into his
pocket, and l did not know until the
time of the Investigations prior to my
trial that the filings had been fraudu
lent. The government still has its
lands intact and the $14 for the filings
and Frank Lambert has his $50. | an
stripped of rything-stripped O
reputation, of profession, and can, o.
course, no longer minister to the spir
itual wants of thousands Of my people
in South Dakota because or Lamber
and the county clerk and county judge
of Hooker county.
While speaking Rev. Mr. Waret
voice frequently quivered with emo
ton and the eyes of his faithful wifi
were closely riveted upon him. Tit
utmost silence prevailed Throughout
the court room, and when he had fin
ished speaking Judge Munger said:
"The court has one duty to perform
and the jury another. The passing o
sentence is not so much to punish a
to prevent wrong doing"
After Judge Munger had pre-
nounced the sentence of the court
Mrs. Ware, with tears streaming dow
her cheeks, stepped to the side of he
husband and embraced him affection
ately, and Rev. Mr.. Ware stopped an
kissed her most tenderly.