, 1906-05-28
DOES THE PUNISHMENT FIT?

DOES THE PUNISHMENT FIT?
Since the sentence OF W. y. Broth
ers the young man who defaulted in
the sum of about $1,000 ana who was
given three years in the p~eniteutiarY,
! the state press has drawn some moral
lessons from the incident. Now comes
Mr. A. j. Mokler, the able editor OF the
Casper Trobune, n discusses the
event in connection with another from
an altogether different point of view
than any yet presented. The Tribune
says:
"A few weeks ago a middle-aged man
appeared in the district court Of Ma
trona county and pleaded guilty TO
forgery. He had beer herding on the
range n short time, but being unac-
customed TO such work, he soon be-
came weary, and wanted to return to
his home in Omaha, where his wife
and ~l7-year-old daughter were living.
He did not have enough money to pay
his railroad fare, and he forged the
name of his former employer to a
check for forty dollars, and was alrea-
dy on the cars with n ticket in his
pocket when the sheriff found him.
When he appeared before the court he
was so overcome that he was unable to
speak. He was sentenced to serve
three years in the penitentiary, and
many people said his sentence was be
fitting the crime, And 1t was, for the
man had attempted to take another's
money, and a even forged another
mans name to a check inc had receiy'
ed the money on it. His circumstances
We're no excuse for committing the
crime, and he had little sympathy from
n people who are in favor of the en-
forcement of our laws. His wife and
child are now not only poor and penni-
less but they are disgraced by the acts
of the husband and father who was so
anxious to come to them that he com
mitted the crime.
But here is another case:
About a year ago a young man
came to Casper from Washington. He
was disbursing agent for The govern
ment in the reclamation service, and at
first appeared to be a decent, lawabid-
ing, respectable citizen. He had pecul-
lar ideas, II is true, but he was a ten
derfoot, N his idiosyncracies were
overlooked by our people. He snubbed
some of our citizens because they We're
not in his class and he carried his
head just a little high, and seemed to
think he was somewhat better than
common people because he held a re-
sponsible government position and
wore fine clothes. But during all the
time he was pretending to be so good
n so nice, and was being admitted to
the homes of Casper's citizens, he was
the blacklist thief and boldest forger
that has ever been sent to the peniten-
tiary from Natrona county. When he
was first arrested it was said that
gambling and drink caused his down.
fall. hut this is not the case for one
month after he came here he commenc-
ed putting bogus names ON his nav
roll and forged the vouchers receiving
the money ana ~annronriating II IN his
own use. And while he was commit.
ting these black crimes ba onpaa rcd 10
be go modest that IN see n lady astride
a horse would cause him To bIusb with
shame and the music of n waltz mr.
two-step would cause him TO go into
MYSTERIES AT he end Of oigbt months
of forgery, stealing, thieyery. gambling
and drinking he was arrested. and nj
the preliminary trial he attempted To
blacken the character of some of his
c~o-workers by insinuation and innpen.
do, and in his naughty manner cast
slurs at the neonIa who were nresant
10 hon. ,ho n,;la.