Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1906-03-10
Special to the Herald.

special TO the Herald.
ST. Louis, Mo-, March 10.-With ap.
parently but five days between him
and the gallows, George Barton, the
bogus Lord harrington, maintains
his nerve and continues to assure Wis
itors that the revision of his case by
the supreme court would prove him
innocent of the crime with which he
is charged and establish his identity
as Lieutenant Colonel the Honorable
Seymour harrington of his Majesty's
Light Horse, heir to the dukedom of
harrington.
The man is sentenced to hang in
the little Jail at Clayton next Thurs
patron, James P. Mccain. For more
than two years his counsel has sue
ceeded in clogging the wheels of JUS
tice and they are working with might
and main to secure another stay.
Perhaps their efforts may be success
full, but the general opinion is that
the execution will not be long de-
layed, even if it does not take place
on the date fixed.
The records of crime show few par
allels to the career of Lord" Bar
rington, or George Barton, to call him
by his real name. He was born near
Brighton, England, about fifty years
ago. At the age of 16 he was given
a sentence of ten years imprison-
ment for burglary, the proceeds of
which netted him $4,000; ano four
years later he escaped, deceiving the
police when apprehended by produc-
ing pardon which was not discov-
cred to be forgery until long after
ward
The next year, in 1881, he was ar
rested for the murder of an army Of
ficer, whose valet he had been, but,
although circumstances established
a moral certainty of his guilt, no evil
dence could be secured against him,
and he was released.
Then he wandered in many lands,
always leaving behind him a black
trail of misdeeds, yet battling suspic
ion by his semblance of good breed
ing Women proved easy victims of
his charm and his romantic tales and
bigamy sat as easily upon his con-
science as lying or stealing. Occa-
sionally his sins found him out and
prison gates closed upon him, but he
never failed to improve these periods
of Incarceration with study which
rendered him more fit for his cavalier
role after his term had expired. Sir
Frederick Sydenham Burgoyne and
Earl harrington of Barton were two
of the favorite nome deguerre used
by this foe of society in the earlier
stages of his career, and he lived up
to them with consummate grace |
which many a genuine lord might |
envy.
In 1889 he came to America for the |
second time, with draft for $4,000 |
In 1890, when his money began 20 |
run low, he selected the daughter of |
a wealthy widow in Brooklyn, Miss |
Celestine f. Miller, as his prey; he |
wooed and won her, persuaded the |
young girl and her mother to |
sell their property in order that he |
might invest it in England, and then |
took his victims across the Atlantic |
to introduce them to his ducal par
ents. But when they reached Lon |
don Barton discovered that his titled |
relatives were visiting in the Holy |
Land for their health, and set up
quarters in London TO await their re-
turn.
After four months he was recog-
nized by the police and arrested upon
an old charge of embezzlement. The
two women defended him clamorous-
ly. but at last the police authorities
took them into Kent to view the
ducal manor, Upon the site which
Barton had described with such a
wealth of details they discovered an
old man and woman, who did not
even own the little cottage in which
they dwelt Heartbroken. the women
returned to Brooklyn, where they
are now operating a steam laundry.
After serving seven years in Eng
lish prisons, Barton returned to the
United States. He married Miss
Margaret Rafferty,, daughter Of
wealthy coal dealer in Philadelphia,
and abandoned her in Pittsburg one
week afterward, having robbed her of
$4,000 Then he came to st. Louis,
in October, 1902, pretending to be an