Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1907-08-01
HAYWOOD Is FREED.
MINERS SECRETARY ACQUITTED
BY IDAHO JURY.
jury considers that Evidence Pro-
duced Did Not Connect Accused
Man with Steunenbcrg Murder
Fetubone Case Reset for Trial.

William u. Haywood is free in
Boise, Idaho. After eighteen months
imprisonment, closing with eleven
nerve racking weeks Of legal inquisi-
ton, he walked out Sunday. alone and
elated, into the bright sunlight of a
still and drowsy Sabbath morning, ac-
quilted of the charge of numbering
Frank Steunenberg.
His vindication came from the lips
OF twelve Idaho farmers, plain. blunt.
uncultured men, representatives of the
sturdy stock that is the backbone of
this country, wis simply We're not con-
Vlnced that the State had connected
Haywood, by his own acts and decla-
rations,' TO use the language of the
court, with the murder of Frank Steu-
undergraduates all. That was the YER
dict, and the how, and the why, and
the wherefore of it.
The mastery logic of Senator Borah.
the painstaking analysis OF Prosecutor
HaWley, and the story of Harry Or
chard crumbled and withered away in
the Unconditional atmosphere of the
room where the jurors for twenty-one
hours infinitely dissected the evidence
as they saw it. And their verdict was
Not guilty"
Judges Charge a Factor
The probability of verdict of ac-
qulttal had been freely predicted since
Judge Fremont Wood read his charge,
which was regarded as strongly favor
ing the defense in its Interpretation
of the laws Of conspiracy, circumstan-
tial evidence, and the confederation of
an accomplice who confesses.
A canvass of the jury Immediately
after they We're discharged showed the
accuracy of the prediction Ten of
the jurors declared that in their in.
dividual opinion the instructions prao-
tically forbade a verdict of guilty. The
other two would not admit this view
OF the judges charge, but declared
that they had found it impossible to
believe that any legal connection of
Haywood with the Steunenberg muir
der had been made.
1t was also freely predicted that in
the event of Haywood's acGuttal the
State would abandon the prosecution
OF his associates, Charles H. Mover,
the president of the federation. and
George A. PettibOne of Denver. State
ments from counsel and from Gov.
flooding, however, dispel this view of
the situation.
Gov. Gooding declared with empha
sis that the cases against Mover and
Petabone would be prosecuted as Wig
orously as had been that against Hay
wood. Senator Borah added to this
that Pettibone would he put on trial
early in October.
Conviction Made Impossible.
While counsel for the prosecution re-
fused to discuss what factors they con.
adered bore most strongly upon the
lury's decision to acquit Haywood, the
consensus of opinion among LAWYER.
VINO were not connected with the case
IS that the instructions made a conyic-
ton impossible.
There were sixty-fve paragraphs in
The charge, of which thirty-oAe dealt
With the subject of reasonable doubt
There is no criticism of the statement
Of the law in any of the sections of
The charge with perhaps one exception,
but 1t seems to be the general opinion.
and the talks with jurors agree with
1t, that the reiteration of those instruc-
tons which might be favorable to the
defense conveyed the impression to the
Jury that the court believed the YER
dict should be acquitted.
This is of a piece with the attitude
Of the authorities and the prosecution
throughout the trial. The desire to be
absolutely fair to the defendant has
amounted at times almost to an obses-
sion. If there has been an leaning to
one side or to the other it has been to
that of the defense, and that attitude
Is maintained even yet There is al
most no criticism of the result among
the friends of the prosecution in Boise.