Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-02-16
MAJOR MURPHY Is SENTENCED
TO Pen BY JUDGE POLLOCK
Prominent Ward County Politician Sentenced to Serve One
Year and Six Months in Penitentiafy Had no
Favor to Ask Of the Court

in the penitentiary 81 N
All punishment for crime has "a two
fold purpose, one its effect upon the in
dividual committing the crime, and the
other upon the community at large,
operating as a deterrent and warning
to those who may be disposed to commit
crimes to prevent them from committing
the same. If the first object were the
only one to be considered at this time,
and had the power to suspend SEN
tence, believe I should so do, consider
ing that the expense of this litigation to
YOU would operate as heavy fine, and
would admonish you that like acts could
not be again committed with irnpurity.
But the court would not be justified in
SO doing. Public interests demand that
such punishment shall be fixed as will.
cover the second object above referred
to, and if the court should now per-
NIT you to go unpublished, that act alone
would operate as an invitation to other
persons to commit similar crimes.
The court now asks you, Mr.. MUIR
ply, if you have any legal reason to
assign why the judgment of the court
should not be pronounced against
you Z"
Major Murphy said: Il don't know
that have. I could give good many
legal reasons which are very strong,
yet / don't know that have any that
I actually wish to make. Judge Lauder
just told me that the court would prob
ably ask me that question, and he told
me that I had better say ] did not have
any. however, wish to say this, that
q am entirely and absolutely innocent
Of the crime for which / stand here
convicted.
= realize, of course, the uselessness
Of attempting to prove the physically
impossible, Of putting the stones upon
the pyramid, they are there; I am
here to be sentenced.
But, ] feel in my own conscience th i
4 am as far above the crime for which
I stand here convicted as the poles are
apart. While I have strong likes and
dislikes, yet l feel myself so far sboveii
the men who brought this about origin
ally that cannot even dignity them BY.
hating them. do not.
~ ,=
Il have learned great lesson, and
it has been to me a very horrible ex-
perience, because my good name and
my standing among my friends and
those who know me best and my family
have been everything to me. Il have
the consolation Of knowing, however,
that a great wrong has been done, and
that it will be righted have no mis-
glvings or doubts upon that score, but
what ] started to say was that the les
son given me was just this II is
better to give the path to the dog than
to have him bite you, because, even if
you kill the dog it does not remove the
bite;iyoa cannot cure it. 5
4 can conceive entirely how a ury
Of u ignorant men and when / saw
thai that ! do not say it in the offensive
way at all--could arrive at the verdict
that they did arrive at, because Of the
surroundings because they were locked
up for 30 days; and their minds were
limited were dwarfed warped, rather
and the surroundings were like 4
great murder trial OF a trial where there
was million dollars at stake; III can
conceive how they could arrive at such
verdict how they could come to the
conclusion that they were expected, as
they seemed.to be, to arrive a. a verdict
OF guilty, because from the great mass
Of stuff thrown before that jury, stuff
that I believe the supreme court will
say had ne business there, / can CON
ceive how they could bring in a verdict
as they did.
But, aside from this, Your Honor,
! feel, and, while / did not intend 10
say so, lssIeel That the verdict was
brought about because Of your over
enthusiastic judicial action. i cannot
feel otherwise. 4 am driven to the con-
clusion, although / dislike to-; / have
tried to put It aside, but cannot do ii;
It rs hard to appreciate the state Of
heart and mind back Of the, outward
manifestation, and during the course
OF that trial Your Honor often re-
marked that, not being able to take i
mental photograph Of mems minds, VI, We
had to arrive at the conclusions from
the surroundings, and + have thought i
good many times, Your Honor, as i
lay sick in the last two months, that
j world very much like to have men
tai photograph Of Your Honor's mind
FIVE minutes before that verdict was
brought in when you went to the Jury
room and asked the jury II they had
agreed upon a verdict; and they said
no and you said You had better
sorsciT1rs ~. x "a =. Il. I,