The Kemper herald. (Scooba, Miss.) 1875-1908, 1907-06-27

ed four years ago of mutilating neigh
bors' horses and cattle and sentenced
to seven years penal servitude, cables
the London correspondent of the New
York Sun. Investigations led by
Henry Labouchere and Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle have established his
complete innocence and demonstrated
that the police b~lundered as badly
Ras they did in the recent and famous
Beck case.
Sir Conan Doyle's interest in the
peculiar case of Edalji was aroused
by numerous printed comments on it,
the widespread public effort to get
the Home Office to pardon the man,
and by letters asking him to take it
up from the standpoint of a detec-
tive. He became convinced finally
that the conviction of Edalji was due
to police stupidity and persecution
owing to a p~reconceived belief that
Edalji was guilty. Sir Conan had no
hesitation after personal investiga-
ton into the case in pronouncing 1t
similar to the Dreyfus "a
George Edalji was convicted in
1908 of killing a pony brutally and
maliciously at night and of sending
various anonymous letters to himself,
his father and police officials, in n
of which there was, by inference, a
threat to murder a police official. The
so-called expert in handwriting in the
case admitted afterward that his con-
illusions about the letters were all
wrong.
Edalji was supposed by the rural
police to be the leader of a band of
lawless men in and around Wyrley,
Staffordshire, who went about in the
night and at exactly ten minutes to
three o'clock in the morning disem-
bowelled horses, ows and sheep. The
country became aroused by the dep
relations of the gang. Edalji was
accused in anonymous letters to the
police and a watch was put on his
movements.
When he was only twelve years
old Edalji had been The victim of a
series of anonymous letters, for send
ing which a former servant maid in
the family was finally put under
bonds to be of good behavior. The
new series of letters, as Sir Conan
showed in his public letters to the
London Daily Telegraph, had all the
characteristics of the old series, ex-
cept as to handwriting, and one of
them contained the boast that the
writer could change his chirography
as he pleased.
The disembowelling of the pony
for which Edalji was arrested oc-
Cured three-Quarters of a mile from
his home on the night of August II,
1903. While he vas in Jail await
ing trial another horse was disem-
bowelled. After he was convicted
three more horses and some sheep
were killed on three occasions, and
for one of these crimes a miner
named Harrington was convicted. An
other man named Green confessed
that he killed his own horse, and he
was railroaded out of the country to
South Africa, having withdrawn his
confession, and no attempt was made
by the police to prosecute him.
Edalji is the son of an Episcopal
clergyman of Parsee origin. He was
always a studious boy, and his mates
say acts of cruelty were abhorrent
to him. He went to various schools,
studied law, took all the prizes that
came his way, and when a little more
than of age wrote a notable law book.
He practised law in Birmingham. He
advertised for information as to the
anonymous letter writer who was US
ing his name, protested that he knew
nothing about the crimes and then
went about his business. He lived
at the vicarage at Wyrley with his
father, mother and sister.
Moreover, it has been proved that
Edalji was a victim of myopia, so
that even with the most powerful
glasses he could only see a few inches
and that after dark he could not see
at all and would have to grope his
way home unless he was familiar
with every inch of ground. 1t was
proved by Sir Conan that the pony
for the death of which Edalji was
arrested was seen safe and sound at
IL p. M, and that when it was found
bleeding to death at 6 o'clock the
next morning the veterinary testified
that the cuts were less than six hours
old. 1t was known positively that
Edalji had entered his home at $50
O'Clock on the evening of August II
and did not leave it again that night.
The house was guarded by no less
.han twenty detectives. Edalji's IA
Their testified that they occupied the
same room, and the father said that
he locked the door from the inside.
In view of this fact and the inability
of Edalji to see at night Sir Conan
wrote:
You have to face the s~upposition
that after returning from a long days
work in Birmingham he sailed out
in a coat which he was only known
to wear in the house, performed a
commonplace mission 1T the boot
shop in the village, then, blind as he
was, hurried off for three-quarters of
a mile, through difficult, tortuous
ways, with fences to climb, railway
lines to cross q can answer for it.,
having myself trod every foot of it) 4,
to commit a CHASTITY and meaningless
crime, entirely foreign to his studious
and abstinent nature; that he then
hurried back another three-quarters
of a mile to the vicarage, arrived so
composed and tidy as to attract no