Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-10-04
Judge Parker Sentences Pris-
oners to Hard Labor at
Fort Madison
PLEAS MADE FOR cLEMENcY
Perkins Makes a Plea in His Own Be-
half, on Ground of Being Negro
Has Served Similar Sentence at
Anamosa for Same Crime Committed
in Woodbury. County in 1908.

Judge Parker this morning sem
4 fenced James Lee and George Perkins
to three years each in the state peni-
/ Tertiary at Fort Madison at hard labor
Pleas for clemency We're made for
both prisoners, and Perkins spoke In
! his own behalf. Lee was convicted OF
larceny from building in the night
1 time, the maximum penalty for which
1 lis ten years. Perkins crime was cheat
Ling by false pretenses for which the
Istatutes fix seven years as a maximum
penalty.
Lee was the first to come up for SEN
4 tence. His crime was committed last
summer, when he stole from the room
of Frank Gibson, an Iowa Central
brakeman, a quantity of clothing. Glib
|son had befriended the man, who was
! in straitened circumstances, and had
given him access to his room, where he
had slept
Claims Aggravating Circumstances.
/ Counsel for the prisoner, in his adj
dress to the court in plea for Glenn
stances, in the fact that Lee was in
need. The court, however. saw no me-
cessity for any such action as the evil
dence showed the defendant to have
been guilty of. The court considered
Gibson's act a generous one, and said
| that he thought the prisoner had lily
repaid him.
County Attorney Egermayer laid
great stress on the fact that Gibson
| had befriended the prisoner, had taken
him in when he was without a place to
sleep, and when he had gone to work
returned to find he had entertained a
thief unaWares.
Lee was evidently satisfied with the
sentence, as he gave his attorneys a
| broad smile after sentence had been
| pronounced. Lee claims his parents
are dead, and that he was formerly a
smelter in the employ of Senator Clark
of Montana. He is less than 80 years
of age.
Perkins Makes Own Talk.
Perkins, the coIored man, who has
posed as a preacher, in his talk to the
court in his own behalf, denied any
intent Of crime in soliciting the money
He called the courts attention to the
fact that he was a colored man, and
ignorant. He said he intended using
the money for the purposes for which
he collected it. The prisoner also made
prominent his LONG; service in jail,
since early in February, and claimed
| that he had been a model prisoner. he
said he had already suffered great pain
and mental anguish. and asked the
| court that he be lenient because OF his
| actions while in Jail. and because he
was not of criminal disposition. Per-
kins declared that had he been Grim
inally disposed he could have been
| fugitive from justice before this time.
| Perkins Tipped Off Proposed Escape.
Counsel for Perkins urged In his
plea the reference te, the prisoner hav-
Ing been model prisoner, and went
| into more detail concerning his act In
| informing the sheriff concerning the
| efforts of two prisoners to escape
1.-TWO confirmed prisoners" the attor-
ney said, but Immediately qualified his
statement to cor one, at least" "were
lying in wait to escape II the mat
ter hadn't been brought to the atten-
A ton Of the sheriff, he, himself, might
have been killed or dangerously in
jured Perkins told the sheriff Of the
plot to escape"
The attorneys reference was to Rog-
ers and Corcoran the craftsmen, who
were in Jail at the time, and who, af-
ter Perkins information had been
conveyed to the sheriff, were found to
have tools in their possession, evident
ly making ready to again saw them
selves out of Jail The qualifying
statement of cor one, at least re-
ferred to young Wagner, or Cor
! coran, as he was then known, who
the same attorney secured release
on continued sentence or parole be-
cause he was not a criminal at heart
and because of his youth.
Race Condition Feature.
| Perkins other attorney made the
condition Of the colored race a fear
ture Of his plea. No colored man ION
trial, the lawyer stated, could have
| the same impartiality shown him from
all parties, as would be extended q
white man. There was certain re-
pugnance against the colored race APP
parent in the jury Of twelve men, OF
a part of them. The prisoners eight
months in jail were also referred to
and it was declared that the Jail was
by far worse than a like sentence In
the penitentiary, because of the con-
fnement and lack of exercise.
State Declares Plea inconsistent.
County Attorney Egermayer, for the
state, declared the plea Of the defend
ants counsel inconsistent, in view OF
the fact that 1t was by the attorneys
own efforts that Perkins had been KEEP,
in Jail so long; that he might have
been tried at the March term of court
| had not the lawyers raised technicalf-
ties in the Indictment. The jury had
sent communication to the court
asking clemency on account of the
mans color. but this the county attor-
ney also declared inconsistent after a
| fair trial had been granted. The pre-
vious record of the prisoner was also
referred TO. and a photograph of him
ttaken in the 9lnamosa penitentiary,
was shown. together with the admis-
| sion of the prisoner himself that he
had done time.
Perkins Senten cod From Sioux City.
Perkins was sentenced to the Ana
mosa penitentiary from Woodbury.
county on Sept. 2e, 1903, for the same
crime for which he was convicted here.
He was sentenced then under the name