The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1908-07-16

val of the priest officiatius at the com
munion. not knowing Mia has said,
or caring who It should bo
A number of other commandments
had assumed the same posture and
practically all taken. When Father
Leo-beloved by all who knew him
both in and outside the church -ap-
peared with the consccrltrd waters.
all at the rail seemed impressed with
the solemn dty and sacrcducss of the
service and inspired with thoughts Of
God Ala, however, according to his
own statement. could barely restrain
a desire TO spring al the throat OF
the priest. despite the place. the
scene and the peculiarly sacred char
acter of the action in progress.
Along the line passed the priest.
placing upon the tongue of each sue
cessiye communicate the consecrated
wafer and repeating the lines of the
mass declaring the Eucharist thus
administered is the Savior himself i'm
person. Ala was now the next in line.
Father Leo pl,cing the wafer upon
the tongue of the stranger. all Uusus-
pectinG of the murderous design In
Alias heart began: Take eat: this
is my body" but stopped horror.
stricken. The subject of the prayer
had spat the blessed morsel from his
mouth. Almost simultaneously with
this desecration a shot rang out and
Father Leo sank to the floor NOR
tally wounded. \ bullet from a revol-
yer fired by Ala had penetrated the
priests body near the heart. Father
Wulstan Workman, hearing the shot,
rushed from the adjoining sacristy
just In time TO administer to Father
Leo the last sacrament, aFther Leo
expiring moment later In the arms
OF his brother-prlest Immediately af.
ter firing the shot, Ala, with a curse
darted toward the main aisle of the
church and rushed for the door. with
hair disheveled and smoking gun flour
ishing over his head, he made his way
10 within ten feet oft he portal,
where he tripped and fell. Policeman
Daniel Cronin, who was among the
worshippers. wrenched the gun from
Alias hand and dragged him to the
street in an effort 70 protect him
from the maddened worshipers. Out.
side, the policeman and his charge
were surrounded by several hundred
persons who We're about 10 tear ALA
from the officer" when sevral
priests and Franciscan brothers ap
peared on the steps and pleaded with
the enraged people 10 leave the aven
ging of the awful murder to God The
presence OF the ecclesiastics inter
ceding for the life Of the destroyer
of beloved brother had effect. The
single policeman was permitted tc
take Ala away in a buggy hastily
driven TO police headquarters, Sew
eral hours later Ala was spirited out
OF town in an automobile and taker
to Colorado Springs for safekeeping
The trial was comparatively brie
r but every opportunity of defense wal
given Insanity was offered as a plei
to escape the moose. Fhe best alien
r lists in Denver testified that Ala wal
} sane and he was sentenced to be
! hanged. A petition from citizens o
r Alias native town in Italy pleading
2 for his life, and declaring that HI
< was undoubtedly insane was forward
D ed TO the Italian consul here but TO
Y some reason unexplained was neye
I presented to the governor. Many be
+ lieve that the murder OF Father Lee
was part Of an anarchistic plot agains
\ the Catholic clergy but nothing ha
!. recently transpired tending to substan
tiate this view. Previous To coming 4
$ Denver Father Leo lived at Paterson
y n. j. Paterson is the headquarters o
! the Franciscan monks in this cpLntr,
) and il has been thought possi5
e that he incurred the enmity of som
!. one or perhaps group 60 anarchist
e IN re, personal in its nature and al
}. pl, ing only to him. His great poprlai
d ity and goodness of heart went stronG
r ly to dsprove this theory and no ev
d dence to support it has come TO ligh
!. Whether or not Ala brooded over fal
l. cied W ongs until his mlrd beclr'
It diseased, II Is admitted that for year
= he had entertained hatred for IN
n priesthood, ami on this Sunday NOR
a inc Uhan tha chimes gOundad fro