Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1909-04-23
SPRINGS SOUTH DAKOTA, FRIDAY APRIL % 1909

'AlnS more lhan na!f interest and
his father the balance That he spoke
to his father about making said pur-
chase and found he was greatly sur
prlsed to learn that such purchase
was in contemplation and then and
there refused to have anything to do
with it. He also talked with his
mother and she said that she never
talked with said Barton about said
purchase and knew nothing about it.
That from what he learned of Barton
and from his observations since that
time and upon what he has heard
about him, he is now satisfied that
said Barton was of unsound mind at
the time he so applied for the said
land as aforesaid"
Mr.. Cleveland then made the follow
ing plea to the court: This defendant
made no attempt to flee from Justice
and made no attempt to conceal the
acts which he had done. He has never
attempted in any way to deny what he
did and even made a written con-
fession while he has been here i'm ail
from which we gather that at the time
he committed the crime he was of the
apprehension, whether imaginary or
real, that he was going to lose his wife
and little child whom he loved dearly
and while under that impression he
performed this act, which of itself is
serious one",
Judge McGee then addressed the
prisoner: "I'he crime is recognized as
the most henious crime that can be
committed by civilized person, but
you have plead guilty to the informa.
tion as set forth to YOU, so there is
nothing left to do but pronounce SEN
tence, which now do, ito hard labor
in the penitentiary at Sioux Falls,
South Dakota, for and during yonr
natural life. +"
Barton WAS then conducted by Sher-
lit Jensen to his cell and will be taken
within few days to Sioux Falls, where
he will pay he penalty of his crime.
~ OAASi iCN tCW vi bIlc IhCJS HAY re-
fresh the minds of our readers in re-
gard to his awful crime On Monday
March 10Th, after working all forenoon
in the. field on his father-p laws farm
near til little station of Provo, on the
Burlington R'y, he came into the house
shortly after dinner took down gun
from peg on the wall and before his
wife, deliberately shot Mrs Annie e.
Tucker, her mother, killing her instant
ly. Her husband, Stephen ID. Tucker,
hearing the shot then started for the
house from the barn and was met by
Barton who fired load of shot into
his breast. The shot did not take
effect however and the two men crap.
pied and finally Barton succeeded i'm
clubbing him into unconsciousness
and after time cut his throat
from ear to ear with knife. lie com
PEELED his wife to stay at the house
with him until the next morning when
he drove to Edgemont where he was
later taken into custody.
Since his confinement in the county
Jail here he has been visited by his
father and number of relatives who
altho recognizing his guilt have work.
ed for life sentence for him. La the
state of South Dakota the law is very
different than in most states in regard
to the crime of murder and the penalty.
Hero there is only one degree of
murder and but two penalties One is
hard labor for life i'm the penitentiary,
the other is hanging, and even tho a
plea OF guilty is entered it is left to
the discretion of the court as to
which shall be imposed upon the
prisoner. Another point in this case
is the fact that his wife was the ONLY
eye witness and in this or any other
state the law provides that neither n
wife or husband can testify against
the other except the witness be the
Injured party.
Perhaps not another lifer in the peni-
tentiary at Sioux Falls will have left
Oh hOl'o VI PdLuOu u ike JJhTtOn
will when he enters there. He was
sentenced under the charge of murder
ing Stephen d. Tucker and the other
charge OF having killed Mrs. Annie e.
Tucker will always be over him and
should he at any time be pardoned, he
can be arrested, tried, and if convicted
of this murder, banged or sent back
again
His people are we'll aud favorably
known ut their home at Odessa, Mis-
souri,. They are to be pitied bnt the
murderer,if insane at the time of the
crime, has the hardest penalty 10 pay
that could be meted ont TO any man.
If the crime was a cold blooded MUIR
der as ii seems, he is getting his just
deserts. 'ii@
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