The Topeka state journal., 1909-02-27
LITTLEMORETHANBOY
Appears Heart Broken Over His
Terrible Crime.
will Begin His Life Sentence
in Prison at Once.

Hutchinson, Kan, Feb. 27.-Desire
to become a chauffeur and the neces-
sity of getting money to enable him
to realize his ambition were the mo-
tives that prompted Orville J. Poland
to kill his sleeping friend, Jesse Hay
maker, in the Wells-Fargo office of
the Santa Fe depot here, "Wednesday
morning Poland pleaded guilty, re-
ceived a life sentence in the peniten-
tiary and will be taken to prison at
once.
Poland wanted to go to Chicago to
study motor cars in a school that pur-
ports to graduate chauffeurs and me-
chanics A friend of his. George
Wflkerson, was to leave for Chicago
Wednesday, and Foland had planned
to go with him. He told NUMBER
of his friends Tuesday that he was
going with Wilkerson to chicago
Wednesday. But he had no money
He had formerly worked for the eX-
press company, but he mad spent MS
money as he earned it. ,
81 lust had to have the money,
Poland keeps repeating apparently IN
extenuation of his awful crime
didn't intend to kill Jess. He was my
friend But I just had to have that
Roland had spent most of the
night with Haymaker and Hart. the
former the night man at the depoI
Office of the express company and the
latter the night man at the uptown OF
fee While at the uptown office, he
had swept out the front rooms, 1op
which Haymaker was supposed 70 uO
before he went home in the morn
ing.
doing this work. he told Hart.
Started to Go Home.
Then he and Hart started for home
1t was about O'Clock in the InornItls; Lltli
He left Hart at his home ana SlarCet
on toward his own home ana Went
inst one block. Then he turned PACK
and went to the station. 1t was WnlIe
walking that block he made MS Ge-
cision When he got to the depoI ne
woke Haymaker up and induced MN
to violate the rules of the company
and admit him, on the plea that ms
mother, Mrs. Poland, was not at
This kind act in behalf of a friend
b,1t in violation of the company rules
cost Haymaker his life
s'Haymaker went to Sleep" says Fo-
land in his latest confession maze
after his testimony before the coro-
ner's Jury in which he contended that
he must have fired the shot While
asleep ''Then I went TO the desk and
got the gun. Jess lay there sleeping,
and 1 studied a long time-ten or fif-
teen minutes-before I made up my
mind for sure. Then / went up close,
took deliberate aim and fired. Jess
on his side and rolled off the bench
to the floor. I knew that he was
dead. | went over by the door and
stood there ten or fifteen minutes.
Then 1 got his keys out of his pocket
and went over and robbed the cash
drawer in the uptown office just
had to have that money. so 1 could
go to Chicago to learn how to run an
automobile. I didn't have no job and
I thought I would like that kind of
work"
Little More Than Boy.
Poland is less than 90 years old,
rather sparsely built. of medium
height and weighs about 135 pounds.
He has yellow hair, blue eyes and pink
cheeks, youth just verging on man
hood. He has never been regarded as
a bad boy. His associates say he has
always been noted for his good nature
and had never shown any vicious hab
it's While not so bright mentally, as
the ordinary young man, he was never
regarded as being unbalanced and
even his relatives have no idea that he
was insane when he committed the
deed. His mother and brother were
willing that he should plead guilty to
first degree murder.
When first arrested. Poland was
stolid and regarded the dilemma in
which he found himself with apparent
indifference. He appeared to believe
that he had covered his tracks SO
carefully to avoid detection. He
boldly talked to the officers about the
crime before he was suspected, with
the evident purpose of throwing them
farther off the scent. But statements
he made right then led to his undoing
and as soon as he realized that he was
suspected he sought safety in flight.
With his capture began the explain
RtionS that resulted in his confusion