The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-06-09
FIND HIM GUILTY.
G. v. Stamey Is Convicted of
Arson in District Court.
Sentence Is Fixed at From One
to Seven Years.
HIS DEFENSE FAILS.
Liyeryman Unable to Break
Down States Evidence.
Name of Dead Woman Figured
at Trial Before Dana.

G. v. Stamey, well known liyerynan
and alleged f1rebug, was found guilty
of arson in the third degree by a Jury
in the district court at 1925 o'clock to-
day. His penalty will be a term of from
five to seven years in the state peni-
Tertiary at Lansing. The jury was out
one hour
1t is peculiar that though the jury
accepted the theory that Stamey had
burned both his livery stables for in
surance his conviction was for burning
the house of Walter Bates at 1929
Laurel street on which he could collect
nothing. Neither could he have been
prosecuted for burning the furniture on
which it was claimed it had been his
purpose to collect insurance for the Of
ticers found every article of furniture
insured had been hauled away the
evening before the fire and old worth
less goods substituted.
Some notes on .Stamey's career as
firebug as gathered by the prosecutor
and used in his closing argument to
the jury include the facts that Stamey
in all of his experience never insured
anything in his life but what it was
lost, that he never held a policy longer
than 80 days before the property was
burned; that he never lost anything by
fire but what was insured; that he al
ways happened to have uninsured
articles out of the way before fire and
that the amount of policies taken out
were always for $4,000.
When Stamey's big barn at 519 West
Tenth avenue burned he showed how it
had caught fire from a small building
across the alley. Insurance of $4,000
was collected. When his barn and five
horses were burned at Ninth and Tyler
streets. Stamey was in Norton visiting
but his 81, 500 horse on which there was
no insurance had been taken after SO
days in the barn, down to the fair
grounds, while every horse on which he
held insurance happened to be in the
stable. Insurance of $4,000 was again
collected
Find Furniture.
Then the fire which burned the Bates
house and was expected to ruin the
old furniture therein so that it could
be passed for that he had removed oc-
Cured. An attempt was made to col
lect $4,000 insurance on the furniture but
officers found it all in storage and the
prosecution used this fact against
StSmey.
But here the unfortunate Mrs. D. E.
Evans becomes involved in the case.
She hal paid the rent of the house and
lad insured the furniture. Stamey on
the witness stand without, however,
syllable of corroboratives evidence said
he had given her the furniture to pre-
vent her from bringing a breach of
promise suit against him.. That was
his defense-that he knew nothing of
the insurance and had no interest in
the property.
Mrs. Evans Asks Money.
The county. attorney showed that Mrs.
Evans before coming to Stamey, had
written him for money, from Logan,
West Virginia. Hence. he argued,
Stamey must have paid her rent but
had her do it trying to keep himself
as far as possible from detection in
the plo-. Then in answering Stamey's
defense, he asked him how it happened
that he had removed all the valuable
furniture the very evening before the
fire Stamey answered he did it be
cause the stores, where the furniture
was bought, were calling for install
ments, and said Mrs. Evans was not
paying them. Schenck showed then
that there were no installments due by
exhibiting certificates from the stores.
The county attorney hit the defense
a blow by introducing letters from the
former liveryman, who had claimed he
and Mrs. Evans had quarrefled with
him. The woman was addressed as
sweet heart and many other endear-
ing terms. The letters were written
after the fire. Further, he argued that
the eviderce proved that everywhere
Mrs. Evans went to collect that insur-.
ance, Stamey was always on the out
side. waiting to find out how things
cumstantial evidence was welded to-
gether by the fact that Stamey. who had
gone to Kansas City to escape connec-
ton with the fire, Immediately upon his
return to Topeka in the morning, tele-
phoned to the house of a Mrs. Drummer
where Mrs. Evans had gone instead of
calling up 1929 Laurel street where he
had left her the previous night.
Mrs. Evans Again.
Evidence in the case further showed
that the insura nee agents would never
have insured anything for Stamey and
that for that reason Mrs. Evans got
IT, Closing Mr.. Schenck again spoke
of Mrs. Evans, the ignorant, gullfble
and hysterical lover of Staaney. He
said:
IF this man had married Mrs. Evans
when he had paid her railroad fare
here from West Virginia. there would
have baen no insurance. for agents
would have known Stamey's connec-
ton with it, consequently there would
have been no fire."