Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-01-18
JAMES RECORDS
BAD SAYS LETTER
MAN ACCUSED OF LARCENY AT
ELDoN FOUND TO HAVE BEEN
CONVICT ON PAROLE.
ADMITS THE ACCUSATION
officers From Neishboring State Say
He Would Rob the Dead and is
Low Criminal; May be
Moved South for Trial.

Harry James, in the Wapello county
Jail, is bad actor and man OF low
criminal record according to the au-
thorities at the reformatory OF Kan
sas. One of the officers states that
James, Williams, Hanover or Ham1l-
ton, whichever you will, as he mas
many aliases, is at present on parole
from the Kansas reformatory and that
he would rob the dead.
Among the persons indicted by the
grand Jury recently was this Harry
James, for larceny from building in
Eldon James is said to have taken
pocketbook in which were four dol
lars, from house in the nelghborlng
city, about Christmas time. 1t mas
turned out that the so-called James
has a number of other names and is
we'll known as a criminal. A letter
from w A. Crawford of the parole
office at the Kansas reformatory at
Hutchinson, Kas., states the so-called
James is a degenerate and criminal
of a low order. He states that he was
serving a term in the Kansas reform
atory under the name Of Harry VIII
liams, being No. 1888. That he went
under the aliases of Hanover and
Hamilton and that if the local court
could give him long sentence it
should do So If the county cannot put
him in the penitentiary or If they want
the Kansas reformatory to take him,
Crawford said he would come for
him.
Disposed of Card.
When James, as he is known here,
was taken to the county Jail, Sheriff
w. w. Jackson remarked that he look
ed crooked and determined to watch
him. with the result that he finally Sc
cured enough information to warrant
writing the Kansas authorities. James
admitted being on parole from that
state and said that he was due to re-
port to the parole board January 10.
His parole card he disposed Of in an
ingenious manner While in jail at FL
don awaiting his taking to Ottumwa.
He fastened the card on the end OF
a piece of wire that he found in the
cell, and reaching out through the
bars, placed the card in the stove,
where it was burned. He told of the
occurrence later with some pride in
his ingenuity He divulged his number
in the Kansas reformatory to Sheriff
Jackson, who was unable to learn any
thing definite from the authorities
there on account of the change of
names under which James lived. Aft
er number of letters between Sheriff
Jackson and the Kansas authorities,
the letter Of Officer Crawford came
this morning.
kansans May Have Him.
Crawford stated that if the county
officials wished him to call for the
prisoner he would gladly do so, as the
man has bad record. Sheriff Jackson
wrote Officer Crawford today to the
effect that as the charge under which
James is indicted and held at Ottum
wa is but a slight one, and that moth
ing more than a Jail sentence can be
given him, he recommended that the
Kansas authorities come after him
and thus save the county the expense
of prosecuting and keeping the pris
oner.
Hamilton His Name.
A card on the person of James was
found by Sheriff Jackson, which was
written to one Hamilton instead Of
James, coming from his mother, 8
Mrs. Hamilton in New York. The pris
oner admitted that Hamilton is his
right name and that Williams Is the
name under which he was sentenced
to five years in the Kansas reforma
tory, from which he was paroled 6
few years ago.