New-York tribune., 1910-11-22
FREE, BUT BROKE STONE
Telegram Sent to Sing Sing
Didn't Reach Prisoners.
WARDEN NOT IN HIS OFFICE
Attorney for jailed Men Will
Appeal to Legislature for
Redress.

OCdl
They were sent to Sing Sing on April I
last through error. Before that they were
in the Tombs two months and six days.
At Sing Sing they hauled coal and broke
stones When the Court of Appeals found
last Friday that they were innocent and
ordered their discharge the two men were
released. They were paid off by the war
den and each received a suit ana an over
coat. They worked on the stone pile
rweIIty-four hours after the telegram from
their lawyer announcing the courts action
was delivered at the warden's Office. one
OF the men has q wife and nine children.
During the nine months and seventeen days
that he was wrongly imprisoned the young
est girl baby was born. The wife and chill
dren have been putting in the time at
Bayonne, n. j., without money
Louis Brown and Morris Tauh, for seven
years before January, 1903, were cotton
jobbers at No $50 Canal street Taub was
in the Office of Gustavus A Rogers. his
lawyer, at No. 100 Broadway, yesterday.
He is ffty-three years old, and is the
father of the family mentioned.
Taub's lawyer telegrap phed him AT Sing
Sing at $3.50 D. m. last Friday that the
Court of Appeals had ordered his imne-
1iate discharge.
Il did not get the telegram" said Taub
yesterday, "a trusty told me at II o'clock
on Saturday morning that he understood l
was TO go home. I asked keeper If 1t
was true, but he said; That makes no
difference; you've got to break stones. II
wasn't until 10 p. m. Saturday, twenty
four hours after the telegram from my
lawyer was delivered at the prison, that
+T-sal
man"
A certified copy OF the court order was
sent TO Warden Frost by Mr.. Rogers last
Friday night Mr.. Frost. on the telephone
on Saturday morning. told the lawyer the
prison receiving clerk during twenty-five
years experience had never handled an or
der like It The warden thought the judge
should sign 1t, whereas it was signed by
Alfred Wagstaff, clerk Of the Court of Ap-
reals. Afr Rogers said he told the warden
he did not want the men whom the court
had found innocent to be required to take
srv money for convict labor or sign any
papers remotely connected with the release
of convicts Taub said:
Brown and I had 10 sign receipts for
such money as the warden said We had
earned as convicts. Brown was first He
sa aid he wouldn't sign the paper. The
warden said: IF YOU don't sign it We'll
keep YOU here Then we both signed.
They gave me d suit and an overcoat Ny
brother was waiting outside He said:
Take il ofT-the prison overcoat. I've
brought you one and I did"
Mr. Rogers has begun an Investigation 10
ascertain Why his telegraph message 10
his clients was not delivered. lie wants to
know why they were retained on the rock
pile so long after the finding of the court
was transmitted TO Warden Frost. He says
lie means TO appeal TO the Legislature for
monetary satisfaction for his clients be-
cause of their wrongful Imprisonment.
Also he will. he says, appeal to thet State
Superintendent of Prisons for redress in
the matter of his clients being compelled
by the warden. against his express wish,
10 sign the receipts that. he says, stamp
them as felons and deprive them of citizen
ship.
Warden Frost said TO d Tribune reporter
last night that ne was away from his office
when Nj Rogers's telegram TO the men
vas received OF Friday. and that he found
il on his desk that evening. I sent ii IN
TO them on Saturday morning., said the
warden. The court order was not signed
ny the judge. AM my clerk in twenty-five
years never had case such as this 10
handle. AS soon as We were sure of our
ground we released the men. There was
money coming TO them, and we paid it."
Mr. Rogers declares that he purposes 10 see
that such indislities are not inflicted upon
any of his clients in the future. even though
an application to revise practice governing
the granting Of certificates of reasonable
doubt by Supreme Court justices has TO be
amended. This. he asserts. must include
the granting of bail to accused persons
and sentenced men pending an appeal to q.
higher tribunal lie points out that in
three years three such decisions have been
handed down in the cases of three defend
ants afterward liberated through appeals.
one of these was the case of Mrs Ben
Teal, who served the major part of her
years sentence for subornation of perjury
in the Frank Gould divorce case.
The firm of Brown & Taub was forced
into bankruptcy in January, 1908. On what
is now held 10 be d technicaIity in book
keeping the men were convicted of for
gerry in the third degree and received the
maximum sentence of not less than TWO
years and six months ror more than four
years and six months IN Sing Sing. Mr.
Rogers, who entered the case at the time
the appeal was made. said yesterday it was
the first conviction Of its kind under the
statute.
a motion was made for a certificate of
reasonable doubt before Judge Fitzgerald,
OF the Supreme Court which was denied
on March 19. a motion for reargument
was also denied. Then followed the mo-
ton for appeal Brown and Taub, in the
mean time, were TlacCd in the Tombs on
February !.