The Mena weekly star., 1910-01-20
REFUSES TO GIVE
 PARDON TO ILLS
With His Pardon" Governor Says, Law Dies and h. Courts Are Held inConltmpt" "-Giv $ His
 V.eem No Chance.

wnO IS serving sen ence of three
 y-ars Tn the q kansas peniteu-
 i,ar for al ling N P. Willis Of
 Indianapolis. I he governor sets
 forth six reasons why Ellis should b. pardoned and then givls a trunoer oI other reasoss wby he
 Should not be pardoned. He urges
 in support oi his action that K' E lis actually killed another
 msn," tut if Ellis were pardoned
 ou account of i'll healtn many
 b hers in the penltentiary could
 with equal right b. pardoned and
 others would eudeavor to escape
 punishmeat under tue pretext of
 poor health; that if Ellis was
 slig ghtiy unbalanced mentally, as his attoIness enGeavored to prove, ! he Is menace to society and
 should be confined; that the piii, Hui pleas or mothers and wives sc inno. govern in such a mater, 'or convictions would be of no .avall. Referring to the lengthy spetiti0n for the p r on of l. IL. the governor states that althougL lit is fficult for one man 10 SC {, Ihis judgment up against that oi sminy il must be rcme bered that
 many people sign such petition .thrnugh friendship. others b : |c use of kind instinct and still |otheis because they would rather sign than refuse or argue over 'the matter.
 The governor also calls atten- |tion to the fact that only a very few of the petitioners had heard .the evidence in the case and tha, F'the governor, however ready tc .please d friend, or however kiud |hear,ed he may be, IS under mos, solemn oath 10 administer the Ia ws and execute his offi-ia acis with justice and with regard te the interests of the whole people.
 Referring to the power of fla eutial friends of E lis, the govei- nor states that "if rardons are tt be granted only when sought by many, and the i. fIential, thcr the poor, iriendi.ss convict, howeves worthy, may sxpec' nothing; while any man with sufficIent ip fiuence to secure lagg, petitions may hope fer and rely cn executive oae mency." Along the same line he declsred that il pardons are frsely granted under great pressure, then more aud more pressure will be used and the verdict and work of hones jurors and judges be set aside.
 Life Too Cheap iu Arkansas.
 To nullify tue acts of courts, the governor says, practically leads to anarchy and civilization is threatened whenever an indi- yidual takes the responsibility of "We all know tha, the taking ot human life has beer too lightly considered in Arksn. sas," declares ,h. governor. 'Nothing adds 10 the disturbance and unrest nf law-abiding la locali- ties so much as the killing of human being. This distress is accelerated to greater extent when those who do the killing es- cape unpunished."
 The governor also refers to the fact that Ellis shot down and killed, ''without warning and without bodily danger to himself, in the sacred temple of justice it. self, a man, who, even If he de- served death, was entitled to the protection of the court and was relying upon it. If such de ds go unpuuished. who can afford to lay aside his arms ana meet bis adversary even in the courts" Tue governor says that under the old "code of bonor' .msn's mortal enemy had at least the chsnce of killing his adv rssry, but even this poor chance Ellis denied his victim"
 Governor Donaghey conclud 8 the explanation of his denial by declaring that with the pardon of Ellis s'law dies and courts are held in contempt and that Elns should pav ihe penalty f