The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-18
.SANDFORD WILL BE SENTENCED TODAY Sixty Years in Prison and S6O,OOO Fine Possible HISTORY OF THE CASE Sandford Is Willing To Accept With out Protest Any Sentence Which Judge May Impose-Has Had
 Unusual Career
HISTORY OF THE CASE

Durham. Me, December 17.-When tn
 clerk of the United States district cour l at Portland tomorrow calls the name O
 the Rev Frank Weston sandford, wh' | is to be sentenced by Judge Clarence Hall on six counts of manslaughter, he vii find the leader of the Holy Ghost and U. 1 society ready to take without protes
 whatever sentence may be meted out tc | him.
 | Sixty years in federal prison, or finC of s6O, ,0oO or both, is the maximum pen alty that he may be called upon to pay 1 But for adverse winds, Sandford might yet be engaged in the evangeization voy- | age on which he embarked on the yacht Coronet with handful of the faithful + months ago, praying for the conver- sion of inhabitants in far countries. He was driven into port a month ago on a sinking ship to face arrest on the charge of failing to provide proper food for his followers and so causing the death of six of them by scurvy.
 When called before the bar of justice Elijah H." as he is known among the Shilohites, refused to employe counsel and his only defense was that he had but done the bidding of his Lord and Master. Released on bail after his conviction, Sandford returned to Shiloh to prepare for term of Imprisonment if the court should so decree, declaring that the work which he has started will go on as be- fore. Sorrow at the expected parting from his wife and five children is all that ap- pears to have the power to shake the leader from his calm During the past seven days there have been many con ferences on the Hilltop" where the tenn pie of the sect is located but except the announcement that the Rev. C. Holland, the Moses of the flock, will succeed to the active management of the colony, no public word has come forth.
 The life story of the man who entered upon the work of evangelizng the world single handed without money or hope ot recompense, is remarkable.
 Sandford. as a boy in his native town of Bowdoinham, was not noticeably diff ferent from other boys except possibly that he was slightly more religiously in clined. As student at Bates college he secured q place on the baseball team and regularly prayed for victory before each contest. Sandfords work as catcher and batsman attracted scouts from the big leagues who made overtures to him, which were rejected.
 Some years after graduating Sandforo was ordained as a free Baptist clergyman and married Miss Helen Kinney of Sing Sing, N Y., who had been missionary to Japan According to Sandford's own story one night in New York he had a revelation in which he was directed to give up his church and live a life ot faith, depending upon God for his sup port When he repeated the vision to his wife she agreed that it was an order that could not be disobeyed.
 Returning to Maine he started his work of world evangeization. The movement gained such strength that the headquar- ters of the cult were established in this town at a, cost of $1O0000 for the build- ings The students now number 600 at the university of Truth on the Hilltop" in which many of the sect have made voyages of evangelization in the seven seas" sfH S
 For 10 hours today the Rev. Frank w. Sandford stood in the pulpit at Shiloh talking, preaching and praying Of the 600 odd men, women and chil- dren who make up this strang religious the services. Tears often streaked the faces of the faithful and several times the leader himself wept.
 Hell itself cannot hurt me- Sand ford declared in referring to possible punishment. God has done so much for me that nothing hurts"
 Many of the people stayed through the long 10 hours service without dim ner or supper and not once did Sand ford or his elders leave the platform
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