The Mena weekly star., 1912-04-25
five BOYS PLEAD
GUILTY TO FELONY
Three Go TO Penitentiary and Two
to Reform SchOOl-Former Grand
Jury's Error. Brings Small
Children Into Court.


As is alwayse the case, the court
house was crowded when the sec
ond week in Circuit court opened
this morning. Ii was the begin
ming Of the criminal week. There
were many present who had been
caught in the dragnet of the grand
juries of Polk county. The largest
per cent, however, were people who
had been called as witnesses to aid
the state in convicting those under
Indictment or to aid the defense in
proving them noteguilty.
One of the most unpleasant fea-
lures of this unfortunate criminal
prosecution is the fact that such a
large portion of the cases are
charges against the youths of the
community. 1t seemed this morn
ing that almost all of the cases call
ed were charges against young men
boys of the county and boys of
good families, in many instances.
OF course, as a rule, they are not
very grave charges, most of them
little misdemeanor cases which, as
Judge Hon said in his remarks to
the jury, should be cared for in
the justice courts. But there were
some very serious charges. Judge
Hon had the unpleasant duty of
sending three young men to the
penitentiary and two boys to the
reform school.
There was one instance, however,
in which this prosecution Of the
youth of the county" came near
being carried too far. This fact de-
veloped in public way this morn
ing, when little Hardy Speer, six
years of age, came into court. He
was under indictment for assault
and battery. OF course it was a
mistake, for a child under twelve
years of age can't be convicted of a
crime. Being a mistake, it was very
amusing, except, possibly, to the
father, Calvin Speer, and Mrs.
Speer, who had TO leave their farm
out near Egger and come to court
with this and two or three other ba-
bles. As mentioned above, Hardy
SpeeP is six years of age, and he is
an exceedingly small six-year-old,
too. When he sat down in an arm
chair beside his attorney, Pole Me-
Phetrige, before the bar this morn
ing, there was apparently room for
two or three more in the same seat.
One could imagine his making an
assault coupled with the ability to
commit bodily harm" las the law
puts it, on a grand-daddy long legs,
II it Refused to tell him which way
the cows went, but anything more
than this would be doubtful
The error in bringing Hardy
to court and incidentally his mother
to take care Of him, was made by
the grand jury Of the October, 1911,
term. And Hardy is not the only
child that is in this trouble. 1t
seems that as a result Of some
trouble among the children out at
Liberty school house, which is To-
Gated at Egger, the grand jury re-
turned wholesale indictment
against the school children, dozen
or more. charging them with as
sault and battery on the person of
Henry Ramey, a school mate. Some
OF them are over IL years of age.
OF course, those under the legal
age to be charged with q crime had
been excused, and upon investiga-
ton of the matter the prosecuting
attorney decided 10 ask 10 have the
entire case dismissed. There were
large number Of witnesses IN
from that school district, but it was
stated that many Of them had been
summoned by the father Of the boy
whom Il was charged had been as
saulted. and they were denied the
right Of claiming witness fees.
The young men given sentences
Tins morning were a. follows
Walter Birdsone. . wears plea
q guilty 10 grand larceny AID sen-
fenced - two sears d the state
penEieHilaF3.
Tom Flowers AeN - years nlea
p guilty 81 grand lafcalz. seulen
80 pns year d prnHeniiay