Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-04-03
Mrs. Emms!ine Pankhurst
is Found Guilty in Lon
don Court.
JURY ASKS FOR MERCY
Recommendation Is Ignored by
Presiding Judge-Sympa-.
thizerS Cheer Her.

London. April 3.-Mrs. Emmeline
Pankhurs:, leader of the militant suf-
fragets, today was found guilty and
sentenced to three years penal servi-
tude on charge OF melting persons
to commit damage.
The trial lasted two days. The fury
added to It's verdict of guilty a strong
recommendation for mercy and when
the judge pronounced the heavy sen.
tence the crowd of women in the court.
room rose in angry protest.
AS Mrs. Pankhurst stood up in the
prisoners enclosure her sympathizers
cheered wildly, then filed out of court
singing March On, March On" to the
tune of the "Marseillaise." Mrs. Pank.
hurst's closing address to the jury oc.
cupied 80 minutes. She informed the
court she did not wish to call any wit
nesses. She denied any malicious in.
tent
REFUSES TO SUBMIT.
Speaking with much feeling. Mrs,
Pankhurst fiercely criticised man.
made laws and said the divorce law
alone was sufficient to justify a revo-
luton by women. In impassioned
tones she declared:
Whatever be my sentence, will
not submit. From the moment leave
the court l will refuse to eat. will
come out of prison dead or alive at
the earliest moment"
| Justice Lusch, summing up, told the
! Jury Mrs. Pankhursts speeches were
an admission she had melted to the
| perpetration of illegal acts. Mrs
Paukhurst almost broke down when
the jury pronounced it's verdict. Lean
| ing over the front of the prisoners
enclosure, she said: "If it was i'm
possible to find a different verdict l
want to say to you and to the jury it
is your duty as private citizens to do
what you can to put an end to this
state of affairs"
ONLY ONE WAY.
She then repeated her determine
ticn to end her sentence as soon as
possible, saying: Il don't want TO
commit suicide. Life is very dear to
all of us. But / want TO see the wo-
men Of this country enfranchised. I
want to live until it is done. l will
take the desperate remedy other wo-
men have taken and ! will keep It. up
as long as l have an ounce of strength.
| deliberately broke the law, not hys-
/ teIically, not emotionally. but for a
set and serious purpose. l believe this
is the only way.
MORE BURNING OUTRAGEs.
There were three attempts early to-
day to burn houses in Hampstead dis
tTict, London. One Of the residences
was occupied. The damage was not
extensive. Nothing was found to con-
meet suffragets with the outrages, but
tenants of the suburb were convinced
militants were responsible.
PUSHING EMERSON CASE.
A letter from Mrs. Emerson of De-
troit, handed by Josiah Wedgwood,
liberal member of parliament, to Brit
ish Home Secretary McKenna today.
II demanded permission for Mrs.
Emerson's own physician to examine
Ser daughter, Zelie, a militant suf-
fraget, in Holloway jail The United
States embassy, according to Mrs.
Emerson, has promised in the event
of failure of McKenna to comply with
her request, to place the matter be-
fore the British foreign office. A
letter from a prisoner confined in the
next cell to Miss Emerson states re-
lease of the American woman within
few days is necessary in order TO
save her reason, and perhaps her
life. The letter also asserts Miss
Emerson, by giving her neighbor
portion of her food, started her hun
ger strike" IA days before the prison
doctors discovered her ruse.
WOMEN WELCOME CHURCHILL.
Plymouth, April 3.-Militant suffra-
? gets made active preparations early
today to welcome Winston Spencer
Churchill, first lord of the admiralty,
who arrived on a yacht this afternoon.
The women painted greetings in big
letters on the lighthouse and other
. points of vantage facing the sea. One
of them read:
"To Churchill-No security until
you give women the vote, no matter
hoW big the navy"
!, Many telegraph wires in the vicin-
ity were cut during the night.
Poison on Auto Bandits.
e Paris, Aprila3.-Four automobile ban