Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1914-04-02
Judge Sherw',ood's !,
Advice to Convict
Judge sherwood's Advice to Convict
ed Man-TeIls Why the Court
Imposes Sentence.

In passing sentence, some time ago,
upon man convicted of grand larcen-
cy in the circuit court in Codington
county, Judge Sherwood embraced the
occasion to discuss the ethics of the
situation, pointing out to the defend
zSans the reasons in detail for imposing
the sentence that the court was about
to pronounce. Many readers of this
paper having expressed desire to
read the Judges remarks, pains have
been saken to secure a transcript of
the same, as follows, omitting the in
troductoly part thereof:
Left School Early.
You left school in the seventh grade
when you did not have to leave
school. You have been working in
employments which have perhaps led
you into as much temptation as in
possible, aud you have deliberaely
chosen to take your post graduate
course i'll the dance hall. the saloon,
and on che street, That is a bad
course Ct education for a young man
You Nae been an idler and gambler
by Ion,t own testimony, and on the
night when this occurred you were
drunk. as you have testified; you had
been drinking until you were very
much under the influence OF liquor.
onl, One Possible Chance.
Il am satisfied that there is but one
possible chance for you to ever make
a man of yourself and that is to come
face to face with your own heart.
If this court or any other influence
can bring you face to face with your
own heart SO that you can see it as
people who respect the law and NOR
ality. see it. and can see your own
conduct as men who b. iaEye IN labor
and honest employment and honest
endeavor see it, there is chance for
you to make man Of yourself, but
there is not any other chance in the
world.
"If you are satisfied with the kind
of life you have led you will spend
the most Of your life in the peniten-
tiary and perhaps reach the gallows.
To continue the course that you
have started out and have progressed
{ in until you are twenty-five years Of
age will develop you into a hard
ened criminal at thirty.
A Menace to Society.
Il do not know that you entirely
lack a moral nature. hope you do
not, but it seems to me that for q
young man that has had the instruc-
tion of the church and Sunday school
you have certainly thrown all moral
ideas to the winds.
81 am AFRAID you are one OF that
class of young men who have forgot
ten or never knew anything of the
word duty OF obligation. In your.
present situation you arr menace
to society. In my opinion no man
can leave his property loose safely
with you. You took advantage OF
mans drunkenness and robbed him
and then, according to the testimony
in this case, you did not even divide
fair after you had robbed your vic
tim.
TWO Reasons for Failure.
"There are two reasons why the
court is going to sentence you in this
case, and each Of these is brought
upon you BY yourself, BY nobody else:
one is to protect society from such
men as you are, and the other is to.
protect you from yourself.
NOW, do not think that a short
sentence in the penitentiary will pro-
tect society Or will impress upon your
mind the gravity of this offense that
you have committed. do not think
nor I do not want you to get the
idea that these are small matters.
that being arrested on suspicion is q
small thing. 1t is being arrested on
suspicion and getting away that has
led you right where you are today.
race 10 Face With Own Soul.
( Z y. 4 z, !. s J.. I .