The Washington times., 1915-01-31

Jim Conley would have been hanged
months ago and Leo NJ. Frank would
be a free man to-day could the
negro have been broken down In the
utterly weird and inconsistent story
he related on the witness stand
and forced to reveal the real story
Of the Mary Phagan murder.
Right at the point In his fanciful
tale where the murder actually was
committed this lying negro--con-
fessedly and proudly maker of
false Afflda avits--has drawn the cur
tain. 1t Is as II he dared not detail
his actions at the very time the
crime was committed. He makes
the absurd statement that he was
asleep.
He wishes you to believe that he
was placed OH a box near the stair
way on the first floor, there to watch
while Mary Phagan was In Franks
office, in spite Of the fact that he
admits that he let Monteeh Stover
70 up directly afterward to discover.
II she might. the attack on the little
girl; in spite of the fact that he
did not lock the doors after he said
, he heard the little girl scream, and
even in spite Of the fact that, after
all this. he says he calmly went to
sleep and did not watch at all.
II Conley had told on the stand,
as he afterward told to Annie
Maude Carter, a negro woman. What
he was doing at this time he says
he was asleep on a box on the tirst
floor, the public would have the
real story Of the pencil factory
murder.
Conley made four formal state
ments to the police before the trial.
each Of the last three different than
the one preceding. He admitted his
early statements were, in the main,
rank perjuries, but his story on the
stand was the worst Of all In that
it represented fantastic tale
evolved from all the other state
ments and from the three months
study his cunning negro brain had
in preparation.
With all his Dhrewdness, however,
one Is struck at once with the many
Inconsistencies and improbabilities
Of his patchwork story. or course,
one asks first why, II Frank COM
mitted the murder. did Frank have
Conley watch when Conley says ne
stopped no one, locked no doors
when the little girl entered and later
screamed, and even unlocked them
so that any one might enter the
building at the time Conley says he
and Frank were carrying the body
from the second floor to the base
ment?
Conley says that at 3 o'clock FRI
day afternoon Frank came to the
Fourth floor and asked him to come
around to the factory at $50 satur-
day morning and when Conley ar.
rived at that time Frank Is quoted
as saying: You are around early,
aren't you?"
Why did Frank want Conley
there at that time? Frank could
receive no girls in his office then.
He would not need Conley to guard
the door. Employees were coming
and going all the forenoon. A
stenographer was at work In
Franks office until noon. An
office boy was there until tho same
time. A half dozen persons were
in or near Franks office up to 11.3o
or 11.4S. The answer Is that Con.
ley was not there at $50 and
wasn't asked to como there at all
Conley goes on to say that later
in the forenoon he told Frank he
would like to see his mother over
at the Capital City laundry and
Frank told him to go ahead. but &c
meet (Frank) at Nelson and For
syth streets on the way to. Sig
Montag's Now. why did Franl
want Conley to meet him at Mel
son and Forsyth streets? Why no,
have Conley go back to the factor,
after he had seen his mother? Did