The menace., 1915-08-28


Anthonys church and parish in
Sterling. q bright little city Of four
thousand inhabitants, for the al
legged performances Of an Illegal oP-
Grafton (abortion) upon an un-
known woman. presumably one Of
his parishioners, on the night OF the
18th Of January last
The case il one Of the most un-
usual occurring in Colorado. Father
Sasse il a man Of strong person
ality and Of vigorous mental and
physical makeup. He has built
about fifty thousand dollars worth
Of church and parsonage property
in Sterling in the past five years.
More or less Of a bOnHs homms
man. he has been suspected Of boot
Logging among his foreign parish
toners. and two such charges have
been laid against him in the coun-
~ court.
On the night referred 10 a spe-
cial officer, deputized for the pur-
pose, and who had charged that he
had already bought liquor from the
priest, was sent 10 the parsonage
for additional evidence. The sher-
in Of the county was 10 have gone
also, but illness in his family pre-
vented. The deputy went alone,
got in the basement, hearing voices
and footsteps crept up stairs, found
Judgement in a bed room lodged in
a closet, was there detained, he
swore on the stand in the district
court, for from four to six hours
BY the presence Of the priest and
a woman in the room, and from be-
hind a curtain says he saw the deed
committed. In court he detailed
its steps in plain language and with
great elearness for an amateur.
The priest is said 10 have studied
medicine three years before becom'
ing a priest. The usual circum-
stances, complaints and conditions
attending cases Of this kind were
outlined in full, and the witness
withstood a severe cross examina-
tion BY a skilled lawyer, without
Ainching. The judge charged the
Jury in the usual manner. He told
them they were TO be the sole
judges Of the evidence and the
credibihty Of the witnesses. lie re-
cited the law and put the case in
their hands. They visited the
scene Of the alleged crime and
studied the premises for them
selves II was a rather usually
representative jury. There were
no strong anti-Catholics on it, and
no active churchmen. Several
members were farmers, two were
stockmen, one a business man, and
none were Of disreputable or doubt
full standing in the community.
They deliberated nearly six hours
and brought in verdict Of
guilty.
Attorneys for the defense at once
gave notice Of a desire for a new
trial, and asked thirty days time
to get additional testimony and
prepare their case. The state
granted the request. Whereupon
Judge Burke, an intense partisan
by nature, a man Of forty-five year,
OF age and especially blessed with
a liberal supply of conceit and as
surance, declared IL not necessary
to take any such time for prepara,
tion-that he would now and right
here set the verdict aside. II wa,
evident, he said, that il is a verdict
Of passion and prejudice" He
also stated that "there' are some
good men on this jury" implying
that there were others who we're not
He said that they had gone wide
the mark, and that his (sicl y con.
science and intelligence would not
allow the verdict TO stand.
CONSERVATION reigned and the
recall has been invoked. Judge
Burke was elected by less than two
hundred and fifty majority in 1912
out Of above $4,000 votes cast. His
opponent was a young Catholic
lawyer, comparatively unknown
and fresh from college. The judge
had been on the bench six year;
and it was expected he would bC
reelected by two thousand or more
The district is Overwhelmingly
Protestant, but liberal as to church
in political matters.
Burke's ego and conceit and as.
surance and political activitie,
came near defeating him.
Only for a time did he heed hi;
lesson. Last fall his party, the
republicans, won very handily in
the state and Immediately he re
sumed his arrogance and self.
sufficiency. Now a prospective can.
didate in the future for the su.
preme bench, he evidently courted
the Catholic vote, amounting tC
GE nO0 IN DoloraIn ~ III IL.