Evening star., 1915-06-21


venue. declaring these provisions most
broad in behalf of the defendant to in
sure one fair trial. Frank, he said.
went to trial without asking a change
of venue and submitted his case to a
jury that was acceptable to him. Our
| ing the progress of the trial.. he con-
| tinued. after evidence had been intro
| duced laying the crime with many Of
fensive details. upon Frank. the feeling
| against him became intense. .
| If the audience in the courtroom mani
| tested their deep resentment toward
Frank it was largely by this evidence
of feeling beyond the courts power to
correct.
"It would be difficult for an appellate
court or a trial court to grant new trial
in such long case because the audience
in the courteous on few occa sions in
dcated their sympathies. The
jury found the defendant guilty, and with
exception of the demonstration outside
the courtroom. there was no disorder.
Nothing was done which the courts
could correct through legal machinery"
| The governor said the United States
Supreme Court had sustained this rul-
| ing. He declared the charge against
| the state of Georgia of racial prejudice
| is unfair.
Review of the Evidence
| He then reviewed the evidence. He
asserted the state proved that Frank
/ was in his Office at the factory a little
after ~ o'clock the day of the murder,
and that he admitted paying Mary
Phagan wages due her. So far as
known, he says. Frank was the last
person who saw her alive. Other facts
enumerated by the governor as to him
the more important OF those shown by
| the state were:
That Frank al o'clock the afternoon
| OF the murder allowed the negro watch
man, Newt Lee, to leave the factory
| for two hours: that the same evening
| Frank called Lee on the telephone;
| that Lee found the double inner doors
| locked, all of which things he had never
done before; that a cord similar to that
| with which the girl was strangled was
| found in quantities on the metal-room
| floor and in less quantities In the base
| ment where the body was discovered
| He also included the testimony of Miss
| Monteen Slower, that when she was IN
| Franks office, about the time the state
contended Frank and the Phagan girl
were in the metal room, Frank was not
| in his office, although he had declared
! he had not left the office.
Conley's Testimony.
! The most startling and spectacular
| Testimony in the case was that given
by negro. JON Conley. who finished
in the chain gang" the statement says.
He then referred to the murder
notes" found beside the body, which
conley finally admitted he had written
at Franks dictation "Cnnley claimed
Frank asked him to come to the fac
tory on Saturday and watch for him.
as he had done, which, ne explained,
meant that Frank expected to meet
some woman" the governor says.
"Conley occupied dark place beside
the elevator behind some boxe1
"Conley mentioned several male and
female employees, who went up the
steps to the second floor, where Franks
ONCE was He said Mary Phagan went
up the stairs; that in a few minutes he
heard footsteps going toward the metal
room: that he heard scream and then
dozed In few minutes Frank
slammed and Conley locked the door and
then Frank whistled and Conley un-
locked the door and went up stairs. He
said Frank was shivering and trem-
hing and Frank told him he made ad-
yances to the girl and she repulsed
him and he struck her too hard and
she fell and hit her head against some
thing and he didn't know how badly
she was hurt; Conley said he
a cloth tied about her neck. as though
to catch blood. although there was no
blood at the place.
Says BE Followed Directions.
According to Conley's story Frank
told him to get a piece of cloth and
wrap the body in it, and Conley got a
niece of bed ticking and tied UP the
| hody and carried it to near the dress
| ing room, dropped it. then called on
Frank to assist him. He said that
be and Frank took the body to
| the basement in the elevator; that
thew rolled the body out of tho
c,oth. then went to Franks office; that
Emma Clark and Corinthia Hall came
into the office and Frank put him in
tbe wardrobe and. after they left. that
rronk dictated the murder notes"
THE statement then points out al |
,eeed Inconsistencies in Conley's story, |
ana mentions several contradictions In
his story as related in various affidav |
its Among them, he said. was evil
dance that the elevator had not been
used Saturday afternoon; that Frank
on,,Id not have carried the girl down
tbe waterway, while Conley, a power
fmi negro. could have done SO: that no
had tickinR ever had been seen in the |
factory: that 1t was agreed the mur- |
dar couid not have been committed be- |
fore 1905 pm, and yet Conley has
Emma clark and Corintha Hall in
Erank,s office after the body had been !
nopw showed that they reached the |
f.ctorv at 11:35 and left at HAS am,
Frank, as "Convict $685." |
Aqain Protests Innocence.
o.,ooJod m pr;cnn Eo