New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1918-06-28
a punishment proportional to the
crime of which you have been con-

| nave IOOASu III VAIN iot SOh'
mitigating circumstances in connec
tion with your action. The undis
puted evidence in your case is tina
you read the libelous letter in thu
Methodist church to the persons as
sembled to attend the morning ser
vice, on Sunday, March 81. Tha
you did so deliberately is shown b,
the testimony of Mr.. Hedgcock
which you did not deny. His evi
dence shows. that you counselec
with him and with your minister be.
fore reading the letter, and Mr.
Hedgecock says that he advisec
against the reading of the same
Yet you read it. All OF which seem:
to me conclusive of your malice ir
so doing. 1t has been advocated by
many persons in this locality, and
you among. them. that politics be
kept away from the public schools
from court proceedings, and from To-
cal affairs. Yet you evidently saw
nothing wrong in your taking poll
tics of very dirty character into
the House of God. 1t is not unrea-
sonable to suppose that you went to
church on that morning with the
WORD of God" the holy bible, in
your hand, to all outward appear
ances a devout worshipper, while
you either carried with you, or pro-
cured whill there, weapon with
which to assassinate the character
of fellow human being, You no
doubt, would have people believe
that your sole object in going to the
church on the morning in question
was to worship the Divine Master
in accordance with. your religious
belief. But calmly and dispassion-
ately viewing your actions | am
forced to the conclusion that, at the
time, there reposed in your heart
very little of the true spirit of the
Brotherhood of Man.
Sentence of Jerome Clevenger
(The Court)-Jerome Clevenger
stand up. Have you anything to
say why judgment and sentence OF
the court should not now be pro-
nounced upon you?
Uerome Clevenger)-All I have
to say Judge is that it was not my
intention to do any one any harm
that is all | have to say.
C. A. Hunker)-May I make a
statement? .
(The Court)-Yes-the court will
be glad to hear you.
(Mr. Hunker)-It SENS to me, you
take man of Mr. Clevenger's avo-
cation-a railroad locomotive engi-
neer-a man whom / believe has ta-
ken very little interest in politics, a
man, as he states and as fully be.
leve, who had no idea whatever
that there was any great wrong in
what he did-a man who took the
alleged libelous letter and only
showed it to two people-and there
happened to be another man com.
ing up the street with him who
heard it read--it does seem to mt
that justice would be meted out BY
giving him the smallest penalty pos
sible. I would ask the courts. con.
sideration in passing sentence upon
him
(The Court)-Your attorney hav.
ing asked for 1eniency, the court
believe should take into considera.
tion every circumstance that the
court is aware of in order to deter
mine how much leniency should be
granted. The court did not see fiji
to give Mr.. Ogle either the maxi
mum or minimum sentence. The
court has just sentenced a man to
jail for stealing sack. of flour
presumably, as he states, for the
purpose of feeding his family. I'm
der my oath l felt it my duty and l
do not see how I could escape it, to
send that man to Jail. Your offense
is so much graver than the stealing
of a sack of flour that / can not
possibly bring myself to believe that
| could properly give you the mini
mum sentence which is fine of one
hundred dollars. did the statute
provide incarceration in the Jail in
these cases | would gladly impose
such punishment. The statute
makes no such provision.
You were before this court not
long ago on trial before jury under
an indictment charging you with hav-
ing committed an assault with a
deadly weapon upon man named
Jones, if I recollect his name cor
rectly.. AS | now recall the evidence
in that case, the man had abused
you-had accused you of having done
things that were degrading and a
disgrace to you as member OF So
ciety; such accusation was verbally
made was not either written or cir
culated, yet the jury evidently BE-
l'eved that you were justified in as
saulting that man with a deadly
weapon, and found you not guilty.
The alteration between yours If
and that man Jones was in the na-
ture of a personal quarrel in which
man is apt to say things that he
would afterwards regret. But your
actions in the case at bar in circulat-
ing the lbal against Mr.. Blood was
not done in the heat of passion but
rs the jury found was deliberately
done. and evidently with malice
We are all aware OF the fat that
in the early history Of this country
offenscs such as you were convicted
of here resulted in the party wrong
ed. in many instances challenging
the wrong doer 10 a duel with DiS-
tolls. As civilization progressed decl-
ing was done away with. Our own
statutes makes il a felony for arv
one to engage in = duel. even If he
the party challenged; and properly
so. The only other remedy 20 the
party wro1gCd is by prosecution and