New Britain herald., 1919-08-09
J. 5. MISSIONARY
 PUNISHED BY LAPS
Was Not Represented by Counsel
 at Trial

The Associated Press) The Rev. F.. NJ. Mowry of Mansfield, O., an American Presbyterian missionary, had no lawyer to represent him in the court of Pyeng Yang when he was' convicted and sentenced to six months penal servitude for shelter ing Korean agitators in the indepen- dence movement. The trial was held after one days notice to the ac- cused and neither he nor his friends who were in court watching, but talk ing no part in the case were notified until after the trial that they could have asked for and obtained a post ponement.
 These facts are stated by the Rev. Samuel A. Moffett who has charge of the American Presbyterian mis- sionary at Pyeng Yang. The Rev. Mir. Moffett has called them to the attention of the Japanese authori- ties at Pyeng Yang and forwarded a statement of the facts to the Ameri- can consul at Seoul.
 The Rev. MT. Moffett attended the hearing in the case of the Rev Mir Mowry before the district court and made detailed report of the pro- ceedings in which he stated that he called upon MT. Mowry, then under arrest, on April 10. A detective in-f formed MT. Moffett that Mir Mowry probably would be sent to Seoul. but on April 14, both MT. Mowry and MT. Moffett were notified that Mir. Mowry would be put on trial the next morning.
 The Rev. Mir. Moffett's transcrip- tion of the evidence shows that the Rev. Mir. Mowry told the court that he was teacher of the Union Chris tian College and principal of both the Boys and Girls Grammar school at Pyeng Yang and that he had taught there since 1911. He said that he had admitted to his house five Korean students for two days in March after the beginning of the independence movement. One of these had been his secretary for six years and was so engaged until he was arrested by the Japanese.
 The. missionary had given him money for school expenses for five years. The others were pupils he had taught. The Rev. MT. Mowry told the court that he had heard that the Christians and students had held an independence meeting at the Boys Grammar school, that he had noth ing whatever to do with it but heard they had read a declaration of in dependence, raised the Korean flag and marched down the streets shout ing ''mansei' flong live Korea). The missionary declared that he had heard that the police were going to arrest the students but that when the boys came to his home they did not tell him why they wanted to stay there, did not say they were in hiding from the Japanese and that he told them that he could not protect them If they were doing anything they should not do.
 Would you not think that in com ing to the house of a Westerner there was som ething up?" asked the judge through an interpreter
 Koreans often slept at my house and I could only guess at it in view of the times" replied the Rev. MT. Mowry.
 Did you know that they secretly distributed announcements and that the police were hunting for them ?" asked the judge.
 'I knew the police were trying to arrest such men," said MT. Mowry, but | did not know these boys had done it. I guessed that the police were hunting for them. They said nothing to me about fleeing from the police. l did not hide them as fugi- tives. I made no effort to conceal them and I told them I could not do so.
 If I had been informed that the police were trying to arrest them and had concealed them it would have been wrong; but I did not know that they were criminals. If anyone had come to arrest them and I had con- cealed them it would have been wrong. Concerning the independence . movement, I had nothing whatever to do with it and kept free from it and, as an American, told them that could have nothing to do with it and could give no advice"
 The procurator in demanding a sentence of six months imprisonment court said, "On one side your taking employees and students who had no place to flee to was in a sense & man Hesitation of human kindness"
 The wicker basket was then put on Rev. Mir. Mowry's head and face and he was led off by a policeman The Rev. MT. Moffet visited the office of another procurator who admitted to him that Mir. Mowry was not notified of his trial until the day before it was held and that he was not asked whether he wanted a lawyer. Mir. Moffett complained that the trial was brought off so suddenly that Mir. Mowry's friends had no chance to en- gage a lawyer.