The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1922-06-14
EDMUND D. BlCHAN IS
SENTENCED DIE JULY IA
Judge S. w. G. Shipp Ref :ses to
Grant New Trial and Passes
Death Sentence.

D. Bigham new trial and sentenced
him to be put to death in the electric
chair July Id.
9 Bigham was convicted of murder
in connection with the killing of his
brother, Smiley Bigham, and is in
dicted for murder also for the deaths
of bis mother and sister and the lat
ter's two adopted children. The
s wholesale murder took place on the
Bigham plantation in January, 1921.
Bigham was tried in March of
last year. The supreme court dis
missed the appeal and Bigham's at
,torneys sought new trial ON the
ground Of after discovered evidence
which, they declared; tended to show
that Smiley and not Edmund Bigham
did the killing. 1t is not thought the
cease will end here.
Unabashed by the sentence Of death,
.Bigham argued with the court this
afternoon before hundreds of specta-
tors for the privilege Of saying.
"Some things | would like to tell now,
as this may be my alst chance to
speak before these people" The court
replied that depended on how long
i'm afterthought, the court added,
"'You might as well tell it, though"
-. Abuses State Witness
Immediately the doomed man
pounced upon Philip H. Arrowsmith,
local attorney, who was an important
witness in the conviction of Bigham
for the wholesale murder.
II would have liked to have seen
opening. II would like to have
l,;,,, cto pJincr ,,imbt boro ip6ipo tinor
the center Of the court room. "I
would tel 1.-The reason Arrowsmith ac-
,cuscd me right to his"
Whatever he intended to have
said probably will never be spoken,
for the court stopped him sum-
marily with the reminder he was not
up there to make speech but to state
any legal reason he might have why
sentence Of death should not be pass
ed upon him.
81 never studied law" said Big
ham, beginning on the line which
the court had indicated he must
follow in his discussion. 81 am
ready to meet my God and am not
guilty. The reason am convicted is
because of the falsehoods which have
been piled up against me. I may have
to die. In fact, that's what / am up
here in this prisoners dock for now.
It's hard to die for something one did
not do.
"Jesus Christ had to die so. He
prayed for the night to pass from
Him. The people who testified
against me and stuck out to have me
killed did it.
Pleads for Himself
eff I knew the law, maybe !
could state some reason why l should
have q new trial-onc more chance.
myself. If there's any way you could
give me another trial, just one day
more in court, / would appreciate it.
The state has four other cases against
me. I never had q fair trial. The
verdict of that trial stands against
me-"
Bigham repeatedly avowed his in
nocence and as often averred that in
nocent blood would be shed when he
was executed.
~ worked hard and had laid by
some means," he said in the earlier
part Of his statement to the court.
But for my property, no one ever
would have accused me. But they
know that when the juice is turned
onto me. it'll be money in their
pockets"
Thereafter he likened himself to
st. Paul. to John, the Baptist, and
to Christ Himself, all their blood
having been shed innocently. "But
I'll rise in glory with them"
He challenged the state to con-
front him, even when he will be
buckled into the death chair in the
pcnitentiary in Columbia, with one
person who can say truthfully that
he ever did him single wrong or in
jury.
Letters Do Not Impress
A. l.. King, the attorney for the
defense, betrayed far more emotion
in conducting the hearing than
Bigham ever manifested. Mr.. King
impressed his audience deeply that
he does believe Bigham is an in
nocent man. But the facts pre-
sented by the solicitor, L. M. Gas
que, weighed against him. Con-
sidering the letters and signatures,
which were alleged to have been
written by Smiley, for whose mur.
der Edmund is sentenced to die, to
Edmund while the latter was in
Georgia., the court stated frankly
he doubted their authenticity. He
practically, as good as said they
were frauds and forgeries.
Bigham began to show the strain
of the trial for his life when the
solicitor in the afternoon took the
floor to argue against giving him a
new trial on the alleged after dis
covered evidence. First, he turn
der tho stress of taking the, SEN
~ 1,o f,,p in,