Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-05-20
.SATTERF|ELD LAYS
BLAME Of Staying
ON HIS RELATIVES

From his cell at the Fulton coun-
ty tower, where he is held waiting
to pay the death penalty on the gall
lows next Friday. j. B. Satterfield,
on Saturday afternoon, addressed a
communication to the public in which
he reviewed certain events in his
life leading up to the Staying of his
brother-in-l"w. r. H. Hart.
He declared that his relatives
started the fight which eliminated
In the Staying in December, 1921, aft
I err discussion of his children's wei
fare
Satterfield also sent The Journal
photograph which he said was
his favorite, declaring he did not
like others recently taken and pub
lished because they made him look
Nike a criminal. The picture he
fayors was made in Seattle, Wash,
! shortly before he came to Atlanta
in December, 1922, when the killing
occurred at a drug store near his
brother-in-law Trinity avenue
home.
The condemned man had recover
ed his composure Saturday, after al
most collapsing in his cell Thurs
day afternoon following a prayer
service held with him by three Bap-
list ministers who visited the Jail.
Satterfield's Statement
''To the Public: An attempt has
been made to throw open my book
Of life and weigh it in the scales for
good and bad deeds and it seems by
this situation, there is no good.
I'm early married life, the wife
and I both made mistakes, her peo-
pie rushing to her aid without con-
sidering both sides, therefore, it in
jured my desire to make good in the
world and destroyed the higher de-
votion and love for the home.
ut was clearly a clannish and
selfish spirit and when our chance
came to take step forward and
get above the wage earners life,
the wife and her people counseled
together and settled all questions,
instead of she and 1.
"And all of this mud-slinging has
its origin and it dates back to those
days and it seems so me that any
broad minded person can see that
this clannishness is seated on an UNI
Just foundation. We were young
and needed the advice of a mother
or father who had lived life and
could impart something in common
TO sustain the home instead of to
wreck it.
Nov we come to the passing
away of the wife, leaving me with
two girls, nine and eleven years of
age. Standing over the tongue that
was stilled by death, 1 helped to tie
the rope around my neck by not tell
ing or charging her serious mis-
takes. Was that manly or not?
Death of Wife
'At the death of the wife, l did
wire her brother at Wauchaula, Fla,
she was not expected to live, and to
come, and later wired him in regard
10 the funeral
"My only reason for not attending
was I feared for the life Of the old
est girl. whose heart trouble still
holds her one foot in the grave and
he other on a banana peeling-that
IS her own expression to this day
md the brave little scout went down
vice while here at the trial Now
+ ION you see l. nave a cUuCIele IeetN
son and did what l thought oest,
though it served as fodder to the
cannon for her people-and 1 may
be wrong, but l felt it my duty to
preserve life and should she have
seen the remains, l still believe her
heart would have broken and slow
or immediate death would result.
Il slept with her in my arms and
point to her words in letter or affi-
iavit form on record with the gov
srnor at this time which so far the
public knows nothing about. How
an the scales be balanced by such
Il one-side exposure?
Here Mr.. Hart comes in direct
contact with our lives by being given
our home and he comes down from
New York, is given full possession
and promises me. in these Identical
words: Jim, 1 come to help you
and will do all 1 can That was to
my face and at the same sitting he
wrote to his sister from time to time,
going so far as to say we will do as
We d--n please.
Moved to West
Nov we so to the sister in New
Mexico and 1 read that letter and
after many things happen that
prove to me clearly they were not
our friends We moved out after
about two and half months stay.