Evening star., 1924-09-13
POOR BOY OF 19
TO HANG IN CHICAGO
Convicted on Slender Evil
dence, Sure He Could Have
Escaped With Money.
BY Consolidated Press.

BY Consolidated Press
CHICAGO, September 13.-One feels
sorrow for any one who dies. Even
an old man at the sun setting or llfe
leaves you with regret that he Is
gone. When the writer looked in
today upon a bent man, with hair
totally white, in a cell of the county
Jail here waiting to be hanged, 1t was
with a heart that suddenly went
heavy with sorrow.
White haired. old, not much to live
for in any event." the writer mourned,
but to be cut off like this!''
The bent, white-haired man raised
eyes heavy with despair.
"White-haired. but not old. Miss" !"
he said. Nineteen years and a few
months. Five weeks to live"
The man with the snow-white hair
was Bernard Grant, aged 10, sentenced
to be hanged for shooting a police
man in 1923. He will be executed on
the morning of October II unless the
Governor of Illinois orders commuta-
ton of his sentence next week when
the case will be presented to him as
a last resort. The Superior Court
after reviewing the case, already has
denied an appeal.
Details of Crime.
What are the details of this crime
awaits the gallowS-thiS crime which
he stoutly maintains he did not COM
init?
About S o'clock one Winter morning
in 1928 an Atlantic and Pacific Tea
store on the South Side was held up
as the manager opened up for the
days trade. Policeman Ralph Souders,
who had guarded the store through
the night. walked in on the robbers
from rear room.
Walter krauser, also under sem
tence of death, faced the policema n
with a gun. An accomplice, whom he
stated once was Bernard Grant al
though he has stated since that it was
not, stood at one side. Krauser
pointed the gun straight at the Of
ficer who. instead of throwing up his
hands, rushed at the robber. In the
scuftie the policeman was shot and
killed.
Transfers in Pocket.
Five witnesses testified that Grant
was in bed at S o'clock on the morn
ing of the shooting. But another
witness swore that ne saw Grant in
the vicinity of the store early that
morning. Two street car transfers
found in Grants pocket was the de-
termining item on which the jury is
said to have decided the youths fate
Grant denied that the discriminating
transfers belonged to him. His at
torney, Thomas Z. Swanson, said to-
day that krauser has admitted since
the trial that the transfers belonged
to him and not to Grant
The fact remains that Grant, a
rather good looking boy despite his
haggard appearance and his snow
white hair-a boy who bore a good
record up to the time of his arrest
sits today ready for the gallows with
hope about gone.
II am poor" said Grant, running
his hands thro -gh his white locks.
Therefore I am going to be hanged
although l did not commit the crime
] worked hard to support my Grip
pied father and my mother. 1 lived
In the stock yards district, where
there are no fine homes. no automo-
blles and no colleges. I am simply
the victim of fate"
Grants lawyer said today that the
State offered him a 2O-year term in
the penitentiary if he would plead
guilty, but that he had refused the
offer and had elected to stand trial
before jury because he was inno-
cent. This statement was not con-
hrmed at the States attorneys Office.
Since Grant has never admitted
quit, this case offers no parallel
to the LeopoldLoeb case, except in
the youth of the prisoner. But if he
goes to the gallows next month he
VIII die firm in the conviction that
ne would have escaped such a fate
IL he had not been a poor boy
Copyright. 1924