Henderson daily dispatch., 1934-02-07
FATE OF BREvARD
BANKERS WORRIES
Eight Days Yet Before Time
Their Sentences Are
Set To Begin
Daily Dispatch bureau.
In the Sir Walter Hotel
by J. &. nAS1[ ERVVTV

Raleigh, Feb. T. Pennsylvania S
four prominent prisoners, Thomas H.
Shipman, Joseph Pickelsimer, C. R.
McNeely, and Ralph Fisher, whose
terms are set to begin February Is,
have but eight days, unless Governor
Ehringhaus intervenues and the gov
ernCr has not intimated that he has
changed his mind
Attorneys and friends of the fouq,
men have been doing a great deal of
WCrk Tor them recently and have
CALLED on newspapers to talk the case
over with them. The complaint of
most of the papers has not been a.
gainst the men but against the ac-
tIon of the State in delaying so long
the beginning of the prison service.
Whether there viii be amy move
ment to halt the beginning of that
confinement noIoody seems to know.
Western North Carolina has been
pretty we'll canVaSsed and the Sec
tiOn seems to be almost unanimous in
it's belief that the four men ought not
to be required to go to prison Re-
Gently the county commissioners OF
Pennsylvania gave the convicted men
"a letter absolving them of any trick
'ery in making am effort to pay a
$4,000 fine instead of the two years
sentence imposed by Judge N. A..
Townsend. The letter is being used.
but whether there will be tried any
legal remedy before the men actual
ly begin their terms, is doubtful. The
impression here is that the Transyl-
VanianS will go TO Raleigh, enter up
OH their terms and ask for CleInency
at the earliest moment.
The case has worried Governor Eh-
ringhauS more than amy that he has
had to hear. The Supreme Court di-
vided ON the issues and two of them
tlis5sented i'm the opinion affirming the
conviction i'm Judge Hoyle Sink IS
court. But Judge Sink fined and inn
prisOned and the court Overruled him.
1t renIanded the case for proper SEN
tence Judge Townsend gave no all
tentative Judgment. He sentenced
the men, but announced that if they
would pay $4,000 to the county's in
debtelnesS as much aS they had ir-
creased it by depositing the 100000
short term loans in Thomas Fl. Ship
mans bank, the judge would recon-
mend that the men be pardoned. The
men raised $4,000, but there is a
dispute as to whether they turned it
over to the county. The commissions
ers declare they did, but the prose-
cution disagrees in part with the de-
fense of the accused men.
The charge against them is that
they conspired together to defraud
the county of 100000 in issuing the
county's credit and getting the money
to be deposited in the Brevard Bank
ing Company. 1t was the contention
of the State that this money was ap-
propriated for the purpose of saw
ing the Brevard bank. 1t is not al
legged that there was any embeZzles
ment of the funds in such way as t.
make any of the accused richer
therefor.
Politicians from the west argue
that there could have been MO con,
spiracy, that Mr.. Shipman and MI
| Pickelsimer were lifetime political
enemies and that Attorney Ralph
Fisher would have done his utmost
to hurt the Shipman bank, so violent
| ly did those men dislike each other
AS fellows in suffering they are bet
ter friends. The community stands
by the accused. The Methodists pu
Mr. Pickelsimer ON the board of trus
| tees for their new college and tn,
new bank elected him director ot
aNane-...all fnera f1onn Si~N