Newspaper Page Text
LEO M. FRANK LOSES IN FIGHT FOR NEW TRIAL
Without hearing arguments from Solicitor Dorsey, Judge
Ben Hill Wednesday afternoon overruled the extraordinary
motion for a new trial for Leo M. Frank at the conclusion of the
address of Attorney Reuben R. Arnold. .
Judge Hill said he probably would grant a bill of excep
tions by which the case may be taken to the Supreme Court and
added that, in the event that an appeal is taken, he would write
an opinion on the case as it had been presented before him.
His order denying the new trial was as follows:
COUNTY OF FULTON.
The State of Georgia vs. Leo M. Frank.
After hearing the evidence and arguments on the application
of Leo M. Frank on his extraordinary motion for a new trial, the
same is hereby overruled and denied.
BENJAMIN H. HILL,
Judge of the Superior Court.
Defense Will Appeal.
An appeal to the Supreme
Court will be taken at once by
the lawyers for Frank. A con
ference with Judge Hill and the
lawyers will be held Thursday
morning to determine the de
tails of the judge’s certification
and the granting of the bill of
exceptions.
The hearing on the motion to set
aside the verdict on the ground that
Frank was deprived of his constitu
tional rights in not being in the
courtroom when the verdict was reti
dered will be held Saturday morning
in the event that the Sollcitor can
be prepared in that length of time.
He said Wednesday that he had
given this motion no constderation
and was not sure that he could be
ready by Saturday,
Harry A. Alexander, representing
Tye, Peeples & Jordan, sought to
get Judge Hill to withhold his ruiing
on the extraordinary motion until
they could appear before him anil
show cause why it should be with
held until after the motion to set
aside the verdict had been submit
ted and devided. .
Judge's Decision Unexpected.
Judge Hill refused to do this, say
ing that the two motions had no con
nection and that there was no reason
to withhold his judgment.
The action of Judge Hill came as a
complete surprise to many who had
anticipated that Sclicitor Dorsey
would present argnments for the
State before the decision was ren
dered.
The forenoon WwWas occupied with
the arguments by Attornevs Rosser
and Arnold. Attorney Arnold had
parely finished his argument when
the Gecision of the judge was made.
A comparatively speedy decision
on the appeal may be expected from
the Supreme Court. An extraordi
nary motion has precedence over the
other cases in the higher court and
will be reviewed at once on its filing.
Early Resentence Unlikely.
Judge Hill, in satting for next Sat
urday the hearing on the motion to
get aside the verdict on the consti
tutfonal grounds, displayed a desire
to have the entire case settled as
quickly as compatible with justice.
This will mean that while the ap
peal on the extraordinary motion is
finding its way to the Supreme Court,
the lower court will be settling the
motion to set aside.
1t is likely that Frank will not be
resentenced for some time, as the
motion to set aside, in the event that
{he appeal on the extraordinary mo
tion fails, will have a longer course
pefore it than any of the previous
motions made by the lawyers for
I‘rank. b
The appeal failing, the motion to
set aside is destined to pass through
the court of Judge Hin and, if de
nied there, to pass on to the Supreme
Court of Georgia whence, if again de
nied, it will be taken on to the Su
preme Court of the United States.
While it is general practice to
hurry motions of the sort now In
the courts in the Frank case, It is
the general opinion that their con
sideration will require several
moths before both are settled.
Atttack by the Defense.
Striking at the weaker links in the
State’s chain of circumstantial evi
dence against Frank. Luther Z. Ros
ser and Reuben R. Arnold made im
pressive arguments before Judge Hili
ir. behalf of the extraordinary mo
tion for a new trial
Attorney Rosser, thirough the newly
discovered evidence bearing on Dr.
H. F. Harris’ comparison of the hair
of Mary Phagan and the strands
found on the jathe on the second floor
of the pencil factory, argued at length
against the State’'s contention that
the hair found was Mary Phagan's.
He also dwelt considerably on the
supposed blood spots near the dress
ing rom on the second floor,
Judge Hill early in Arnold's ad
dress, indicated his apparent attitude
toward the affidavits of State's wit
nesges who had recanted by asking
the lawyer if it were not true that the
Supreme Court had held that when a
motion for a new trial had been filed,
Laving as grounds the false swear
fng of witneszes, these grounds need
not be considered unless the witnesses
allegd to hav sworn falgely have
been indicted and progecuted.
Arnold repiied that he did not know
that the law strictly held to this point,
and Solicitor Dorgey arose to say he
could offer citations bearing out the
Judge on the matter. Judge Hiit
(ited the State vs. Malone, the Forty
ninth Georgia, and Dorsey cited the
One Hundred and Twenty-fourth
Georgia, 417, and the Ome Hundred
and Seventeenth Georgia, 254
Attorney Arnold also laid great
stress on the hair evidence and the
THE GEORGIAN’'’S NEWS BRIEFS.
supposed blood spot evidence, and
quoted Dr, Harris and Dr, Ciaude A.
Smith, respectively, to show that
these features of the State's case—
the only physical circumstances, aside
from the notes, to connect Frank
with the crime—not only were with
out value to the State, but were, in
fact, strong arguments against the
probability of Frank's guilt.
Arnold caused a surprise by an
nouncing that he took little stock in
the belief of Detective W. J. Burns
that Conley is a pervert. In the opin
ion of Arnold, there has been no per
versgion in the case, either on the part
of Conley or Frank,
“Mr. Burns i® sincere in his opinion
that Conley is a pervert,” said Ar
nold, “but he has misread the negro
nature of Conley. He judged that
Conley was abnormal largely from
the contents of those filthy notes Con
ley wrote to Annie Maude Carter.
But to my mind the letters indicate
nothing except that the negro is a
dirty, lustful beast,
“As to Frank, although he was con
victed of murder on the charge that
he was a pervert, Solicitor Dorsey has
not brought one witness here nor
shown one scratch of a pen to show
that Frank was a pervert. The young
woman he brought up here yeaterda%(r
did not attemp* to say that Fran
was a degenerate or that she believed
he was abnormal. All this talk of
perversion is sickening rot.
Cites Murder Notes.
“I sin limiting myself to the dis
cussion of the three physical facts of
the case,” Attorney Arnold said, in
prefacing his argument, “the notes
the hair and the alleged blood spots.”
The lawyer drew the court’'s atten
tion to marked similarities in the
“murder notes” found by Mary Pha
gan's body and the notes he wrote to
Annie Maude Carter, and in the
phraseolegy of Conley's testimony on
the stand. This was to offset the
State's contention that the murder
notes were dictated by 2 white man— ‘
Frank. . |
Dorsey argued at the {rial the pres
ence of the words “did” and ‘“negro’
in the notes showed that they were
dictated by a more educated man
than Conley.
Arnold pointed out in the letters to
the Carter woman the repetition of
the words with this spelling.
Attorney Arnold called to the at
tention of the court the fact that
there was a wound on the skull of
Mary Phagan which had been struck
in the spot where the blood vessels
are the thickest and where she must
have bled freely.
No Blood There, He Says.
“In spite of this,” he said, “there
was not a drop of blzod where Con
ley said he found the body, and not a
drop of blood from there to the eleva
tor, where he said he carried the body
at the direction of Frank. Everything
points to the conclusion that the
murder was not committed there, but
in the basement.
“The alleged blood spots near the
dregsing room, where Conley said he
dropped the body, were proved by a
State's witness, Dr. Claude A, Smith,
not to have been blood spots at all.
A dark smear was found by Barrett
and the detectives, and they imme
diately thought that it was blood.
How nearly correct they were was
shown by Smith’s testimony.
“Six chips were taken from the
fioor. All of them were colored by
this dark smear, yet on five of them
Dr. Smith found not a trace of blood.
Had the dark gpot been blood there
would have been thousands of cor
puscles. He found not a one. On the
sixth chip he found three or four cor
puscles of blood. How significant
this was wiil be seen when it is re
membered that in one drop of human
blood there are 80,000 corpuscles. Does
any sane person believe that Mary
Phagan could have bled there and
ouly foul corpuscles of blood be found
and that blood which the expert tes
tified might haye come from a fly
crushed under foot morths before or
from a mouse?”
Dr. Harris Criticised.
The lawyer criticised the aciion of
Dr. Harris in failing to reveal that
he had told the Solicitor that the hair
found on the lathe on the second floor
of the pencil factory was not the hair
of Mary Pnhagan.
With the hair out of consideration
as an indication that the murder was
committed on the second floor; with
the "blood spois” shown not to be
blood spots by the State's own wit
ness, and the murder notes of Con
ley fhown to be in his typical spell
ing and phraseology, refuting the ar
gument that they were dictated, Ar
nld declared that \he whole founda
tion of the State’s case had been
swplt away.
Arnold declared that Frank's con
viction had come largely on the tes
timony of four criminals—Cenley,
Dalton, McKnight, Epps and Duffey.
“1 would like to have a counter
grand jury and a counter solicitor to
indict some of the perjurers of the
other side,” said Arno!d. ‘'Then we
could have an indicting match,
“l have nothing to say against or
for this man Ragsdale. His story is
so fishy that 1 believe it must be a
lie, but I want to ask if there could
be any criticitsm of counsel for tak
ing his statement. If the statements
of these criminals on the other side
are taken, is there any reason why
we should not have confidence in the
statement of a minister of the gos
pel?
“If we can not take the word of a
minister of the gospel, whose may we
take? He came to us as a minister,
He came to us as a minister in ac
tive charge of a church., He came
vouched for by some of the most
prominent ministers in town.”
Rosser’'s Argument.
Attorney Rosser at the outset of his
address emphasized the supreme pow
er of the State in holding witnesses
to the testimony they gave on the
stand, whether it wae true or not. He
said it had been iltustrated repeated
ly in the Frank case.
“The power of the State itself’is
énough to change a witness back,
once he has recanted from the testi
mony he gave at the trial,” said Mr.
Rosser. “No one understands this
better than 1 do. The power of the
individual as compared with that ofa
great State is infinitesimal in a case
of thkis sort. No matter what the
power of an individual, he is not
equipped like a State. He has no jail
and no arresting power. He has not
the ability to overawe and intimidate
as has the massive and puissant ma
chinery of the State in its equipment
to prosecute,
“Th>» State—the prosecution —needs
no more. The individual econtrols no
grand juries and is without the power
to jail and incarcerate. An individ
ual may employ the best in the land,
but he does not compare in power
with the humblest detective on the
city force. The Solicitor does not
have to do wrong. 1 do not charge
or intimate that he has done wrong.
[t is sufficient that he has entre to
the Grand Jury.”
.
Congress Committee
Would Unseat Dyer
WASHINGTON, May 7..—A report
geclaring that Representative Dyer,
of Mtssouri, a Republican, is not en
titled to a seat in the present Con
gress was filed in the House to-day
by the House Elections Committee,
The contestant for the seat was
Dyer’s Democratic opponent, M. J.
Gill, who alleged that 442 Democratic
ballots had been scratched by the
election judges without the consent
or knowledge of the voters.
The committee reports that on the
face of the revised returns accepied
by the committec the Democratic
contestants had a plurality of 67
voies,
Artist Disappears
After Sickles Burial
NEW YORK, May 9.—After march
ing in the funeral procession of Gen
cral Sickles, James Ben Ali Haggun,
the artist, who had come to New
York from a sanitarium, suddenly
disappeared. A city-wide search for
him has been started: .
* Haggin was watched closely by an
attendant throughout the whole line
of march, but he managed to elude
his guard in some way. He is a
grandson of James B. Haggin.
. . .
U. 8. Missionary in
Paris Auto Wreck
PARIS, May 6.—Mrs. B, S. Flint,
an American missionary, lls under
treatment to-day In a hospital at
Rambouillet for injuries recelved la.e
vesterday in an automobile accident.
A wheel came off her automobile
while passing through Rambouillet,
which is a suburb of Paris, and she
gashes on the face and shoulders,
Man, 65, Wants 4th .
Wedding Annulled
PATCHOGUE, N. Y., May 7.—Wed
for the fourth time a week ago, Nor
ton E. Jones, 65, wants his marriage
te Miss Ellen Lee, 35, annulled.
For Aviation Cr%ft
BERLIN, May 7.—The Tageszeitung
says that the Kaiser has ordered the in
gertion in the liturgy of the Lutheran
Church a special prayer for military and
naval aireraft.
PUBLISHER MAYOR OF ST. PAUL.
ST. PAUL, MINN, May 6.—Re
turng to-day showed that Winn Pow
ers, a publisher, was elected Mayor,
of this city by a small majority over
Louis Nagh, member of the Board of
County Commisgioners, at Bt, Paul's
first non-partisan election held yes
terday.
S
The Georgian has been furnished
with copies* of some rather peppery
correspondence between Thomas I,
Watson and William J. IHHarris, with
respect to the latter's candidacy for
the Governorship.
It appears that Mr. Watson re
ceived a circular letter from Mr.
Harris' office in Washington, asking
him (Watson) what he thought of
the idea of Mr. Harris becoming a
candidate far Governor.
To this Mr. Watson replied that
he thought it “a good idea for Mr.
Harris to run,” as the people there
by would be furnished an opportu
nity to “give him h——l" and also
denouncing Harris as a “humbug,”
working in the interest of his "boss®™
Senator Hoke Smith.
Harris Scores Watson.
In reply to this Mr., Harris states
to Mr. Watson that the letter was
sent to him without Mr. Harris'
knowledge or consent, that he (Har
ris) does not wish Mr. Watson's sup
port for any office, and wouldn't have
it at any price.
The Director of the Census then
names a. score or more of Georgians
denounced from time to time by Mr,
Watson, and says:
“You have charged Governor Jo
seph M. Brown with being a mur
derer; and Senator Hoke Smith and
Representative Thomas W. Hard
wick with being assassins, You have
denounced National Committeeman
Clark Howell, and nearly every mem
ber of Congress from Georgia in re
cent years, both living and dead, in
cluding such good and able men as
A B Clay. A, O. Bacon, Henry Q.
Turner, Willlam G. Brantley, James
M. Griggs, Charles F. Crisp, Gordon
Lee, Thomas M, Bell, Willlam C.
Adamson, John W. Maddox, Charles
L. Bartlett, William M. Howard and
many others.”
“Unworthy of Attention.”
Mr. Harris then enters at length
into a discussion of his connection
with the Macon convention, and says
that although he was urged by some
people after he was named chairman
of the committee to make Mr. Wat
son a member of the same, he de
clined to do so as he did not con
sider Watson a Democrat or in any
way worthy of attention.
In conclusion Mr. Harris says to
Mr. Watson:
“You live on hate and devote your
time and talents to endeavoring to
destroy the characters of some of our
best men, instead of helping the
masses, and for this reason your fol
lowing of loyal men long ago deserted
you." ;
. .
Spirit Negro Away
pT Avoid Lynchi
0 AVOI ynciaing
GREENSBORO, N, C, May 6.~
Sld Finger, a negro on trial at Salis
bury, charged with robbing and
burning a store at Barber Junction
February 24 and with killing and cre
mating Preston Lyerly, the clerk,
srent last night in the county jail
here,
Officers sald they feared the prig
oner might be lynched if he remaineld
at Salisbury overnight, He was taken
back to Salisbury this morning un
der guard.
Statement of Ownership, Manage
ment, Circulation, ete., of
THE GEORGIAN'S
Published every Tuesday at Atlanta,
Ga,
Required by the Act of August 24,
19114,
Iditor, John Temple Graves, Atlanta,
Ga.
Business Manager, Hugh I, Murray,
Atlanta, Ga,
Managing Editor, Keats Speed, At
lanta, Ga.
Publisher, The Georglan Company.
Owners, The Georgian Company, At
lanta, Ga., W. R, Hearst, 127 Riv
erside drive, New York City.
Known bondholders, mortgagees
and other security holders, holding 1
{wr cent or more of total amount of
ponds, mortgages or other securl
ties—W. R. Hearst, 137 Riverside
drive, New York City; Trust Compa
ny of Georgia, Trustee, Atlanta, Ga,
Average number of coples of each
fssue of this publication sold or dis
tributed, through the malls or other
wise, to pald subscribers during the
#ix months preceding the date of this
statement (from October 1, 1613, to
Aprit 1, 1914), 1s as follows:
Georgian Weekly News Briefs, 12,280,
. oot
For THE GEORGIAN COMPANY,
By HUGH E. MURRAY,
Business Manager.
Sworn to and subscribed before me
this 10th day of April, 1914,
(Seal) H. . CROSTHWAIT,
) Notary Public.
My commission expires March, 1915,
9