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Show A DESPICABLE PARSON Allows Innocent Men to Remain In Prison Through Indifference. San Francisco, Aug. 21 .Near the town of Salinas, Montery county, Cal., in 1879, there resided a sheep-herder numed John Rhuland. One day he was missed from his usual haunts, and several months elapsed ere anyone explained ex-plained his mysterious absence. Finally Fin-ally a Mexican boy named Eulandio Martinez startled the community with a statement to the authorities that he had seen Francisco Jose Maria Alviso, brothers, murder the sheep-herder in his lonely cabin, then set tire to the place, cremating the body, finally hiding hid-ing the charred body and removing all traces of their crime. For a time the indignation of the inhabitants in-habitants of Salinas was such that the Alviso brothers narrowly escaped winding wind-ing up in the deadly clutches of Judge Lynch. One circumstance, however, caused an abatement of the bitter feeling feel-ing against them. As soon as the Al-visos Al-visos heard a warrant had been sworn out against them they walked into town and delivered themselves into custody. At the trial the accused proved that young Martinez was a thief, and also that lie hated them bitterly on account of a whipping administered to him by Jose Alviso for breaking into a house and stealing many valuable articles. Notwithstanding this the brothers were declared guilty of murder in the second degree by the jury after thirteen hours' deliberation, and they were sentenced sen-tenced to imprisonment for life at San Quentin. The brothers arrived at the prison December 4, 1879. Not long thereafter young Martinez, the accuser, was convictedof robbery in Santa Clara county and sent to the Quentin for four years. Serving his term Martinez was sent hunk to thn same prison ten months afterward to 6erve a ten-year sentence for robbery in Monterey county. He died in prison on October 19, 1889, and on his deathbed death-bed made a confession to Rev. J. H. Hill, then chaplain of the penitentiary, at present a resident of Berkeley, in which he declared that the Alviso brothers wero innocent, and that he had testified testi-fied falsely in their trial in 1879. Martinez Mar-tinez explained that he had been induced in-duced for the sum of $20, a suit of clothes and a ticket to San Jose, to perjure himself by one Harry Thompson Thomp-son of Salinas, now deceased. The Alviso brothers, hearing of Martinez' confession, communicated with Gov. Waterman on December 8, 1880, imploring im-ploring him to pardon them at once. Chaplain Hill, for some reason unknown, un-known, had failed to take action in the matter. A reply was received by the wronged convicts that their case would be acted on in good time by the Governor. Gov-ernor. After waiting nearly two months for something to be done in their behalf the Alvisos again addressed a letter to the governor, to which Private Secretary Secre-tary Boruck replied that when their case was reached it would receive the fullest consideration. The matter has evidently never "been reached," for all hese long months and years the pris-ners pris-ners have re ceived no tidings from the state chief executive. Ex-Chaplain Hill, when seen yesterday, yester-day, at first, apparently, could not remember re-member the case, but when his memory had been refreshed said : "Oh, yes! the Alviso boys. I remember them. I always al-ways believed them innocent." "Why!" "Well, I don't exactly , know why, just at present. It's been a long time, you know. Let's gee what was it, now?" , . . , hPjiiiH it. have been a confession! "A confession. Oh, yes, that's what it was. to bo sure. A young man died and confessed to me that he had perjured per-jured himself at the Alviso trial." "What did you do about it?" "Do? Why, I did not do anything. I could not be supposed to interest myself my-self in the affairs of all the prisoners in San Quentin." "Why did not you inform the governor?" gov-ernor?" , .. "Because Waterman and myself were never on good terms, and therefore I said nothing about the confession." Thus two innocent young men have been made to suffer untold misery for years simply because the roan to whom the death-bed confession was made exonerating ex-onerating them was not on good terms with California's governor. That the Alvisos will breathe freedom's air in a few days is now almost a certa n y. |