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Show DE WEESE BEQUESTS 0000 MARKSMEN Wife Murderer's Plea fok Commutation Refused by Pardons Board. REPRIEVE IS UNLIKELY "Expected It," Says Man Condemned to Be Shot Tomorrow. lloward Do W'cese, convicLed wife-niurderor, wife-niurderor, is to be shot 10 death at the state prison tomorrow, provided Governor Gov-ernor Bambci-ger dees not Interpose a reprieve re-prieve In the meantime-, for which some good reason shall be presented to the executive ex-ecutive prior to the execution. The state board of pardons yesterday denied the petition pe-tition for commutation of the death sentence sen-tence to one of life Imprisonment. The decision de-cision of the board was unanimous. "T was expeotlng it," De Weese said, unemotionally and simply, at hia death cell in the state prison, when notified by W arden Georgo A. Storrs of the unfavorable unfavor-able action of the board of pardons. Mr. orrs In this brief interview. It ls reported, report-ed, showed much more emotion than the man who is facing death by shooting tomorrow. to-morrow. All arrangements for tho execution, Including In-cluding tho selection of the firing squad .by Sheriff John S. Corless, have been completed. To lind out If De Weese had any request re-quest to make, the sheriff visited him shortly after 6 o'clock last evening. He said he found the condemned man in a calmer mood than he had ever shown in tho county jail. "Anything you want?" the sheriff asked. "Nothing, except that you have expert marksmen on the job," said De Weese. Sheriff Corless assured him that he would. Warrum Asks Mercy. One of the pleas in behalf of De Weese was from Noble Warrum, postmaster of Salt Lake. "For Howard Do Weese I make no plea. he is a confessed thief and a convicted con-victed murderer," Mr. Warrum wrote. '"But tho evidence upon which his conviction convic-tion is based was circumstantial no one saw him commit the act no one has spoken who knows positively that he did it. Circumstances, corroborated by the erratic movements of a confirmed fugitive from Justice, point to his guilt. They seem convincing. They Influence my own Judgment. I believe he is guilty, but I don't know it." Mr. Warrum refers to tho case of Harry Hayes, who "was suspected of the murder of two boys at Pelican point, how near he waa to the executioner's grasp and yet bow oventually be was shown to be innocent. inno-cent. "Let us not pass the point," Mr. Warrum concludes, "where we dare not recognize the truth if it does not happen to agree with us." 4 Declaring ho was not actuated by any manner of relationship or by mawkish sentiment, Charles R. McLain of Denver, Colo., In a telegram to Governor Bamberger, Bam-berger, pleads on tho. ground of opposition oppo-sition to capital punishment. Mr. McCain Mc-Cain is a former member of the Colorado state highway commission and says he has had much opportunity to observe the conduct of convicts. Ho is at present president of the Colorado State Good Roads association. Opposes Capital Punishment. "I am fully persuaded the time Is at hand," Mr. McLaln's message said, "when society will no longer clamor for the judicial ju-dicial killing of men convicted of capital offenses and that many such unfortunates, unfortu-nates, under safe surveillance, can be made to recompense In some measure with their labor for outrages committed. Impressed by my personal experience and observation, I sincerely believe your excellency ex-cellency will be upheld In recommending commutation to life imprisonment the sentence of Howard Do Weese. Let him be put to hard labor until the dope is eradicated from his system and his mind has cleared and until his manhood will have asserted itself to fit him for ouch enlarged service as prison regulations regula-tions find for him. thus enabling him in some trifling manner to repay outraged society and the great expense entailed upon vour state." Senator John F. Shafroth and Representative Repre-sentative Edward T. Taylor of Colorado sent a telegram, in which their plea was based upon consideration for the father, Dal De Weese, of Canon City. "We are not personally familiar with the facts." these members of the national congress said in their message, "but owing ow-ing to tho high standing of the father of Howard De Weese of Colorado for forty years, wo earnestly hope you may be warranted war-ranted in commuting tho young man's sentence to life imprisonment." Senator William H. King and Senator Reed Smoot of Utah telegraphed they had been informed of the hih standing of the family of Howard De Weese and they deemed It such as to entitle the case every ev-ery possible consideration by the board. Colorado Warden Appeals. "T appeal to you in behalf of a commutation com-mutation of sentence for Howard De Weese," Thomas Tynan, warden of the Colorado state penitentiary at Canon City, telegraphed. "Long years of experience ex-perience have taught me that capital punishment in most cases does more harm than good. Particularly would this be true in this case. In my humble Judgment it ls far better to err on the side of mercy than on the side of justice. Vou will make no mistako in commuting this sentence." W. S. McCorntck, banker, received yesterday yes-terday morning from the president and cashier of tho First National bank of Denver a message asking him to intercede inter-cede for De Weese. The telegram was read to the board. Other messages of appeal received by the state, board of pardons were from Murton S. Bailey, member of tho Colorado Colo-rado supreme court; T. J. lilrhart, Colorado Colo-rado state highway' commissioner: James ,R. Noland. Colorado secretary of state; It. J. Morse, secretary of the Cement Securities Se-curities company; J. Victor McCandless, chairman of the Fremont county commissioners: com-missioners: W. R. Allied, highway inspector: in-spector: R. II. Higglns, state treasurer; Rabbi YV. S. Fried man, in behalf of a number of citizens of Denver; George A. Carlson, former governor of Colorado, and other prominent Denver citizens: W. VI. Dozin. president of the First National bank of Canon City, and forty-five other residents of that place. After the meeting yesterday Governor Bamberger said the law of l'tah provides lApital punishment for capital offenses and if the law is not upheld it becomes a travestv. "There are already several cases. " he said, "of men serving life terms who were convicted of murders that merited mer-ited the death sentence under the state's law. The effect Is not good. There Is a certain class of people on whom nothing but a death sentence will have any effect. The law is there to be enforced, and the 1-oard holds that this is one case where it should be enforced." |