Ten Years In Prison

TEN YEARS IN PRISON

The Sentence of George Lewis for Attempted Assault.

GETS THE FULL PENALTY

Had He Succeeded the Sentence Would Be for Life.

The Jury Was Out Only Fifteen Minutes, Finding Him Guilty on the First Ballot. -The Sentence of the Court Imposed at Once.

"Guilty as charged."

Precisely as the hands of the court house clock pointed at the hour of 12 Wednesday Horace Purfield, foreman of the jury who tried George Lewis on the charge of attempting a heinous assault upon Mrs. William Mason, uttered these words in response to the question, "What is your verdict?" There was absolutely no demonstration in the court room. The jury had been out but 15 minutes and the audience expecting an early verdict had remained in the court room. But One ballot was taken, the jury being unanimous from the start.

The judge turned to the lawyers. Prosecuting Attorney Kirk arose and asked that sentence be passed upon the prisoner  Attorney A. E. Gibson asked that sentence might be deferred until he could make a further showing to the court. Judge Kinne replied, "I think that nothing would be" gained by deferring this case. George Lewis, stand up." Lewis started toward the judge, who said, "You may stand where you are." He halted and looked at the judge in a troubled way. He said in response to a query from the judge that he had nothing to say. -Judge Kinne then sentenced him to -Jackson states prison for 10 years, the maximum punishment fixed by law.

He said:

"I do not propose to lecture you. Nothing that I could say to you now would do you any good. You have been found guilty of a very grave offense, one of the most heinous known to the law. There is nothing that appeals for mercy for you. If you had committed the offense you tried to commit you would have been committed to state prison for life. That you did not succeed in your attempt was no fault of yours. You were prevented the full commission of the offense and I now sentence you for the attempt. The law limits the time of imprisonment to 10 years. I can see no extenuating circumstances in your conduct. The punishment of imprisonment is imposed for two reason, one to deter you from the commission of a like offense and to warn others from it. The sentence is that you be confined to states prison for the period of 10 years."

In a minute the entire court room were on their feet, the prisoner with the others, but no word was spoken. 'The prisoner's father stepped up to him and shook his hand and he was :led away by Deputy Sheriff Kelsey without ado.

The examination of the witnesses in this case was completed yesterday afternoon. The defence sought to show the general good reputation of George Lewis. This was considerable shaken by the proof that he had been an inmate of the Reform school, and had been charged with stealing-. Mr. W. Guy, a student, testified that Lewis was one of his Sunday school scholarsThat so far as he knew he had not heard anything discreditable about Lewis. That Lewis was a man very much given to be by himself and it was something unusual to see Lewis in ladies society. After the testimony was in the case was adjourned until this morning when Prosecuting Attorney Kirk and the defendant's attorney, Gibson, made their pleas. Mr, Gibson spoke for nearly two hours. He sought to show that the assault was an attempt to rob. He was congratulated by Fred Brown on having made the speech of his life. Prosecuting Attorney Kirk briefly recalled the facts as they had been testified to and not controverted. He paid a high complement to the officers, for having with the eager clue of a hat which they had believed they had seen a man wear, hunted up all the testimony which led to the man's arrest and confession. Lewis says he does not know whether he is seventeen or eighteen years old. He looks about twenty.