Regretted His Success

The Detroit Journal has a story by I ert E. Frazer of an incident which occurred when he was prosecuting attorney I of Washtenaw county, many years ago. I In a Detroit court room, a number of I lawyers were talking, when one asked : " Is it possible to convict a man of crime which he didn't commit?' " OL course it is," aid Robert E. Frazer. " I ought to know, because I've been a prosecuting attorney, and I've done that same thing myself." " Teil us about it," said the young man. " Well," said Mr. Frazer, " you must know that in tbe year '71, there lived in Ano Arbor a man named Shorey - Ji c't Sborey - a man with a bad character. There was also a man named Sherman, who ran a saloon. Tbis Sherman circulated some reporta about Sborey's sister, or at least Shorey thought he did. Ac cordingly he called at Sberman's saloon one day, somewhat under the influence of liquor, and demanded a retractlon. Some words followed, Sherman raised a heavy iron weight from the bar, hurled it at Shorey and missed him. The latter enatched the leg of a chair which stood near, smanhed Sherman on the head, and killed him at once. Here now, at the yery worst, was a case of manslaughter and a doubtful one at that, because Sherman had flrst assaulted Shorey with the weight. Shorey was brought to time. My earwere filled witb utories of his previous career. I waa told that he bad killed another man previously. It was my first case of any importautance as prosecuting attorney, and I threw myseU into it, heart and soul. The result of my efforts was a yerdiot - utterly unjustifiable - oL murder in the second degree. When Shorey w genteneed to 20 years at Jackson I w. shocked at my success. There was a orim. for whioh five years would have been almost an excessive punishment, and the man had been giren practieally a Ufe sen tence. Well, sir, for two years I labored to secure that man's Darden, but could never effect it. Ai last, through the assietance of Presiding Judge Lawrence, who had tried the case, I succeeded in getting the sentence commuted to five years That was a losson to me, and afterwards I was more caref ui. Towards the latter end of my time I made do ooncealment of tb evidence against the prisoner, a practica eo often resorted to by prosecuting officers.'