Name.

List of pardons granted by the President during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1900-Continued.

District.

Offense.

Sentence.

Date of sen-
tence.

Recommendation of AttorneyGeneral.

suggest that he, though not men-
tally irresponsible, is in some de-
gree unbalanced and not essen-
tially dishonest. I recommend
that his sentence be commuted
to 2 years' imprisonment, with
all allowances for good conduct.
The applicant in this case, Frank
W. Funk, was indicted for the
murder of William H. Brooks in
the city of Washington on the 23d
of June, 1898; was tried in the
supreme court of the District of
Columbia on the said indictment
and a verdict of guilty returned
by the jury on the 23d of Decem-
ber, 1899; and was sentenced to be
hanged on the 29th day of June,
1900. An appeal was taken to the
court of appeals of the District of
Columbia, and the judgment of
the supreme court of the District
was affirmed on the 5th of June,
1900. A petition for certiorari
has been filed with the clerk of
the Supreme Court of the United
States by Funk's counsel, based
upon various errors of law alleged
in the trial, and which were duly
assigned upon exceptions taken,
but the same can not be heard be-
cause the court is not now in ses-
sion, having adjourned for the
term on the 28th of May, 1900, to
convene again on the first Mon-
day in October, 1900. As the de-
cision of the court of appeals of
the District of Columbia in this
case was not rendered until the
5th of June, the petition for cer-
tiorari can not be presented to
and considered by the Supreme
Court until it meets in regular
session on the first Monday in Oc-
tober next. Among the many as-

signments of error I think there is at least one in this case worthy of consideration and which admits of sufficient doubt to entitle the petitioner to have the same reviewed by the Supreme Court,and that is whether or not the jury which convicted Funk was legally constituted. Section 872 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, relating to the District of Columbia, prescribes qualifications of jurors as follows: "No person shall be competent to act as a juror unless he be a citizen of the United States, a resident of the District of Columbia, over 21 and under 65 years of age." ** *(Sec. 3, ch. 36 (jury), Statutes D. C., Abert & Lovejoy.) Robert T. Patterson, one of the jurors in the trial of Funk, when examined on the 12th of December, 1899, relative to his qualifications as a juror, stated that he was within 10 days of 65 years of age. He was, however, accepted and sworn, and served on the jury. The trial lasted from the 12th to the 23d of December, 1899, inclusive (12 days), the verdict of the jury having been rendered on the latter day. Patterson, at the time he was sworn as a juror, in the case, was under 65 years of age, but during the trial he reached that age, and at the time the jury of which he was a member returned the verdict of guilty he had passed the age limit prescribed in the jury law. This question is an important one, involving the right of Funk to be tried according to the forms of law and by a legally constituted jury. I therefore recommend that he be granted a respite until the second Friday in November next (Nov. 9, 1900), in order that an opportunity may be given for the Supreme Court of the United States to hear his petition for certiorari.

List of pardons granted by the President during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1900-Continued.

District.

Offense.

Sentence.

Date of sen-
tence.

Recommendation of Attorney-
General.

Action of President.

Name.

Date of
action.

The petitioner was teller and indi-
vidual bookkeeper of a national
bank in West Virginia. He em-
bezzled the bank's funds to the
amount of about $55,000, and on
being indicted, pleaded guilty and
was sentenced to 5 years' impris-
onment. His term began Feb. 22,
1898. As soon as his defalcation
was discovered he at once con-
veyed all his property to the
bank, leaving his family desti-
tute. At the time he was in-
dicted he had made restitution
in full, so that the bank lost noth-
ing by his act. Very strong and
universal appeals for his pardon
are made by citizens of West Vir-
ginia of the very highest prom-
inence, many of them being offi-
cers of national banks. The trial
judge, in a special letter to the
Attorney-General, expresses his
most earnest conviction that the
petitioner has been already suffi-
ciently punished, and sets forth
the additional fact that his young
daughter, by reason of her grief
over the misfortune of her father,
has become bedridden and is
liable to die. The offense of the
petitioner was one calling for
severe punishment, and I think
he has been already severely pun-
ished. The suffering endured by
one of his former respectability
on account of the exposure, dis
grace, and imprisonment is much
more intense than in the case of
persons of a less degree of sensi-
bility, who have indulged in the
coarser crimes. Under all the
circumstances I think the ends
of justice will be served if the

Sentence com-
muted to ex-
pire Aug. 21,
1900.

1900.

June 25

sentence of the petitioner be com-
muted to expire on the 21st day
of August next, on which date he
will have served 2 years and 6
months of his term.

5 years in Kings Dec. 29, 1894 Petitioner was sentenced to 5 years'

County Peniten

tiary, fine of $1 and costs.

Mar. 13, 1900

.do

imprisonment for perjury com-
mitted in connection with settle-
ments in Oklahoma. In view of
his age and general debility, and
the destitute and distressed con-
dition of his family, and that the
term of 5 years was much longer
than the usual term of punish-
ment for this crime, I recommend
that his sentence be commuted
to 2 full years' imprisonment.
(Full and unconditional pardon
recommended by the Secretary
of the Navy).
Petitioner was sentenced to 5
months' imprisonment and to pay
a fine of $100 for illicit distilling.
I do not think the sentence of im-
prisonment should be disturbed,
but petitioner being unable to
pay the fine I advise that it be re-
mitted.

May 1, 1900 Petitioner was sentenced to +
months' imprisonment and to
pay a fine of $100 and costs for
illicit distilling. There are no
sufficient reasons to disturb the
sentence so far as imprisonment
is concerned, but I recommend
that the fine and costs be remit-
ted.
Prisoner's term of imprisonment
will expire Aug. 17. I think no
sufficient grounds are shown for
interfering in that respect; but
on account of the prisoner's ina-
bility to pay the fine and costs, I
advise that they be remitted.
This is a case of illicit distilling.
The district attorney and the
trial judge advise a pardon on ac-
count of the serious illness of pe-
titioner's wife. I concur.

5 months in Fulton Mar, 14, 1900 County jail, fine

of $100 and costs.

Georgia, northern

Illicit distilling...

3 months in Fulton County jail, fine of $100 and costs.

George A. Nix.

.do

.do

List of pardons granted by the President during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1900-Continued.

District.

Offense.

Sentence.

Date of sen-
tence.

Richard Drake

Indian Territory, Larceny of a horse. 7 years in Ohio pennorthern.

itentiary.

June 2, 1896

Nov. 14, 1899

Petitioner was sentenced to 7 years' Pardon granted. June 29
imprisonment for larceny of a
horse in Indian Territory. He
has now, counting the time spent
in jail prior to his sentence, been
confined over 4 years. I think he
has been sufficiently punished
and recommend that he be par-
doned.

Petitioner was sentenced to 2 years'
imprisonment for selling liquor
in the Indian Territory. From
facts that have come to their at-
tention since sentence was im-
posed the district attorney and
trial judge advise that sentence
be commuted to 1 year's impris
onment. I so recommend.
June 9, 1900 Prisoner is a lad of not more than
14 years of age. He was guilty of
larceny of some small articles
from the mail and received a sen-
tence of 1 year's imprisonment,
which was the least that could,
under the statute, be pronounced
by the court. In view of the ex-
treme youth of the prisoner, I
advise that sentence be com-
muted to 30 days' imprisonment.
Petitioner was sentenced to 5 years
and 1 month imprisonment for
stealing two horses. In view of
the length of the sentence and the
good conduct of the prisoner, I
recommend that sentence be com-
muted to expire Aug. 2, 1900, on
which date he will have served 3
full years.

5 years and 1 month Aug. 3, 1897
in Ohio peniten-
tiary.

3 years in Ohio penitentiary and costs.

Nov. 2, 1889 Pardon recommended to restore

9 years in Iowa peni- July 15, 1895 tentiary and costs.

do.

Sentence com-
muted to 1
year's impris-
onment.

Sentence com-
muted to 30
days' impris-
onment.

Sentence com-
muted to ex-
pire Aug. 2,
1900.

June 29

June 29

June 29