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MRS. OARSON'S CASE. Story of the Crime and of Her Ef forts to Secure a Pardon. Fannie Carson has not been with out hope in her prison life. Eight years after she had been sentenced, a petition was presented to Governor yward, and her pardon was then used. Governor McSweeney, in, 1902, also fused to pardon Mrs. Carson. seven years another petiton presented to Governor Ansel. I aps there never was a petiton pardon presented that pleaded so nently for the release of a pris eter upon letter from prominent tzens of the community were pre sented. Only those who have seen the many petitions for pardon that are presented to the governor's office can realize the difference between most of them and the Carson petition. Some of the letters were most pa thetic and in pleading tones begged for clemency. These letters had their weight. The board of pardons, 'at the January meeting, recommended the pairdon-, and since then Governor Ansel has had the matter under advisement. After citing the history of the case in many details, the board gave its reason for the recommendation. The .eeommendation concluded: Board's Recommendation. -''Because of the enormity of this rime, the board has with some hes ita-tion reachei their conclusion. In consideration, however, that the pe titioner is a woman of no marked strength of mind or character, that her husband was addicted to drink anid was at times harsh, if not cruel, in the treament of his wife, that she ilad fallen under the influence of .a crafty and designing man, who had, by his intrigue, secured 'her confi benee, if not her affection, and by his Istronger will largely dominaed and controlled her conduct, that shortly after the execution of the crime of which she was onay an accessory, she repented and voluntarily gave testi mony, without which it may have been impossible to -on*t the prin cipal in -this terrible erAne and that, too, without outside inducement and even without the promise anid hope of imnmunrity, that she h-as already served fi.fteen years of imprisonment, daring all of which time she has been' not only obedient, but has so con ducted herself as 'to impress the of ficials in chre that she is noiw an humble and penitent woman, that1 from the testimony of the attending physician she is now a physical wreck, an& that longer confinement wili only hasten her end, the bhoard are of the opinion that she has suffi-' ciently suffered the penalty of her guilt, that the majesty of 'the law' has been vimdicated, that the ends of justice have been satisfied and' tha.t mercy should now prevail." Governor's Reasons. In nearly all paxldon petitions it is customary for thes governor to en orse on the back of the petition ither the words ''pardon granted" r ''pardon refused," or words in ' simply 'the action taken, but the Carson case Governor Ansel written out his reasons for grant ' the pard&n. iThe official statement is as follows: The State of South aC.rolina, Exe curtive Deparstment, i re Mrs. Pan nie Carson!, petition for pardon. The ~petition for execntice clemency in this oasi was ifled with -me lin No Svemiber, 08. Winde.%dt timie IIhe and supei!hdili;f Whe ~ni4,sn tiary as to tikteMiite t i ibehavior of the $iliioni Mae in the penitentiary. Judge Earle, who tried the ease on circuit, died a few years 'back. A f ter hearing argument of cou*nsel on Sbehalf of petitioner, on two separate occasions, I referred tahe petition Sand papers, together with .the former petition 'filed with my predecessors, <to the board of pardons in J.anuary, 1910. The boaad of pardions, after ceareful,y -considering the case, ree-. ommended the pardon of the peti tioner. The c.ase now comes to me for action. I have carefully consid ered the same, have read all of the testimony in the ease 'that was ac .eessible to me, and have consadered the 'report of the board of pardons, and the reasons for .their action. It Sis possible that, had 'this woman ot herself told of tihis horrible crime, .first to a neighbor and friend of her -father's, arada theE upon the stand on the trial of the .ease, 'the facts might still have been a secret. Upons her testimony and 'the other facts proven on trial, two men and the petitioner -were convieted. .and dll are now serv Sing life sentences in the State peni tenit.ary. While the crime was. and is. a horrible one, she has bee:n in the State penitentiary for about fifteen ye.ars. Pardon Granted. For the reasons given by the board of paildons and the other reasons giv en above, I ithink that she ought to be shown some mercy. Many of the good people of Spartanburg county have petitioned me for her pardon, and many letters, asking executive clemenev in her behalf have been re ceived by me. In consideration of all these matters and desiring rather eo err on the side of mercy, if I err at all, I do hereby grant unto the said Fannie Carson a full pardon of the offence she has heretofore been convicted of, and the sentence for which she is now serving. Given under my hand and the seal of -the executive department, at Co lubia, South Carolina, this six 'teenth day of March, in the year of our Lord, 1910. (Signed) M. F. Ansel, Governor. As soon as the papers can be fixed up, very probably some time tomor row, Fannie Carson is at liberty to pass out of the State, penitentiary. Two men she will leave behind her there, her two co-conspirators of the old days, John Page and E& Green. It was by the confession on the stand of Fannie Carson that it was possible to convict these two- men who are now serving life sentences in the prison. The planning of that horrible murder was told by Fannie Carson on the withess stand, and she also told, of the actual killiing. The Murder Planned. On two occasions, before the two men -took the life of her husband, she and they had discussed rthe plan, and on the seconid occasion poison was suggested. The first time that Page and Greenj came to the house to kill 0arson, .the wife informed the two men that her husband was not sound asleep. This saved his Me that time. The next time, when strychnine was suggested, Mrs. Car son said, she "did not have the heart to poison my thusbamd," thus failed the second plot -to kill her husband. then came the third and eucessful plot. Ed Green 'and Page came arounidi to the Carson home. What to do with the little baby rwas the first'matter disoussed. The men who were about .to become murderers did not wish to wake the ibaby, and it was 'agreed that Mrs. Carson woulkl take the child out into the yard. With no mention of the killi.ng itself, but in words that c,arried convi?etion with more force than if there had been another eye-'witn'ess besides the two men who killed Carson, the wife toMk of the happenings of the nexit few mintes. The Crime Committed. 'After describing the passage of Ed Greeri and 'John Page through the dining room, one with 'an axe in his hand, Mrs. Carson said, "well, I went out and went to the well, but I didn't stay there but 'a few minutes. I went around to the front yaid and stayed 'there until they came out. When they came out John stopped in thie kitchen yard add Ed~ started towards me, and I motioned my 'hand to him .not 'to come to me, that the baby 'was wake, and 'he never came, and .they went and I went then to Mr. Jackson's.'' A.nd ii' those 'few minutes her husba'nd had been mur dored as he lay asleep. Greeni's Influence Over Woman. Some of those in Spaarbanburg connty, who recall 'the killing of Carsoni, say that Ed Green exerted a H the coming of 1910, the H 'WlCompany has rounded< means something in the hazardous bi every five companies organized in th It means unshaken stability. The smo has darkened the sky over the "Harti paid ten millions. But emerging triur enters its second century stronger than Unshaken stability for a century i cnly when. adorned with honor. Hoa quality which imnpels an institution tc promptness and< 9 " equity. That is aim to-day, and unsurpassed inde C to lessen fire danm ness, scattered a throughout this ~ Insure in tL JLIAL.LU 'hypnotic influence over Mrs. Carson. Green had beeni re veidd, into the Carson home -and had very probably planted himiself in the affections of Mrs. Carson. When her husband came home d.runk and abused her, Green would take up for the wife. This attachment must have become closer and closer, judging from the matters hinted 'at in the papers filed in this ease. Worn out, perhaps, by the drunk en debauniches of her husband and day by day become more and more under the control of Green, Mrs. 1arson readily lent herself to the scheme to rid her home of the hus band. By securing the aid of Page, this was found easy to do by Green. In a review of the ease by the par don board Green is called the insti gator of the plot and the one who 'used .the other two to carry out the plan. It was Green who brought Carson strong drink from his farm across the way, it was Green who saw the need of getting Carson out of the way. One Goes, Two Remain. One of that trio' tomorrow goes free. Ed Green was found guilty of murder and sentenced to be hanged. His co-defendants, Fannie Carson adi Johlni L. Page, were found guil- i ty, but recommended to the merey of the court, and were thereupon sen- I -tenced to imprisonment for life in the State penitentiary. The defen dant, Green, appealed and was grant ed8 a new trial. At the second trial he was found guilty of murder, with recommendation to merey, and was thereupon sentenced to 'life impris onment in the penitentiary. The case was first tried before the late Judge Earle,- who shortly after the trial, retired from the benwh anid died before the first petition was fil ed in behalf of the prisoner. 0. L. Schumpert was at that time solicitor of that ci.rcuit and prosecuted the I ease. A peitition in behalf of this prisoner was presented in 1902 to M. B. MeSfeenay, then governor. This peitition was refused. Another peti tion was present& in her behalf to D. C. Heyward, then governor, in 1903. Again the petition, although the solieitor recommended the par don, was refused. 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