Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 240, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 October 1910 — LAFAYETTE MURDERESS RELEASED ON PAROLE. [ARTICLE]

LAFAYETTE MURDERESS RELEASED ON PAROLE.

Mrs. Alice Lawson, Who Killed Her Husband, Paroled by Board— Eleven Others Released. Mrs. Alice Cooper Lawson, who killed he~r husband in a saloon in Lafayette in 1907 and was sentenced to the woman’s prison, was paroled by the board Friday. Eleven others were paroled and two were pardolaed. Mrs. Lawson had been sentenced for life. The Lawson murder case attracted widespread attention at the time the crime was committed. The testimony given at the trial revealed the fact that Charles Lawson had been a brutal husband. He was employed as a bartender and the couple lived in rooms above the saloon where Lawson worked. He was a har«j drinker and when under the influence of liquor, which was frequent, made attacks upon his wife with knives, beer bottles and various missiles. The murder occurred in the saloon, and followed a quarrel, during which the husband chased his wife about the room, throwing whisky and beer glasses at her. 'By chance Mrs. Lawson carried her husband’s revolver, and, in the absence of witnesses, who had hastened out of the room at the beginning of the quarrel, shot him. Mrs. .Lawson’s petition for parole was signed by the trial judge, the prosecuting attorney, his deputy and all the jurors. She was represented before the pardon board by State Senator Will R. Wood, and the Rev. O. R. McKay, pastor of the First Baptist church of Lafayette. THE PARDONS. Steve Fucynski, South Bend, burglary, 1908. Carl Carson, Winchester, petit larceny, 1907. OTHER PAROLES. James Andrews, Indianapolis, murder, 1903. William E. Blume, Indianapolis (venued to Boone county), murder, 1899. ' » ,James A. Julian, Colfax, murder, 1899. Ora Strine, Elkhart, murder, 1902. Charles Hubbard (colored), Indianapolis, murder, 1902. John Esra, Sullivan, murder, 1895. Harry Howard, Muncie, grand larceny.ASflS- ' Sterling Bolin, Richmond, assault and battery to murder, 1908. John Slatton, Washington, assault and battery to kill, 1897. Samuel Clawson, Albion, burglary, 19QZS William Osborne, North Vernon, burglary, 1906. Fourteen were refused' paroles.

At Winamac this week a street fair was held. The attractions included a hippodrome performance in which Junita makes a famous leap-the-gap on a bicycle; Junette, the flying woman; Minnehaha, the freak horse; the maid of the mist; Salome, in oriental dances and with a lot of big snakes; the Van Nosman bicycle dive; the Paulina high dive; trick house acrobats, Wells & Sells; Milo Bond, in a daily exhibition of the h«ndling of bees in a hive; B. F. Franks, in a daily wrestle with a bull. There were four big free acts and a number of pay acts. This may not sound good to some people, but that it is appreciated by a large number is the fact that the town of Winamac was crowded every day. The merchants got off at half the cost of all free shows and did thrice the business. The crowd came early and stayed late. Coupled with all these free and pay attractions was a stock and agricultural exhibit with good premiums. During the days that Rensselaer had its horse fair, Fowler, a somewhat smaller place, also had a horse show. The baseball attendance was large enough to bring in $175 one day and $162 another. The greatest receipts in Rensselaer for one day during the horse show was $81.50. The receipts on the 4th for July were only $135. The attendance at the ball game is not a fair judgment of the crowd but it is an indication. Rensselaer must give something more for the entertainment of visitors if it expects a big crowd that spends money. The horse show was a fine one, but it was not sufficient attraction to hold and entertain the people. Next year should see Rensselaer have a big carnival or something of that kind accompanying the horse show. The start of the air ship race from Chicago to New *lfork, for a purse of $25,000 given by the Chicago Evening Post and New York Times, scheduled for this afternoon from Hawthorne Tace track in Chicago, has been postponed until Sunday afternoon at 3 o’clock. This will gl/e an excellent opportunity to those attending the excursion to Chicago tomorrow to witness the start of the air ships. The aviators will make the first stop at South Bend, where they will remain over night. The route to be taken from Chicago to New York is that traversed by the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern dition to the $25,000 given by the newspapers is a purse of $5,000 given by Clifford Harmon, an aviator.