The Daily Texarkanian

LEE PARDONED.
The Judge, Prosecuting Attorney,
Jurors, and Citizens Recommended
the Pardon.

The Arkansas Gazette of this morning contains the following:

The Governor yesterday pardoned R. E. Lee, of Miller county, who was a few weeks ago convicted in Hempstead county of manslaughter, and sentenced to two years in the penitentiary.

Lee killed a woman by mistake. He and a man named Jesse Hale lived as neighbors at Texarkana until ill feeling sprang up between them and terminated in open hostilities. The children of the respective belligerents were wont to play together in either of the adjoining yards, but the feud between the heads of the two families became so acute as to extend to the juvenile members, and to effect an estrangement there also. One day in October Lee's daughter ventured into the Hale yard to get a bucket of water. She was driven away by Hale. When the girl returned home minus a pail of water, Lee himself took the bucket and started to get the water. He was met by Hale who attempted to forcibly eject him and in the scuffle, Lee was badly hammered with a hammer in Hale's hands. He managed to escape alive. After having his injuries patched up, Lee armed himself with a double barreled shotgun and, believing that Hale might attempt to do him further bodily harm, went in quest of his bellicose neighbor. They met and Lee got the drop on his enemy. Just as he fired Hale's wife appeared on the scene and the contents of the shotgun intended for her husband entered her body and killed her almost instantly.

Afterwards when the case was on trial, Hale shot six times at Lee in the court room, each time without effect. Lee was tried in Hempstead County on a change of venue, found guilty and given two years as stated.

Immediately after the verdict a movement was started to seek a pardon for Lee. Public sympathy seemed to be with him in his trouble and there were apparently extenuating circumstances connected with the case. Petitions for a pardon were signed by the Circuit Judge, Prosecuting Attorney, each member of the jury and citizens generally.

Attorney J. D. Conway arrived in the city yesterday, armed with petitions galore and he laid the voluminous documents before Gov. Fishback. The Governor carefully examined the papers, and, after satisfying himself that the conviction of Lee was not sustained by the evidence, directed that a pardon be issued.

Lee had not been brought to the penitentiary, but was kept in jail in Hempstead county pending the pardon proceedings.