Change

Comes In Curt Jett

Owenton Herald News-1909

Frankfort, Kentucky,- Special

Although he is serving two life sentenced in the penitentiary for murder, Curt Jett, "the wild dog of the mountains," has not yet abandoned hope of getting a pardon and being given another chance to show that his reformation has been sincere and final. He says that God has pardoned him for his crimes and he thinks that Governor ought to.

"The best thing that ever happened to me was when I was sent to the penitentiary," said Jett last night in his cell in the prison here as he was talking to some newspaper men, who were inside the cellhouse for another purpose than talking to Jett. "I realize that I never would have been reformed, if not for being put in here," continued Jett. "I only wish that they would give me another chance to show that I really have changed my ways."

Licensed To Teach Sunday School

Jett showed the newspaper men, who had stopped to talk to him, when they saw him lying on his cot reading, a certificate from the International Sunday School League, entitling him to teach in a Sunday School. He was prouder of this than he ever was of his ability to shoot and he showed it with great pride. Jett recently wrote out his religious experiences for the Rev. Dr. George O. Herr, the prison evangelist, and last night Jett said he would give the story to the newspaper if Col. E. E. Mudd, the prison warden, had no objections. Col. Mudd was with the newspaper men and readily consented to jett giving out the story. He has written it with a pencil and gave it to the newspaper men, desiring that it should be published.

Jett's cell is covered with pictures, most of them selected with care as to their beauty, and he has shown taste in arranging them. One of the newspaper men remarked on the decorations in the cell last night and Jett said:

"Yes, it cheers this cell up a little and make it brighter.

Even the expression of Jett's face has changed and he has none of that hard look that he used to wear. He is bright and cheerful and Col. Mudd says there is not a better prisoner in the penitentiary than Jett. Col. Mudd said he could not say that Jett's conversion was genuine from a religious standpoint, but he says Jett has certainly changed inside the prison. The Rev. Joseph Severance, the prison chaplain, says that Jett is one of the best BIble scholars he ever saw and knows more about the Bible than many earnest church workers.

In his story which he gave out last night, Jett freely admits his guilt of the crimes that are charged against him. He added, when he said that it was a good thing that he had been put in the penitentiary:

"I do not mean that it was good to kill men."

He said that whiskey was largely responsible for his misdeeds and he wanted to do good now that he had done so much harm. The following is Jett's story as he wrote it in his cell.

Jett's Story

State Prison, Frankfort, Kentucky, March 13, 1909

"To the whole world:

I want to let the whole world know what God in His great mercy has done for me, and prove to you by words which are true that Jesus is willing, able and does save to the uttermost. After a life of sin and shame, God sent His holy spirit into my soul and made a new man out of me. It was in this wise: A dear, good woman who is dead now, but who then lived in Lexington, her name was Mrs. Fanny A. Penn. I shall never forget that name. She wrote me a good Christian letter, full of good advice, and begged me to become a Christian. I had never seen her, or her me as I know of. She had only read in the press regarding what a desperado and outlaw I was. I read her letter and it sounded like a fairy tale to me, with no sense in it, but after reflection, I answered it, and we began to be good friends, and she kept begging me to turn from my sinful ways and be a Christian man.

"I want to state right here that because a man is in prison, he don't have to be a Christian or behave himself. Mrs. Penn sent me a small revised Testament and begged me to read it. At first I laid it up and would not read it. I don't remember of ever reading a whole chapter in a Bible up until that time in my whole life and at last by her begging me in every letter to read my Testament, I began to read it and started out with a resolution to read it through, and after I began to read, I became interested in it, and the more I read it, the deeper I became interested in it. God's holy spirit began to work with me, and I began to pray. At first it seemed that I was afraid that God would not answer my prayers, but still something made me pray anyway, and it wasn't long until I was praying to God every night from one to three times, from the depths of my heart. I had taken His name in vain ever since I was a child, and I asked Him to make me quit taking His name in vain, and after a day at my work, and when I would curse God, I would think of my prayers, and then at night when I would go to my cell, I would let my thoughts wander over a day that had just passed and I could tell after reflecting that I hadn't cursed so much that day. Little by little God removed that evil spirit, cursing, from me, until one night when I went to my cell and my thoughts wandered over the day that had just passed, and not an oath had I uttered, and I was happier than ever before. I fell on my knees on the hard stone floor, and thanked God for his goodness, and for removing that swearing away for me.

"I had smoked cigarettes for at least fifteen years and I quit them. I was full of revenge and hatred, and I cried aloud to God in my lonely cell to redeem my soul, which He did and it wasn't long before I was a friend to everyone and praising God for full and free salvation. He has made a new man out of me. The Holy Spirit is like a fewer, and it is all and all before a man gets right with God, Condemnation and deceitful spirits will rise up in a man, but all we have to do is to ask God and He will remove them all. To live a true Christian life it is the straightest life that anyone ever tried to walk. It is a great warfare. I read and study my Bible and have learned a great deal about God's word since I joined the church, a few short months ago, under a great, good, and noble man of Frankfort by the name of C. R. Hudson, and I love him as a very dear brother. There is not a man in all this world that I hold the least bit of malice against and before I got right with God I had revenge in me against many.

"Young men, as you read this, form one who had done many great wrongs, take warning. Shun evil companions and don't do as I have done in days gone by. Don't be led astray by older heads, for the man that will advise you to do a wrong is not your friend. I could not see it that way. God has given me a new mind and I know as well as I know that I am living that religion is true, real, and no fake, as I once thought.

"I was raised on a Bluegrass farm in Madison County, Kentucky, and my parents were as good as father and mother as ever lived. My father died when I was young and I went from bad to worse, committing crime after crime, and I am guilty of the charges against me, but God has forgiven me of every wrong I ever did. Why won't the governor? All the punishment that I will ever have to go through with will be on this earth, for God has forgiven me of every wrong and I have a clear conscience now, for I have been born again. There are so many men in prison that trample God under foot to try and gain their freedom, in that way, and I hope that no one single person that reads this will think that I am making a mockery of God's love for I am sincere with God as I used to be with Satan. I wish that every paper in the whole world would publish this so that it could have a chance to touch the hearts of many sinful men. I long to tell the story to young men, from east to west, north to south, how God redeemed my soul.

"We have organized a Bible reading circle here in the prison which is a grand and good work. Now I refer you to some scriptures which I hope everyone will read carefully, and it will show you how God will forgive a man for the crime of murder, and for all crimes except one.

"Read Exodus II:11, 12, 13, 14, 15; II Samuel XI and XII; Ezekial XVII, 31; Luke XV; Acts VII, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 58, 60; Acts VIII, 1 to 7, 16, 17, 22; Galatians III 24.

"I ask for the sincere prayers of every good Christian in this whole world. Pray for me, that I may be true to God the rest of my life. When I was repenting my whole face would draw and I could feel the hot, burning love of God in my whole being. I am in prison, maybe never to hear the birds sing or the rippling of the water again a free man, but I say unto you that I am a free man in Jesus. I have found a friend that sticks closer than a brother. People, let your light shine for I believe that there are many diamonds in the rough.

I am yours in Jesus,

Curtis Jett.