The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1889-06-19
MUST HAND OVER THR MESSAGES.
The Western Union Company Ordered to
Furnish Copies OF kilograms Bearing on
the CFonin Case.

The Western Union Company Ordered /
Furnish Copies Of kilograms Bearing O
the cronin Case,
CHICAGO, June ls.-The sensationa
incident OF the oronin grand Jury thl
morning was the refusal Of William Z
Bell, Of the Western Union Telegraph
Company, to obey an order Of the iury
to produce messages passing between
Alexander Sullivan, Dan Coughlin, p
| Q. Sullivan, John w. Maroney and G
w, Melville, Mr.. Bell maintained thai
II was against the rules OF the company
to produce such messages, and that the
statutes Of the State Of Illinois imposed q
fine Of 81, 900 upon telegraph company
for disclosing the contents OF any per
s0nal or business messages passing over
Its lines, After all attempts to induce
the witness 10 obey had failed, the jury,
headed by States Attorney Longnecker,
repaired to Judge shephard's room and
appealed 70 his homer to issue an order
directing the witness Ia answer under
pain Of contempt and commitment.
Charles s. Holt, attorney for the West
ern Union, appeared in behalf OF the wit
ness and stated that while the company
desired i4 every way to assist the ends OF
Justice, 1t did not desire to voluntarily
violate the statutes OF the State and dis,
closethe message Of its patrons upon the
mere request Of grand jury, II the
court thought ut TO issue an order di.
recting the witness under pain Of con-
tempt to produce the messages, the COM
pany would then consider this a bar To
any possible civil preCaution by patrons
and the witness would obey the order.
He thought, though, the Jury should
more explicitly describe the messages
wanted, their present request being more
IN the nature OF a general drag net.
States Attorney Longenecker held that
the Jury could not definitely describe
the contents OF messages sent, What
the jury wanted was the right TO ex.
anime all and any messages that might
have passed between any OF the sus-
pected parties since March |, The jury
alone could be the judge Of their rele.
vanCy to the case, Mr., Holt objected
somewhat to an order OF such sweeping
nature, but the Judge fully sustained
the States Attorney and an order was
spread upon the record directing the
witness under pain Of contempt and
commitment to Jail to produce all mes
sages, CRblegrams or copies thereof in
the Chicago office, passing between
Alexander Sullivan, Dan Coughlin, p.
o, Sullivan, John ]. Maroney, G. w.
Melville and Charles Mcdonald, either
under their true name or any alias, or
between either OF these men and any
other person or persons since the first OF
March last. The officers OF the Western
Union stated that five men had been
employed two days searching among the
records for originals or copies OF the
messages desired and that they would
now be promptly spread before the jury.
Maurice Morris, a friend OF DR.. Gro
min, was before the jury this morning
and told how the doctor had frequently
stated that he had incurred the enmityl
OF certain persons high in authority in
Irish societies and that lie had fears for
his life. William Mulcahey, the suspect
about whom so much has been written,
was Closeted with the Jury for nearly an
hour and those who heard his story be-
came convinced that he had no connec-
tion with the crime. He showed that
he had not gone to work for Sullivan
until several days after the date OF the
inGrler and, from his evidence, did not
appear to know much about Sullivan or
his associates.