St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-08-19
This Little Fact Nearly
Cleared the Colonization
Schemeps,
But the Crooked Use Of the
United States Mails Held
Them.
A Difference Of Opinion Re-
garding the Rulings Of
the Court.
Two Of the Land Sharks Come
to Blows on a Street
Corner.

| West. the men wanted in Chicago on
| charge of using the mails IN the colOniz-
alton scheme under the name of J.West
d5 Co., who claimed to represent the
| Washington Colonization and Improve
ment company, had a hearing lasting
several hours before United States Com
missioner Tighe yesterday, and were
| held in default of $500 bail to answer
! any indictment preferred by the United
States district court at Chicago. Judge
| McCafferty said he felt confident
| that the men would be able to
give $3.50 bail for. each. and the
commissioner said that, if two good
! reputable citizens in good faith would
| go on the bonds, he would consider
proposition to reduce the bail. At 5 p.
m. the men, not having given bonds,
were taken to jail.
William A. PrOsser was the only wit
ness present at the hearing. His brother
ana J. W. Whitaker, who were also vic
timiZed, are out in the Dakota harvest
| fields. Prosser said he had received
letter through the regular course OF
mail delivery, as he supposed, it be-
ing delivered. to him at the place he
was working. ard he recOllected that
| there was a cancelled stamp upon
| the envelope, but could not remember
| as to there being a pOStmark of the
place of mailing. He said he also
recognized the men as making the con-
tract In the office of j. West & Co., by
which he was to be located upon 100
acres of land in Washington, for which
he was to receive IS per acre after
proving up his entry. He, his brother
and Whitaker had advanced SIS in cash,
$50 of it was paid at one time and S25
at another time. They were to be fur
| nished transportation to Seattle on
June 2.
ProSser Gave Up His Position
in a seed warehouse III Chicago and
went to the office of j. West & Co., on
| June 2. to file his contract. but found
the Office closed. A couple of days
search for the parties failed to locate
them, and he realized that he had been
victimized. He then went to Mime
apoliS in search of employment and has
| been there since. He said he had lost
the letter sent him by J. West Il CO.,
asking him to come around and make
final arrangements, but testified to
| having received such letter. When he
testified that the men in custody were
| Fury and West, they each spoke up
denying that they were the persons re-
| feTred to. On cross examination
| PrOSser admitted that one of the Chicago
men had crooked finger. Each of the
prisoners were asked to show their
hands, and it was found that their
fingers were not defOrmed. Assistant
District Attorney EdgertOn offered let
ter from the secretary of state of Wash
ington in evidence TO show
that the Washington Colonization
and Investment company had
not been Incorporated as claimed.
! Judge McCafferty made strenuous OBJ
lection to its admission. Commissioner
ETighe said that, while not admissible
to prove that the corporation had exist
tence, yet he would admit it for the
purpose of showing that an effort had
been made by the district attorney TO
trace up the matter. Judge McCafferty
took exception to the admission of
the letter for this purpose and said that
the commissioner ought only to admit
the letter on the grounds offered and
should not
Assist the District Attorney.
in trying his case by suggesting any
other grounds of admissibility. The
commissioner reminded Judge McCaf-
ferty of the fact that such comment was
not proper, and that he would not allow
interference with his rulings in this
way. The contracts with the ProSSers
and Whitaker were admitted in evil
dence. after objection by Judge McCaf-
ferty, who contended that, even if fraud
ulent, they did not show criminal in
tent. After the introduction of all the
evidence on behalf of the government,
Judge McCafferty moved the dismiS-
nf oil re fVND
grounds, one OF them being that it
had not been sufficiently proven
that the letter to ProSser had been sent
through the mail; the other grounds
being that fraudulent intent had not
been proven. Commissioner Tighe took
an hour to consider the motion, and
then announcedi that while it had not
been proven that the letter bore post
mark, yet it had been shown by the
testimony of PrOsser that he had re-
ceived it in the due course of mail, and
he was inclined to think that there
is probable cause for holding the
men until the government can col
lect its evidence. He also thought
there was evidence tending to show
that there had been fraudulent intent
Judge McCatferty wanted to know II
the defendants should testify that they
, had not sent the letter through the
mails and had not had any fraudulent
intent, if that would counterfeit the evil
dence of Prosser. The commissioner
: thought such evidence would be III the
nature of a denial merely, and would
not remove the presumption as to prob
able cause and he was not expected
, to decide the case on its merits
The defense then concluded to offer nc
evidence in defense. When the QueS
ton of the amount of bond was raised
: Mr.. Edgerton said that if there is any
thing in the case at all there have been {
| great many persons vlctimiZed and the
bond should be large enough to hole
the parties.
: Judge McCafferty said that if bono
: was given he wanted it made so that the
] prisoners would not be required to e
to Chicago until the court meeting, aftel
the first Monday in September, as h(
intended to apply to Judge Nelson, O.
the United States district court here, fol
a writ of habeaS corpus, with a view o.
testing the probability of the mems
guilt. Judge Nelson being away a
present the matter could not be takeI
up until after his return, the first O.
September. In case bond shall be giver
in the meantime the men will be sur
rendered by their bondsmen upon thu
return of Judge Nelson, so that tn,
ques ton may be raised.
His Name Not Mud.