Morris tribune., 1891-06-24
WHEAT INVESTIGATION.
WEARY GRIND STILL CONTINUES
IN COMMITTEE.

Considerable IEearsay Testimony Put in.
"A Couptry Elevator G"lubias-E Erwin
Wants Scme OF That Slo,0oo--A Wit
ness in S,,ntsmpt.
ST. PAUL, June 1T-C. A. Severance,
attorney Of the elevator companies, re-
sumed the crCss- examination of Watch
man Close and very soon there was
sulphurons atmosphere in the vicinity
OF the lawyer aEd witnesses. When
pin,ir>, GOWN to the facts, Mr.. Close
grew restless aud very forgetful, and
couldn't remember events that happened
year ago, while his memory concern
Ing the secret shipments of wheat In
1856 were remarkably clever.
Boiled down his testimony simply
amounted 10 q statement which
he hc@:L from the other parties.
CioSe sad he supposed that he was dis
charged uD tho orders of Mr.. Rupley,
and all the reason they had to discharge
him was because he sent his son to
watch Que night. II consider that it
was q mean trick to discharge man
for his first 0ffense." said the witness,
"and Mr. Ari0, who was employed there
at the same time had the same opinion.
Mr. Close corrected his testimony of
Monday in saying that there were go, 600
bushels Of burnt wheat in the bins, and
thought 10000 would be more correct
estimate. He bad been told since. he
said, by Ario-a and Eric Olson that the
latter figure was about correct, and he
guessed it was.
4 Witness in Contempt.
ST. PAUL, June 1S.-The elevator in
vestigation opened its morning session
with Witness Scott on the rack. He
was under cross fire from Lawyer Sew
erance, and went through a severe
sweating process while he corrected ana
changed his direct testimony.
Scott admitted several times that he
had told untruths when ne was formerly
examined. Step by step he was led
along the fatal admissions of his direct
testimony until the witness, becoming
desperate, cried out, vehementlY:
II will not answer these questions any
further, and l want to say to this COM
mittee right now that this matter should
not be gone into because it concerns my
private affairs, and | DO not care to
answer any further" ...
This created a ripple of suppressed ex-
citelnent, and the appeal of the witness
cGssion among the members. Mr.. Bar
rett could not see the use of going
into the matter at greater length at this
time Chairman Giessel was inclined
to coincide with this view, but John
Day Smith insisted that the witness who
had been brought before this committee
for the purpose of showing irregularity
and violations Of the law on the part of
certain citizens Of the state should be
compelled to answer all questions put
to him. The question which Scott re-
fused to answer referred to his conver-
sation with EIr. Irons about the reasons
why he wanted to leave, in fact was
compelled to leave, st. Paul.
Continuing his refusal the witness
was placed under arrest for contempt
Testified to an Elevator Combine.
ST. PAUL, June 19.-At the opening
Of the wheat investigation Mr.. Bjorge
called attention to a speech which he
had made in the legislature last winter
calling attention to the grain shortages,
but Mr.. Severance drew from him the
admission that at the time he made the
speech none of the wheat on which he
claimed shortage in 1890 had been re-
ceiYed at the Duluth elevator at all, but
had been sent by Mr.. Hartman, who
acted as a commission man for Bjorge,
to the Superior elevators. Mr.. Bjorge
admitted that he was not scale expert,
and that he had never had an expert ex-
anime his scales, yet he believed them
correct. He also admitted that he had
never complained when the grade of
grain shipped to Duluth had been raised
from No. northern to No. hard.
W. D. Bangs, agent for the Mime
sofa and Dakota elevator company at
Hendrum, had been engaged in buying
wheat for this company for three years.
The first year $4,000 bushels were
handled and there was neither an over
age or shortage. The second year 8O,0 900
bushels were handled an9 there Raa
about 100 bushels shortage. Most Of
the wheat was sent to Minneapolis the
first year and to Duluth and Superior
the second year. Mr.. Bangs then went
on to testify that there was an agree
ment between the local buyers at Hen
drum that each elevator should handle
fair portion of all the wheat bought.
MIR. Bangs further said that he had
received no notice from Duluth of any
shortage during the last year He never
heard of any combination to keep down
the prices Of wheat, hut admitted there
was an agreement among a number Of
purchasers not to buy any more than
proportionate share of the wheat of any
one district. He did not know that if
part of the elevators closed that they
shared the profits of those that contin-
ned to do usiness. Can1ling's elevator
was shut down once, but that was for
the purpose of making clean up.
T. Moffet, Of Hendrum, was the next
witness. He did some Of the buying for
Mr.. Canning, they together having a
small elevator at that place. He got his
prices anywhere, sometimes from the
telegraph operator. The firm was into
an agreement with other buyers not to
buy all the wheat in any one place, but
he did not understand that the agree
ment related to prices. They shipped a
good deal Of their wheat to Duluth, and
in the early fall of 1889 and 1880 he lost
good deal by grades, but never had
any cause to complain Of the dockage.
The witness then produced his records.
Attorney W. w. Erwin thinks that
he is entitled to slice of the $4,000
appropriated for the investigation, The
legislative committee was discussing
bhe advisability of ,adjourning over un-
til fall upon the termination of that
part Of the testimony relating to the
Duluth elevators, which they expected
would end this month, and Attorney
Erwin entered an objection on the
ground that he could better afford to
attend to this case during the summer
months when court business was slack.
If the committee was willing to pay his
attorney fees, he would not object to
the postponemeht. but otherwise hs
would not favor the proposition. The
committee then adjourned till Tuesday
at 10 o'clock
Lynchers Not Guilty.
WAILA WAILA, Wash. June 20