The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-02-12
BRIBERY NOT SHOWN.
Way and Gates Purged Of the
Embracery Charge.
THEIR GUILT NOT ESTABLISHED.
Deeh Men Acqaitted@adGo Osboxn
aure . Crime Has Been Committed
Court Notes-Blottor.


oooree A. Gates for alleged attempts to
hribe Jurors in the Great Northern con-
ANIMATION case, was resumed before Judge
Osborn yesterday. It lasted from $50 in
The morning until o'clock in the after
noon, and resulted In the discharge Of
10th the accused.
The case against Gates vas first taken
.. and the evidence for the state was con-
80 to repetition by Frank ]. Wilder Of
- testimony given by him on February
Z nd that of his clerk, who identified
estes - the man who came into Wild
- Office on February On the part Of
tho defendant, J. w. Considine and .
nnmber of employees Of the Peoples thea
~ testified that Gates was occupied with
accounts. and vas in the building all the
oftefnoon in question.
At $50 the case WAS called, and Prose.
euting Attorney John r. Miller, assisted
81 Judge Burke and A. F. Burleigh, the
last two being counsel for the Great North.
I'm and Oregon improvement Company
lospectively. appeared for the state, while
John Wiley looked after the interests Of
tho defendant Gates. At the very start
there was a wrangie a. to whether Way,
whose case was first on the calendar,
should not be tried first, instead of
Gates, who had been selected bv Mr..
Miller. 1t was decided by Judge Osborn
that the state had the right to choose
which of the two cases should be tried
lrst, provided that no injustice was done
~ the selection.
Sheriff Woolery WA then put upon the
sand and recognized tho venires for q
special jury, and testified to having sum.
moned Wilder and Wilbur. the latter be-
ing the Juror who vas claimed to have
besn approached by Way.
Frank J. Wilder then testified that on
Re afternoon Of February 1, between 1
81 o'clock in the afternoon, and not
~ minutes after Sheriff Woolery had
hltAis Office, man whom he recognized
= Gates, but knew by the name Of J. s.
0wards, entered. Gates asked to have q
IN minutes private conversation. In the
course of this conversation he testified
that Gates told him that he (Wilder) had
been put on the jury by him; that $3.50, 900
vas the price that was expected by the
Oregon Improvement Company for the
grounds sought 70 b condemned. He
also told him that If they got their
figure ''there would Be something in it"
for him, and that he would get something
out Of it." Gates further stated that B. r.
Wilbur and one other Of the jurors were
"6xed." Wilder also said that Gates re-
marked, "If You get something out of it
shall expect commission" The amount
that he was promised by Gates, Wilder tes-
titled, was 81. 900 or 81 ,5OO. and also that
Way was said to have been Gates employer
20 far as the affair was concerned.
On cross-examination Attorney Wiley
attempted to get Wilder to contradict HIM
Self and questioned him as to converse
ton which he - alleged to have had with
q. W. Seymour on February 10. In regard
~ the latter Wilder said that Seymour
came into his Office ostensibly to get q
ticket, and that he had spoken with him
end expressed the wish that he could get
soma more evidence so as to ''cinch those
faIIows."
The next witness to take the stand was
- F. Jones, clerk In Wiidsr's office, who
pointed Gates out ~ the man who had
come into the Office on February 1, few
minutes after Sheriff Woolery left. On
eross-examination. however, he refused to
swear positively that Gates was the man.
This constituted all the evidence for the
prosecution. and J. w. Considine was
called a. the first witness for the defense.
His testimony was positive to the effect
that he was the manager of the Peoples
theater, and that when he arrived at .
little before 3 o'clock on the afternoon of
February he found Gates already there.
II was salary day, and Gates and he made
mp the salary list as usual, checking items
and drawing checks until 8 o'clock. After
he. In company with Gates and two
others, walked up Second street to the
corner Of Seneca street, where they separ-
ased to go home.
George A. Gates was then put on the
stand, and proved model witness for
himself. Quiet and self-possessed, he
answered the questions quickly aud &C.
curately. He Was equally fortunate in
eross-examination, and actually strength
sned his case by the manner in which he
answered the questions Of the prosecu.
ton. His testimony was in substance as
follows:
Twas introduced to Wilder In 1883 By q young
attorney named Heaton. At that time he had a
ticket scalper's stan In the old Korn block.
vas not In Wilders place on either January 81
o. February Just passed. nor have had any
conversations with him Of the nature that he
has described. or made any statements to him
concerning Way. On the afternoon Of February
] was In the ofice Of the Peoples thestsr
making up salary lists from 2:l5 until o'clock.
An exhaustive cross-examination failed
to break down his testimony or to make
him admit close ncquaintanceship with
Way, or that he had been in Wiider's Of
ice since last July. At the end Of the
cross-examination Of Gates the case was
adjourned until 1880.
When the hearing Of the case was re-
sumcd the two barkeepers at the theater
we're called for the defense, and tes,iti ed
that Gates had remained in the building
the whole afternoon on February 1.
Judge Burke was then called and testi-
led to having been told OF the alleged at
tempt at embracery by 2. p. Shelby on
February 2. and that he had not immedi-
ateiy notified either Judge Osborn or
Sheriff Woolerv. lie explained this by
saying that the whole affair took him SO
much by surprise that he was uncertain
q hrs; as TO what were the proper steps to
De taken. but spoke Of it Immediately upon
entering court the next morning. When
asked if he had not expressed himself as
willing to go on with the case
before the same jury in spite of
the disclosures that had been made,
he replied that he meant TO go
an with the case after purging the Jury,
tor he did not think that the whole panel
81 twenty-four jurymen had been tempered
With. This concluded the examination Of
siiness, and the prosecuting attorney
saoved 10 dispense with arguments, but
Vas opposed by Wiley. Judge Osborn
supported the latter. and at the conclusion
Of the argument said: