The morning call., 1894-08-12


represent this prosecution Immediately III
terpose their objections 10 his speaKinE
to him. No possibility of investigation 10
allowed. Concealment from the beg nnihs
to the END is maintained. A sacred iihe
is thrown about the corporate indlvidua,
which stands with all its power pehinu
this prosecution. Railroad tracks pecoine
sacred. No light is afforded to those VIM
are to be prosecuted by which they nay
seek to asceI tain the motives tnat CON
those who are prosecuting. An lnqu,sE
ton is had, with all opportunity oi us
cussion taken away. The constitution =
ignored, homes are searched, the castles VI
the people are violated by the use OF payo-
nets simply upon the petition OF the
Southern Pacifir Company. Tell me why
all these circumstances exist? VINO Is .he
wise man who conceived the idea tnat 'n"s
would be lawful? When has our form u
Government changed itself that IL mas oe-
come lawful to bring men into the coulE
room to be tried under circumstances
which destroy the light Of investigation.
81 say again they have had no man upon
this stand who has had the haroihoou ~
testify to the existence OF any sign Whici
is cOrroborative of the statement OF sna.
boy that there were explosions on tla.
trestle. Can we believe the evidences vi
witnesses produced? Is there some lalen'
motive, some reason that we cannot see'
something which is behind cloud. WHO"
has induced the prosecution TO produce
the witnesses? If l were on trial. OF you
were. would you not demand at least that
those who come to testify snoulu coIne
upon the process of the court. should come
here under the control entirely OF tDe
court and walk like free men into the
courtroom and be permitted to place tnem-
selves in contact with the contestants on
the other side?
There never was time In the ua'h
ages when so despotic prosecution was
permitted. There is no place In Dlstoly
where a more despotic power was permit
ted to be exercised, when. with tna'
power, weeping boy came into 'his
courtroom held in bondage by the SOuth-
ern Pacific Railroad Company. 1 nave
never seen 10 my practice. your Honor
and it has been varied one, an lnclden'
In a courtroom which appealed more
strongly to my sympathy than the moment
when that little boy sat in bondage In lnls
courtroom as he covered his face I'D agony
and wept when ]. in sympathy Tor MIN.
released him from the stand-released
him because, in my judgment, at
that time and after he had con-
fessed the conditions under which
he had appeared here, in my judgment II
was wrong that he should testify. know
not who may have been responsible for the
fact; know not what bad man, unmind-
full of every principle of liberty and Justice,
may have advised that that process might
be resorted to. But whoever he may be,
be certainly has failed TO read the beliefs
and opinions of the people, to understand
the principles that founded the American
Government. Indeed the principles that
control the world to-day. There can be
nothing more Gespicabe, more indecent,
more unjust, than the idea which suggested
that that boy, weeping as he did, should be
brought here in the manner In which he
was, slave, imprisoned. trembling with
fear, weeping at the first question by the
counsel representing his case, to give evil
dence upon which to base the hope that
some obnoxious men should be hanged.
But Lesher and the boy were not the
only ones to bring disgrace to this
prosecution. Lesher and the boy did not
stand alone as stamping the features of
the prosecution, asking for the conviction
of these defendants, including the media
tion committee of the A. r. U. Your
Honor observed, l know you did, the wit
ness Read. when he appeared upon the
stand with testimony which would dis
grace him if he had come here as a free
man. | am discussing now the evidence
of the principal witnesses, upon whom
they base their hope for a conviction.
Strike their testimony from the records in
| this case and there is nothing left by
which your Honor could hold any of the
defendants in this case for the specific
crime in the in formation.
1.-THE appearance of Read upon the
stand impressed all who saw him when be
came here in the manner in which he did.
| know not if money brought him here,
but he looked as if he feared that his
perjury would be detected or as IL under
fear of some dire calamity to himself. His
appearance upon the stand was that of an
abject slave. He looked 10 his face what
he was. A picture taken of him as be sat
here would have been the picture of some
one who had been subjected to some kind
OF Infamous and humiliating punishment.
He was, indeed, the picture OF humiliation
and he came, like the boy, to testify
through fear. | see him now when the
laws OF the State were violated and he was
arrested without charging him with any
! crime. If he told the truth be was ar
rested, not because the law justified his
arrest. but because some bad adviser of
the Southern Pacific road. relying on the
power which that company can exercise,
was willing to take the consequences of
unlawful imprisonment, not justified in
morals and law, which was the act of ty-
rant meaner than any tyrant that ever
lived in any monarchy of Europe"
The general reviewed the testimony of
many OF the witnesses. referring to Mrs.
Van Husen's testimony In terms which
caused laughter throughout the court. he
showed up the Inconsistency of the testi-
mony In many points, and scored the rail-
road company for what he termed its per-
secution Of the men arrested.
In the afternoon he continued his speech.
| Inc courtroom was more crowded than
ever, and crowds gathered outside of the
windows and on the steps He took UP
the thread OF his argument and said: 81
nave shown, think, by the testimony oil
some OF the witnesses to the main fac,
how much dependence Is to be placed or
the prosecution. When l speak of tn,
main TACT L speak of the fact that the,
nave undertaken 10 prove here that Wor
den and Hatch were guilty of deralin,
THIS tram. and think have shown yer,