Omaha daily bee., 1894-02-25
MOSHER FOOLS THE MARSHAL
Champagne 0harley's 0arousals We're IN
known to His Custodian.
BENNETT ACTED AGAINST WHITES ORDERS
Louis Goldsmith Tells How the Prisoners
Visited His Saloon at Night
State Seeks to Shut Out
Further Evidence.

But two witnesses were Examine In the
Bennett libel case yesterday after
noon. as another legal point was sprung by
the state to bar out testimony. and as the
court wanted argumen and authorities before
passing on It. the case was continued
until Monday afternoon to give both sides an
opportunity to look up the law in the
matter.
United States Marshal White was the first
witness. He testified that he was well ac'
qualnted with Mosher. and had known him
since 1887, He took Mosher to the county
Jail after sentence had been imposed on the
bank wrecker. That was on or about July
8. 1893. George Bennett was sheriff and
Theodore Bennett taller at that time. The
witness saw one or both OF them when he
took Mosher to the Jail and told one OF
them, he was quite certain that IL was the
jailer, that he wanted to leave Mosher there
temporarily, and that he was not to be al,
lowed to leave the Jail unless the witness
himself came for him or Deputy Mar
shall Coggeshall came to take Mosher out to
his meals at the restaurant across the
street. When the newspapers made such a
stir about the special privileges that we're
being accorded Mosher. the witness tele-
phoned to the jail and revoked all privileges
that Mosher had been enjoying. An inter
view was printed in the papers representing
the sheriff as saying that all the privileges
extended to Mosher were at the request OF
the federal authorities. and the witness
called up the sheriff for the purpose of ar
irving at an understanding with him as to
how the orders previously given had been
construed. Bennett denied the interview,
and the witness told him again that Mosher
was to be shown no more favors and given
no more privileges than any of the other
United States prisoners in the Jail. This
was two or three weeks before Mosher was
removed from the Jail and taken to Lincoln.
CONTROL OF FEDERAL PRISONERS.
On cross-examination the witness testified
that he had full charge of Mosher so far as
the federal court was concerned, but that he
did not have charge of the prisoner while in
Jail. The jailer had absolute control of
every prisoner, but had no right to extend
any privileges to a federal prisoner without
the marshal's direction. The marshal had
the right to take a prisoner out of Jail and
put him back as he chose, but the jailer had
charge of him while in jail and the prisoner
was subject to the Jail regulations. The
only privileges that the marshal had directed
in Mosher's case was as to taking him out
to meals, and it had been distinctly specified
that the meals were to be taken at the
restaurant across the street, as that was the
one nearest the jail. There had
.pVoi nv N'iNbSi 90 IL
was not anticipated that there would be
any infringement on the orders. The
TALLER was told that he might take Mosher
over to his meals, but no orders to that ef-
feet were issued. The witness took Mosher
out of the Jail but once, and that was when
he took him out to go to Lincoln. The rea-
son for taking Mosher away was that his
presence in the Jail and his reported actions
were creating a great deal of talk. Mosher
was kept at Lincoln three or four days. The
day after Mosher was placed in the Lancas>
ter. county iail the witness was advised by
telephone that a mob was being organized to
hang him. and the witness at once went
down. but found everything quiet and came
back to Omaha. The next day he was mott,
fed Of n probable clash between the state
and federal authorities over the question of
getting Mosher into court at Lincoln, and went
down and removed the prisoner to the Cass
county Jail at Plattsnouth. He was left there
scarcely twenty-four hours. and was then
brought back to Omaha. He was removed from
Plattsmouth because a telephone message was
received to the effect that the mob that was
being organized to lynch the Akeson muir
derers had also concluded to string up
Mosher too, and make a clean job Of it. The
witness called up the clerk of the court
and asked him about the situation, and that
official informed him that it would be ex-
tremely dangerous for him to leave Mosher
in the Cass county Jail any longer. The
witness at once went down and got the
prisoner and brought him to the Douglas
county Jail, from which he had been absent
four or five days. By this time the talk
had quoted down somewhat. and further
more the federal judge had returned home
and the witness was momentarily expecting
an order to take the prisoner to the peni-
Tertiary at Sioux Falls. Deputy Marshal
Coggeshall had told the witness that he had
taken Mosher out twice to meals, but the
witness had not seen Mosher outside the Jail,
and only knew by hearsay of his being any
where but in the Jail after the witness had
placed him there. He saw Mosher twice while
in jail-once when he went to serve a paper
on the prisoner and once when he went
there to take another prisoner Sheriff Ben
nett had assured him that Mosher was
treated the same as other prisoners except
as to meals. Bennett had come to the Of
flee of the witness in response to a tele-
phone call asking him to come on business
connected with the Mosher case, When
Mosher was taken away he was taken to the
depot on the Harvey street car. Mosher
wore short hair except in front, and was
very dark compleXioned. He was smoothly
shaven when he was first brought here, but
he sprouted a mustache before going to jail
and wore it very short.
PRISONERS IN III THIRD WARD
l.. A. Goldsmith testified that he knew
Mosher, and first saw him in his saloon at
Ninth and Capitol avenue. 1t was not until
after this that the witness knew that the
man was Mosher. He then saw Mosher In
the county Jail, where he was introduced
to him. and learned that his name was
Mosher. Witness saw Mosher twice
in the Jail. The first time that
witness ever saw Mosher was at
the saloon, when Mosher and Theodore
Bennett came there together one evening, a
long while after dark. Theodore Bennett
introduced Mosher as Mr.. Jackson. and The
odore set up the drinks once or twice, after
which Mosher "set 'em up Mosher went
over and talked with a man who was play
ing cards there, and whom Mosher seemed
10 know. Mosher then came back to the
bar and the parties all had another drink
together. The witness testified that this
occurred about the time that his son was in
trouble for shooting a colored man. The
witnesses of the shooting were held in 5000
bail and sent to Jail, and We're not released
until after the trial. Notwithstanding this
fact, the witness saw these witnesses fully
forty times before the trial, He saw them
In his saloon and near the corner of Tenth
and Capitol avenue. Although the wit
nesses we're supposed TO be In jail he saw
one of them, named Ramsay In the saloon
nearly every night, and finally three Of them
met the witness lawyer in the saloon and
compromised the case SO that the witness
son could not be convicted OF the serious
charge on which he was held. That was
about n week or two after they were bound
over, and the witness saw them every
day,
Ramsay" said the witness, "got about
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