The record-union., 1894-01-15
BRECHIBL HELD TO ANSWER.
What P. H. Smith Saw and What He
Found.
Miss Laura Tilden Makes Her Debu
in Court and Works Hard to
Save Her Client.

The examination Of Andrew Brechtel,
charged with burglary in the first degree,
in taking from the barn of a. j. Tiffany,
near Swiss Station, four bales of hay,
was held before Justice McMahon at Oak
Park on Saturday night.
Two other complaints had been sworn
to for taking two sets of carpenters tools,
but only the burglary case was con-
sidered.
The hall where the proceedings too k
place was filled with curious spectators,
who were attracted partly by the fact that
the accused resided in the neigh borhood
and was personally known to many OF
them, and partly by the fact that il
had become known tnat Miss Laura Nj i.
Iilden, the daughter of Judge NJ. &.
Tildeu. the first lady ever admitted To the
bar in Nevada, was to make her debut in
| the forensic arena.
The prosecution was conducted by AS
sistant District Attorney Jones for the
people.
The wife and five little children of the
accused were present in the court.
The Assistant District Attorney asked
that the original complaint be dismissed
and an amended complaint substituted.
Objection was made by the defense and a
motion for dismissal Of the case was
made, but was denied, the Justice decid-
ing 10 proceed on the amended complaint.
Z. II. Smith testified that he had
charge OF the hay stored in the barn of y.
}. tiffany, near Swiss Station, and that
he missed some hay from the barn on the
morning of January 9th, and found
tracks Of a wagon leading from the barn
and saw Brechtel In wagon with some
! potatoes, near the barn. Witness was
l 10 !
wheels made tracks like those leading
from the barn. he looked in DEFENDANT 5
barn that afternoon and found four bales,
which he identified as being taken from
Tit1any's barn.
Witness produced four weight tags
found on the bales, which were offered IN
evidence. He found on the bottom OF de-
! fendanps wagon oats which had fallen
from hay and piece of bell-rope such as
is used In cars. When witness first missed
hay, about Christmas, he found near the
barn stick used for tightening bales on
load OF hay, with loop OF bell-rope on
it just like that found in defendants
wagon.
Cross examined by Miss Tilden, he
stated that after he found the hay gone he
took load to the city and followed the
tracks leading from the barn as far as the
Stockton road. 1t was after he came back
from the city that he saw Brechtel near
the barn. He followed Brechtel for a
couple of hours, until the latter went
home, and then he went and looked uD
the Constable. He found the hay in
BechtePs barn about P. n.
Witness found thirteen bales of Tif-
fany's hay in the barn. He was positive
that it was Titfany's hay. Brechtel
claimed to have bought the four bales
that morning from peddler.
A. s. BOpG0SS arreStad Rrachtel He
and Smith examined the barn and found
about fifteen bales of hay and mum ber
of other things there. He Identified two
Of the weight tags as having been found
there. W hen he was taking defendant to
Jail witness asked him for a description of
the man from whom he claimed to have
bought the hay.
Defendant could not describe the man or
his team, but claimed to have bought it
on the Upper Stockton road. When witt
ness saw defendant in the jail a few days
after he told defendant that Mrs. Brechtel
nad told him the man brought the hay to
the house and delivered it. Defendant
then denied saying that he bought the
hay on the Stockton road. Smith identi-
fed the hay as his before the warrant was
issued.
The case was submitted and the prose-
cutting attorney summed up the evidence
as presented, which, he considered, fully
warranted holding the defendant.
Miss Tilden then reviewed the testi-
mony, and quoted Supreme Court de-
cisiOn to the effect that the mere possess
sion of stolen property is not sufficient
proof on which TO hold an accused person.
She made a strong plea for the prisoner,
and claim that there was no evidence of
his guilt. She therefore asked that he be
discharged.
The evidence appearing to Justice Nc
Mahon sufficient, the accused was held to
answer and bail fixed at 81. 900.