Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1894-08-03


than an unborn babe, was sent
before the jury, and testified to
that effect. j. f. Ailshie, attorney
f. +. Fogg and sheriff c. 5. Gre
CORY, ringleaders all, were before
the jury in Ailshie's defense. Not
a word or line of new evidence was
introduced: To further confuse
the jury Ailshie, Fogg and the
district attorney made an effort to
have me indicted for criminal libel,
but the jury speedily dismissed it.
The district attorney advised the
jury that if they persisted in in
dieting Ailshie they would also be
COMPELLED to indict me for libel.
BY this time the jurors were
worn out. They had been in con-
tinuous session in small room in
hot weather for six successive days.
We are informed that every man
on that jury was satisfied of two
facts:
THAT the letter to Gov. Nc
Connell signed "a Republican
Friend" is in the handwriting of
j. +. Ailshie.
2-That Section 1892 was viola
ted and that j. F. Ailshie was full
ly cognizant thereof, both before
and after the fact.
The friends of -Ailshie claimed
from the start that unless / could
swear to the handwriting on the
alleged dispatch which Mr.. Meyer
received, the jury could not find a
bill. l could not swear to the j.
IDENTITY of the handwriting on the
bogus dispatch which Mr.. Meyer
received. This bogus telegram
might have been written by any
woman at the dictation of Ailshie
or any other member of the ring
who was in the secret.
At any rate Ailshie was indicted
on Friday by a vote of ~ to 4.
On Saturday, despite the infu-
ences brought to bear, nine of the
16 jurors still voted to indict.
Others of the jurors are so salts
fled that the district attorney used
all his influence to swerve the jury
from their path of duty, and to
have them condone and cover up
Ailshie's crime, that they consider
themselves absolved from their
oath of secrecy and if they are to
be arraigned for contempt of court,
they will ask his honor to begin on
district attorney ID. G. Mitchell,
an officer of the court, who used
all his influence to make n criminal
body of the entire grand jury, by
practically advising them to cover
up Ailshie's criminal act. l would
rather say a good word for pub
lie official than II harsh one at any
time. But in this case l observed
a disposition on the part of the
district attorney to hush it up, to
make light of it, to delay its con
sideration and in various other
ways to distract the attention of
the jury away from the vital facts.
Therefore | do not hesitate to say
that district attorney DC. Mitchell
wilfully, deliberately and with in
tent to deceive, lied to the grand
jury when he told them that Sat
urday morning that he could not
get the Ailshie indictment ready
until Monday. The indictment
WAS drawn and / stand prepared tC
prove it whenever and wherever
Mr.. Mitchell desires.
I invite attention to another fact
At my first appearance before the
jury on Tuesday morning L stated
my desire as a citizen and tax-pay
er not TO cost the county needles
expense by subp9ning witnesse
from a distance unless they wer'
needed to make out the case. i
the evidence before them was no
sufficient to sustain the charge,
demanded that the operators a
Lewiston and at Moscow be sum
moned with their records. l hat
taken legal advice on this point
and told the jury that these wit
nesses could be summoned by send
ing the subp9nas to the sheriff G
Nez Perce county at Lewiston wit
instructions to serve the Lewisto
, witness in person, and the Mosco,
witness by telephone. The distric
, attorney told the jury that witness
| must be summoned by the sheri
, of this county, or his deputy, i
person; he also told the jury thu
that the operators dare not test
D fly to the fact whether the allege
t telegram from Gov. McConne
: went through their offices or no
s without eliminating themselve
i My legal adviser says this is a
e surd, and SO it seems to me. 4
d any rate, my witnesses were n
: summoned. The man charged wi,
g the crime was, however, permitt'
V to appear before the jury by speci
l. counsel, after he had been indicte
l. Could IA district attorney show mo
e partiality than that?
h The policy of Ailshie, Fog
d Mitchell, Gregory & Co, was
v cover up one crime by commitil
,r another and making the grand in