St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-08-22
MRS. BLOWOUT ST TEsTIFIEs.
But Her Story Of Drunkenness
Is Contradicted by Sew
eral Witnesses.
TIM REARDON WAS ABSENT.
Miss Taylor Springs Several
Scenes, and That Is
About All.

4 If the overwhelming amount Of testi-
mony in rebuttal produced at the meet
ing of the special committee of the
board OF education yesterday afternoon
does not satisfy even Miss Taylor and
Miss Madigan that they cannot make
out case against Supt. Gilbert, their
appetites for the sensational must in
deed be Unsuitable.
The specific charge taken up by the
committee was that made by Miss Madi-
gan, the former principal of the Smith
school. The Investigation had been
asked fer by Mr.. Gilbert. and the COM
NJ tee had at first intended that it
should be private. and that the four
teachers from the Smith school and Mrs.
BiOmquist, the Merriam Park woman,
should be heard as to what they knew
OF finding Mr.. Gilbert in a state of in
;oxication. Miss Taylor, however. in
sisted that the session should be an
open one, and she was grati6ed.
Tim Reardon was conspicuous by his
al ence.
.:esides the four teachers of the Smith
STOOL, Misses Swartz. O'Toole, Miller
ana Donovan. Miss Brooks, the super
visor of primary work, was. present.
These five teachers testified that they
of 1891, the time mentioned by Miss
Madlgan, and that on the occasion of
Mr.. Gilbert's visit they had talked with
hin individually In their own rooms.
Mis- Brooks said she drove back to the
hig1 school with the superintendent.
Ali i've teachers testified that Mr.. Gill
bert was not under the influence OF
liquor on the day mentioned by Miss
Madigan, and that If he had drank any
shirs they would have discovered it.
r2ftss Brooks further testified that she
knew from her long connection with
the city schools that Mr.. Gilbert's gen.
erai influence over them was good. and
tended to the highest morality, and that
what Miss Madigan testified to was ut
terly impossible, even Ii she Miss
Brooks) had not spent the afternoon
mentioned in the Smith school.
Tilt With Miss Taylor
Miss Swartz had lively tilt with
Miss Taylor while on the stand. The
former declined to answer the question
put by Miss Taylor as to whether she
had not Deen called before the superin-
tendent anu instructed how to testify.
Miss Swartz replied that it was none
of Miss Taylor's business.
Miss Taylor said she would follow the
rule of practice in courts, and laks the
refusal as evidence that she was afraid
Of discriminating herself.
Miss O'Toole was asked the same
question, and both she aud Miss Swartz
were instructed to answer.
Miss Swartz said that they had had a
meeting with the superintendent who
had asked them nothing more than the
same questions as he had before the
committee.
President Willrich asked Miss Swartz
if the superintendent had asked her to
tell lie.
Mr.. McNair and Chairman Vanish
both objected to the question, but the
president insisted that they had right
to impeach witness if they saw fit,and
the matter was dropped there.
MIR. Vanish remarked that this was
not trial in the generally accepted
sense, but private investigation to see
what there might be in the charges, as
they had not been filed in writing.
Prof. Congdon and Mr.. Rink both
denied ever having seen Mr.. Gilbert
under the influence of liquor, and MIR.
Merwin was also called to the stand to
tell what he knew regarding Mr. Gill
bert's habits.
MIR. MerWin,s Testimony
was extremely damaging to the cause of
Misses Taylor and Madigan, and when
he finished speaking the array of the
Taylor forces seemed fiOored for several
minutes. The quiet yet forceful way
In which this gentleman told the COM
nlttee that he had known Mr.. Gilbert
for seven years, and that for the past
two years he had lived in his family
aud known blm in more intimate way
than most people could, had its effect.
Mr.. Merwin testified that in their talk
together the superintendent had gone
over with him his work in the schools,
and that his devotion to his work was
always very apparent.
Miss Nellie Eustace and Miss Phelan.
who are in Mr.. Gilbert's office as clerk
and stenographer, by their testimony
contradicted the statements of Mrs.
Blomqulst, madeain an affidavit, as to
what took place at the memorable
meeting of that woman aud the super
intendent in the fall of 1891. Miss Tay-
lor created qnite scene when Miss
Eustace testified that for nine years
she had seen Mr.. Gilbert almost every
day, being for four years pupil of his
in the high school, and since that time
his clerk. Miss Eustace had sta ed that
she had never seen Mr.. Gilbert under
the influence of liquor, and Miss Taylor
In DISCRIMINATION asked her If the
superintendent had not been absent
from his office for days and weeks at a
time. Miss Eustace refused to answer
and was sustained by the committee.
Miss Taylor, however.ipersisted in stat
ing that Mr.. Gilbert was in the habit of
gcing away for weeks at time, and
that while away 1t was because he was
rotin condition to attend to his bust
ness.
Mr.. Gilbert had received communi-
cation from Miss Darrah, the late
principal of the teachers training
school, which again made it very evi-