The herald., 1895-04-24
TIKI: BELMONT BELMONT HILL C CAASE
Mrs. Holmes Meeting With
Deputy Frank Willis
WAS REFUSED A COMPLAINT
Motions for Non.suit and Dismissal Are
Denied
WAS REFUSED A COMPLAIN
Mr. Willis yersion-Mr. Williams Relates
His Offer to Be 1ade
Scapegoat


district attorney, whom he wants re-
moved from office for having refused to
draw up a complaint charging Colonel H.
G. OTIS of the Times with criminal
libel, was resumed.
Horace Wheeler. brother OF the
petitioner. who said that he is resident
Of Belmont Hall. was called to the stand.
He toll very straight story of two
interviews between Major Donnell, Dal-
ton Wheeler and Mr.. Taylor At the first
meeting the district attorney told Dalton
Wheeler that he could not issue a COM
paint against Colonel Otis, charging that
he had libeled him wheeler because
his name did not appear in the screed, but
lie was of opinion that the ladies whose
names had been mentioned in the article
might swear to complaint. On the oc
casion of the second visit Major Donnell
said that after comforting with his dep
uties he had come to the conclusion not
to issue the instruments required or him,
and he added that he did not doubt the
allegations contained in the Times
articles.
Mrs Josephine Holmes. the lady who
is alleged to be the leader of the Belmont
Hall society, was the next witness. She
is fragile looking Norwegian woman OF
80, with light blonde hair and an inteiil-
gent fac,. Her language, which is very
correct. if it has a slight foreign accent,
demo es that she is far from being uned-
ucated and that her command OF well
selected words is far above the average
of the usual run of people not OF Anglo
Saxon descent. When she read the at
tacks upon Belmont Hall and it's inmates
III the Times, she replied in response to
the questions of Lawyer Kendrick, she
Thought it ter lbe outrage. and she
visited the district attorneys office in the
company of Messrs. Taylor and Wheeler
to obtain redress
She related her meeting with Deputy
District Attorney Willis and how he had
questioned her. He had asked her what
text book she used, question which she
did not grasp. because she had never
heard the word text book before. She told
Mr..Willis that they held no meetings at
Belmont Hall. When people went it was
simply gatherings of ladies and gentlemen
who discussed religious topics. The dep
uty district attorneys insinuation that
money was taken at thes, gatherings she
had denied then, becau e At no time was
any. charge made. Finally the official
refused the complaint. alleging that his
examination of members of her class con-
WINGED him that the averments of the
Times were the truth. Mrs. Holmes on
cross examination stated that the guests
staving at Belmont Hall paid for COM
modites the same as dodgers do In other
boarding establishments.
Mrs. Ida E. Russell. another Belmont
Hall inmate vas with the party which
called upon the district attorney for re-
dress after the Times had published the
articles. On that occasion Mr.. Willis.
after scanning one OF the articles, declared
that it was bristling with libelous matter
and that it would be an excellent basis
upon which to institute civil action for
yroon
ouently, however, and he treated them in
a way which the witness stigmatized as
insolent and contemptuous. An invita-
ton which was extended to Mr.. Willis and
Mr.. Holton to be present at one of their
meetings. these gentlemen failed to avail
themselves of.
A motion for non-suit was made after
the petitioner had announced that he
had no further testimony to offer. but the
court denied it. The next motion was to
dismiss the proceedings upon the ground
chat the evidence introduced upon the
part of the petitioner was wholly insrffi-
cient to sustain the accusation. This
was also denied.
Finally respondents attorneys moved
that all matters brought out during the
hearing by the witnesses for Dalton
Wheeler relating to their interviews and
conversations with the deputies in the
district attorneys office in the absence OF
Major Donnell be ordered expunged from
the record, with the exception of such as
had been shown to have been reported to
that official by his assistants upon his
return from Sacramento. This motion
was conditionally denied by the court,
for the present at least. Respondents
attorneys then agreed that they would
put the deputies themselves on the stand
in the afternoon in order that the court
should have the full benefit of all that
had been done in the premises from both
sides. so that the case should be ventila-
ted thoroughly.
Deputy District Attorney Willis testified
to Dalton Wheeler visit on the 10th of
February. when he produced the two
Times articles. He wanted complaint
drawn up against Colonel Otis on the first
one. entitled A Queer Lot; That's What.
Witness said to Wheeler that he was not
libeled in it. Then Wheeler showed him
the 9TH r article, in which his name did
not occur, but there was nothing OF a
defamatory nature against Wheeler in
that and Mr.. Willis told MIN that the two
articles could not be connected for. the
purpose of establishing criminal libel.
Wheeler then inquired if he could get
a complaint against Colonel Otis for libel
ing Mrs. Josephine Holmes, and the dep.
uty replied that he would have to talk
with her first. The lady came the next
day with Dalton Wheeler, A. G. Taylor.
Mrs. Russell and others. and was interro-
gated by Mr.. Willis. So far as she was
allowed by her companions to answer him
she acknowledged the truth of the allega-
tons in the articles, but VIII II Mr.. Willis
attempted to inquire into her religious
theory and practice, Mr.. Taylor prevented
her from replying. He said that he was
a lawyer. and that he knew the district
attorney had no latitude in the matter of
issuing criminal complaints-he was
bound to draw them up when requested.
Witness disagreed with this view of his
duties. He thought it the proper way
first to investigate the merits of the case
and decided that if Mrs. Holmes refused
to answer his interrogations he in turn
would decline to draw the complaint.
The whole party. Mr.. Willis said, then
advanced upon him in a threatening
manner and he stood ready to repel them.
But Just then Chief Deputy District At
torney Holton came in and poured oil up
ON the troubled waters. After Major
Donnell's return from San Francisco
Willis communicated the matters here
narrated to his chief.
Assistant District Attorney Williams
testified that he had informed the
petitioner and his friends after he had
heard that they meant to proceed against
Major Donnell that he was the only person
to blame. if there was blame anywhere.
and that he assumed all the responsible
itv for the refusal to issue a complaint
agains: Colonel Otis. lie requested them
to bring the suit for removal against him
self. Mr.. Taylor at that time replied