The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-04-17
MANY TIMES DRUNK.
Witnesses Against Senator
Rogers in the Investigation.
Saw Him Drunk and BoisterOus
on Many Occasions.
HE HAD LIQUOR SOLD.
A Joint Run in His Tent at a
G. A. r Reunion.
Most of This Happened Three
Years Ago.
He and Others Drank Beer at
Lawrence.

Promptly at 8 o'clock this morning
the Rogers investigating committee be-
gan the examination of witnesses for the
complaining side.
The outer Office of the bank commits
sioner, where the investigation is being
held, was we'll filed with witnesses and
spectators, among the latter, Judge
Snider, ex-superintendent of insurance,
and ex- Congressman Ben Clover.
Cyrus Leland was there, and sat i'm
mediately behind his attorney, Mr. Over
myer, occasionally making such sugges-
tions as seemed meet to his side of the
case.
MIR. Rogers, the gentleman under in
vestigation, was on one side of the at
torney's table with Judges Thacher and
FOote, who represent him. He was in
terested but unruff1ed as a rule, though
he took occasion to shake his head en-
phatically sometimes at answers that did
not please him, or that he did not seem
to consider strictly true.
1t was a decidedly good humored in
vestigation and there were several good
natured brushes between the opposing
attorneys, referring for the most part to
Mr.. Overmyer's knowledge of intoxicants,
his Democracy and his views on the liq-
uor question and 70 Judge Thacher's ex-
treme ignorance of the subject under
discussion.
At all these sallies and the humorous
parts of the testimony Rogers laughed
heartily with the rest and did not seem
to be greatly worried.
c. l. Faulkner who is the son of the
superintendent of the Soldiers orphans
home at Atchison, was the first witness
called.
MIR. Faulkner is young man, and was
but eighteen years of age when he first
met SIR. Rogers at the institution
in 1891.
"What do you know about Mr.. Rogers
ever being under the influence of intox-
icating liquors?" asked Mr. Overmyer.
"Once during the year of 1891 Mr..
Rogers, with other members of the
wavs and means committee of the legis-
lature visited the institution and I
thought nearly all of them had been
drinking. I could smell liquor on their
breaths"
WAS Mr.. Rogers in particular loud or
bosterous in his conversation"
''Not in the morning but l thought he
was at the dinner table. My father was
away from home, and the members of
the committee ate with my mother and
oOAAs Ma ASOS OAo sOAAA~ ~ Ae~SAAOA ~OAN1
thought"
did not other members of the COM
mittee talk loud?"
yes"
'W ould you say that Mr.. Rogers was
under the influence of liquor?"
"Yes, to some extent, as we'll as some
of the Others"
"None of them were incapacitated by
! liquor to attend to their duties at the in
stitution, were they"
"Well," said Mr.. Faulkner thought
fully, ''they managed to get around"
f. S. Johnson, of Washington county,
| Senator Rogers' home, was next put on
| the stand.
| Mr.. johnson had known Mr.. Rogers
| for eight years, and had seen him intoX-
| icated often, he said
"On the 10Th of last month I was in
the Scheckler Brothers joint, adjoining
a livery stable in Washington, and Mr.
Rogers entered in company with Mayor
Hackney and Joe Lowe. 1 think they
took three drinks each"
"Was Mr.. Rogers intoxicated?"
81 should say he was. l met him after
| wards in the Office to the stable and he
put his arms around me to talk with me-
The defense succeeded in establishing G
that that was habit with Mr.. Rogers at
all times and it seemed to be, for he
practiced it several times in the trial
room this morning.
".At what other times have you seen
him drinking?"
'4Well, l went to his house a week ago
| and he gave me drink of whisky and
| took one himself. l met him in the bank,
too, once, and thought he was intoxi
Gated. told him he ought to go down
to Barnes where the Salvation Army was
He began to swear about the Salvation
Army and finally said he guessed there
was as much honor in it as there was in
any of the - - churches, and thai
religion was a farce anyhow"
s'AVere there any other times?"
Eyes, l met him at a G. A. R. reunion
at Blue Rapids once, five years ago. He
had a tent there and told me that if | oil
any of my friends wanted anything tc
drink to go into the tent to the back enc
and we could buy it. He told me he was
there to make money and that he had
sold ten gallons of whisky at 70 cents
pint which he had bought for 25 cents {
pint. He was not selling the whisky
himself.
"At another time I went with him t.
an Alliance meeting and he succeeded
in getting me elected to mem bership
We had at that time seven bottles of bee
and two pints of whisky"
do you not consider Mr.. Rogers al
honest and honorable man?' asked
Judge Thacher.
Eyes, guess he is honest enough, bu