The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1895-11-29
THE JURY DISAGREED.
| IN THE KEY STONE PROHIBITORy
CASE.

IN THE KEY SIONE FNOhlBlTOIt1
CASE.
Against +. &. Gale-A Lot Of Knolty
Law Polnts--The Hug Comes sonday
In the Eddy Case-ManninE Gets s4u
Dose.
The prohibit@y prosecution that
was calculated tufbe the decisive one,
as the result Of tie late raid, taking
the keystone out of the arch Of the
beer business, was that against Fred
@. Gale which occupied ali Of Tuesday
and Wednesday before Justice Newton
and a jury. 1t was followed with
much interest and more amusement by
"a crowd which packed Newton's Office
to suffocation Tuesday 30 that an nd
journment was taken to Grand Army
hall Wednesday. The result was a
disagreement Of the jury which was
discharged about half past eight We'd
nesday evening. The jurors, who were
all business men on the street, agreed
not to tell how they stood and they
have abided by their compact 80 all
that is known i6 what hangers on
cleaned by listening at the door during
tuG ucllDCIhLlOub 0nA tilCII NCIdClOub
reports state the figures variously as
an even division and five to one and
four to two in favor Of an acquittal.
One of the jurors, who will not tell
any more, states that the latter figure
is not correct.
The prosecution was conducted by
States Attorney Fits and Mr.. Martin,
while Mr.. Wason OF Nashua, who ap-
peared for the respondent in the seizure
proceeding was assisted by Haskins a.
Stoddard.
The prosecution had two lines of at
tack. Tho first was the one laid out
by Mr.. Martin in the previous case,
resting on the theory that tho sales
from Gales East Eagle brewery could
be reached by Vermont law, under the
doctrine of the O'Neill case, which
went clear up to the United States
supreme court and where O'NeiIl, q
Whitehall. N. T., dealer was convicted
and fined and sentenced to what
to q life sentence for selling
to Rutland people. The theory was
that sales made from outside of the
state, if the liquor is brought into the
state and collected and paid for here,
are sales completed in Vermont and
SO subject to Vermont law if the seller
can be caught within our jurisdiction.
But the trouble was that no such sales
were proved. Gales books which,
Martin demanded and Newton ordered
to be produced in the seizure case,
were again ordered forward Tuesday,
but they didn't appear. A number of
witnesses were called to the stand, but
they all swore to different state Of
facts than was wanted. Patrick Man
ming testified to buying frequently
what he supposed was hop beer" but
he always paid foriton the other side.
Fred Ransom, coupe driver, testified
that ''several timesn he had brought
over cases of beer 10 people here, but
it was always by order OF the custom
,rs, and without ever collecting any
hing from them except for expressage,
ind never by the employment of Gale
,r his agent, Frank Turner. This
snocked out the effort to prove Gale |
guilty of transporting the beer. which
8 crime under the Vermont law.
Wednesday morning this line was
lbandoned and the second one, which |
lad all along been planned, adopted |
# proving retail sales at the cold |
forage establishment on Flat street. |
| number of witnesses testified to |
,uying what they were all careful to
all very mild beverage, and which |
hey all said was bottled goods which
vas taken from cases. The trouble |
ere was that after the seizure the |
ase beer when analysed, proved to
ontain only 1-100 per cent. of alco-
ol, which Druggist Chaplin said he
'ould swear positively would not in
oxicate. In fact this percentage is
quivalent to only five teaspoonfuls of
'hiskey or two of alcohol to quart of
'ater
The beer in kegs that was seized.
ent. But as no sales of that were
royed, all there was for the prosecution
, claim was that the mere possession
it, though in the original sealed
ackages and though claimed to be
My kept in storage for sale in New
was enough, with the sale
this lighter beverage, to constitute
common seller" Evidently this
as the point the jury was hung on.
n there could have been no other in
le evidence. If there had been a
,nviction on it, it would have been
good point to fight on in the higher
,urts; for those sealed kegs, "orig-
lal packages, according to the Iowa
,cison, while they remain SO, clearly /,
,me within the lines of interstate ,
,mmerce, and the only power any !.
ate law has over them is in the Ed
unds act giving the states under their /,
,lice power the right to regulate
le traffic - but it is quite stretch
say that there is any traffic" until !
ere are sales. There was no proof of !.
e possession of a federal license
hich the law makes prima facie :
oof of seller for the Flat street es- ..
though of course there is
10 at the brewery.
A lively fight and an interesting series i
law questions were developed by :
e demand for the production of the !
'oks. Gale, it will be remembered, =
stified in the other case, when ques- =
,ned about sales to people on this (
lie of the river, that he couldn't tell r
he books would Show and they =
re kept by Turner. The latter was =
It on the stand Tuesday and the .
oks called for, and ordered by the =.
stice to be produced. Mr.. Wason in = =
en- court forbade Turner from going T
to Gales brewery premises. Mr.. :,
artin vehemently declared that unless = =
Q order was obeyed he would move =
: Mr.. Turner's commitment for con- 1
npt of court. Mr.. Stoddard quoted +,
e constitution protecting every man h
I'm giving evidence in eliminating !,
mself ard against unreasonable !,
irches and seizures. Mr.. Fits ad- :,
tied that Gale himself couldn't be =, =,
mpelled to produce this evidence n