The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-12-05

y
Knight and the appointment of Sheehan
by Heb3ard in that case while the que s.
ton of the validity of Sheehan's receiver
ship in the first case was pending in the
Supreme Court.
Anybody" said the counsel, would
have thought that the litigants could have
waited until the Supreme Court had de-
cided and settled that question"
The attempt of James Alva Watt, while
acting as attorney for the receiver, to have
himself made the attorney for the bank
also was severely commented upon.
In referring to the alleged failure of
General Sheehan to make a proper ao-
counting of his receipts and expenditures
Mr.. Thornton >aid:
"They go through the dreary and dis
NAL farce of the board of directors which
had appointed General Sheehan secretary
and manager of the bank, passing reSo-
luton that Sheehan had satisfactorily ac-
counted to the bank, while Mr.. Watt,
attorney for the bank, agrees that that is
sufficient, and the same Mr.. Watt, attor-
ney for Receiver Sheehan, agrees that
that is sufficient. From that day to this
it has never been judicially determined
whether Sheehan has returned the funds OF
which he came into possession. There
has never been filed a proper receipt for
moneys received and disbursed by him.
1t Is incontestible that Judge Hebbard
allowed to be performed before him the
farce of q legal proceeding in which the
attorney on both sides was one and the
same person.
Have these men no right" he asked,
"to lay the facts before the public with
such comments as they feel justified2 /
say that even If they erred there is ques-
tion above and beyond and apart from all
attacks on private character, and that is
whether litigant shall be denied access
to the press, or to printed matter, or to the
stump, for the purpose OF invoking the
jud gment of his feIlow-citizens upon the
treatment he has received at the hands
of a Judge~
Mr.. Henley followed and began by read
ing from an opinion of Lord Chief Justice
Fitzgerald, who advised the jury in the
case quoted that they should be very
broad and liberal in their treatment of the
matter, because the principle of the lib
ertv of speech and of the press was most
valuable and should not be trammeled
without grave charge.
The speaker commented upon the fact
that the prosecution had not called as a
witness x-Attorney-General Hart, who
was present on the occasion when Judge
Hebbard promised to allow the directors
TO meet and resign.
Mr.. Henley remarked that more than
10000 depositors had suffered by reason of
the failure of e hank; many of them
had lost their ALL and had been brought
to the verge of absolute restitution. Con-
sidering all the circumstances the de-
positors had acted very temporarily, and
the circular was an unusually mild docu-
ment.
The speaker contended that Judge Heb
bard knew that he was doing wrong when
he appointed Sheehan as a receiver. be-
cause only short time before that the
Supreme Court had reversed him on that
very same point and had decided that the
appointment of q receiver was illegal and
void.
With regard to the payment of $500 to
Delmas & Shortridge the speaker said
that what had been done had been done
under valid contract with the board of
directors by which they were to receive q
retainer for six months in advance. Delmas
q Shortridge were ready and willing and
able to render those services. but they
we're dismissed, and an attorney, James
Alva Watt, employed, $50 that those
miserable unfortunate depositors had to
pay for another attorney in addition to
those who had been paid. That was not
honorable, economical management by
the officers of the bank"
Upon the subject of the notoriety of
James Alva Watt, Mr.. Henley said that
the man who could be made the subject of
the amin diversions of hundreds of people
in different halls in this City could not
very well escape the name OF being
notorious person.
General Sheehan's mode of making his
livelihood was not taken up.
General Sbeehan has no occupation"
said Mr.. Henley. "He is designated here
as political parasite. He has been poll
tician and has been the recipient OF
bounty from his party In the shape of
various offices. He has been holding the
Is ~ ,sco,N 4
Register of the United States, Secretary of
the Yosemite Valley Com mission, Adju-
tant- General of the State, and 80 on. The
term parasite" is 6gurative. If from
this testimony 1t can be gathered that
General Sheehan derived his sustenance
from public favor, it may be said that he
subsisted on the body polite, and to that
extent he may be called a political para
site.
eff John F. Sheehan doesn't come
within the terms of that definition, ac-
cording to his own testimony, l don't
know who could"
In conclusion the speaker said that a
conviction in this case would strike a
dearb-blow at the liberty of the press and
at the perpetuity of the republican system
of government.
Mr.. Foote closed for the prosecution, de-
handing verdict OF conviction on the
ground that the circular vas Ii belous and
that its statements had not been substan-
tlated. His effort was very crude and
weak and consisted more in denunciation
than in argument.
Mr. Foote concluded his speech at
$3.50 P. NJ, having spoken fifty minutes.
Judge Daingerield then charged the jury
as to the law of the case and gave the case
to the jury at 6:35 P. NJ.
CHURCH NOTICES.