Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1896-05-07


the wine was their own wine?
A.--Why yes, / knew it was their own
wine.
Q.-Wirh regard to the banqucts?
A.-Allow me to say in this connection
before the banquets. that one winter, the
winter of 1S93-94 | spent ut the Van Ness
House, was i'll a portion of tho time
was thore-but when ] was there. prob
ably during five or six months, we had
our house closed. I was there say three
months. and during that whole time l
saw nothing on the table of any kind.
Q.-With regard to tho banquets, | wish
you would state as nearly as you can what
banqucts have been held there, at which
the banquetcrs had wine and all the facts
with regard 10 the provision for 1t that
you knew anything about?
A.--When they first came there they
didn't have vino at their banquets, when
held at the Van Ness House, but one
year q should say six or seven years ago
haven't looked it up at alp the commit
tee of arrangements decided that they
wanted wine, and when found that they
talked of wine | Immediately took steps
to prevent 1t for two reasons-One was l
didn't want tho wine served in the Van
Ness House, and the other | thought it
was bad practice to commence in YER
mont. | thought possible that the IN
huence upon some of the young men would
be pernicous and | didn't want to have
1t served, although I will say IN this con-
nection that ! never saw at any banquet
where there was wine any intoXicauon OF
any person whatever, and the utmost de-
corum has prevailed at all those pan
quets. / talked with Mr. Booth, whom
| think was the president of the assocla-
ton, stating my Views to him, and asked
him to labor with the members OF the
executive committee not to nave IL lur-
nished. He told mo afterwards that ne
had, but his efforts were unavailing. |
objected all the time, although ! did tell
him that | supposed ! could not prevent
their using the wine there. but we should
havo nothing to do with IT. ] told Mr..
Drew what the decision of these men
was, and told him not to have anything
to do with the wine and not 10 have amy
of the employees, as employees, open the
wine or take charge of it, | told Mr..
Clark not to sell the tickets. ! have been
to banquets, several OF Them when they
have had wine. | was at the banquet Of
1894, when they had wine suppose never
drank any of IL, at any of those banquets
or at any time in a public place In Yer
mont. or never drank any wine in the
Van Ness House of any kind.
Q.-Was the position which you took
with reference to such collations as the
medical faculty had at commencement
time the same as 1t was with. reference
to the commercial mems banquets?
Aust the same.
Odd you know of a society of col
legc students having one of their suppers
there, conclavcs, at which they had wine
Al did not.
o.-One other thing that | would like to
call your attention to. Was any informa-
ton or suggestion made TO you al one time
which indicated that there might be some
thing going on or preparation being made
for something in the dining room that 1t
was felt would not be in accord with your
instructions?
Ayes. the winter that | lived at the
hotel, in 1891. the housekeeper Mrs. Her
bert Woodbury., came to me and said that
Mr. Secley had some lager beer In lis
room. | told her | couldn't believe IT. Mr.,
Sceley had been there only a few months
then. She said 1t was so. | Immediately
went to the office and told Mr.. Clark what
| had heard. and he expressed as much as
constituent as | did and said 1t could not
be so. | told him to so and see at once;
he went. came back and said there was
some there.
Q.-What course did you take?
Al said: You go and tell Mr.. Seeley
If | should find that out that his place
wouldn't be worth the snap of my finger.
He came back and said he was very much
frightened and said: II don't think you
will have any more trouble in that place
again.
Oft may not be of any particular con-
sequence-but at some time atter ME-
Drew came in Gas landlord) did you learn
anything that you took notice of with re-
gard to the door between that part OF the
American House which you had rented
and the billiard room, bar room?
| Ayes. | think some two or three
| months after Mr.. Drew came over to the
| Van Ness ! heard that the door between
/ a. ,s,b Il x1Fttl
| the bar room and with the baggage room
which was portion of the house that
| rented, was open. | told Mr.. Drew of the
| fact, and he said that he thought ii was
| and / told him that | wanted 1t closed
| that it would occasion talk and would
have a right to occasion talk; as long as
| | was keeping a house on the principles
that | was, that ] thought there shoult
not be any communication between his
| part and my part of the house; and so far
| as | know, IL was closed during the time
| that | rented the American. one year o.
! the time that | rented the American, tn,
| baggage room was rented and occupied b,
| another party, so it would be very diff
| tlcult to have communication, as tina
room was occupied by another party.
Q.--I believe that billiard room and bal
| room We're in the extreme easterly end o
| the old American any way?
| Ayes, and ! will say that | never wa
| in either one of them while | rented tn,
house--cither billiard or bar room.
| Q.-Was your attention at any tint
called to the fact that cider had been pu
on the table at dinner?
| Ayes, a few years after Mr.. Drew
| came there, some one in the house askeC
me If / knew that Mr.. Drew had brough
up some cider from his farm and put !
on the table. ! told them didn't know it
and they said he had. and Il thought 20,
| would like to know It," | went to Mr.
| Drew and asked him if he had. He salt
yes, it was sweet cider; | told him; II
was very kind of you, Mr.. Drew, to do 1t
| there Is no harm, of course, when yol
made no charge for it. | know, but
don't want to have you do II any more;
understand it is against the law to do 1t
and | don't want to have you do it," II
says: IAN right, l won't"
| Q.-fou have reason to suppose tina
| that Injunction of yours was obeyed?
Al have no reason to think otherwise
Q.-It is, perhaps, OF no special conse
quence, but did you have a talk will
Aubrey (you remember probably who h.
was, at one time n bell boy there) In whicl
he made any reference, in connection wit