The record-union., 1896-06-08
I'LL V1 1hGN VA UVuGU.
Judge Wallace Placed in Very Pc
cuIiar Position.
From the San Francisco Cal.)

From the San Francisco Call)
The testimony given by Judge Wal
lace in the Siebe perjury case before
Judge Campbell on Thursday was about
the strangest that ever emanated from
any man holding anything like his Off
cial position. 1t was a source of new
| amazement to those who have believed
that Judges should be faithful in the
performance of their duties and impair
tial in the administration of the law
It showed by his own statements that
Judge Wallace made returns of his per-
sonal property without caring whether
they were true or false, and that he
claimed for himself in the case before
Judge Campbell rights which he would
not accord to others in a similar posi-
ton before his own court.
When questioned as to the money he
had In bank at the time assessment
rolls for various years were made out,
the Judge made the strange declaration
that he did not know. According to
his statement his bank account was not
balanced for years at a time, and he
never knew whether he had money in
the bank or not. 1t seems never to have
occurred to him that the tax law re-
quires him to find out what he has when
he makes his returns to the Assessor
By returning no money on hand he vir-
tually declared that he had none. Ig-
norance of the possession Of property
is no excuse when it would have been
SO easy for him to learn from the bank
what money was due him, nor can ordi-
nary carelessness be accounted an ex-
cuse In a man Of his position engaged in
the task Of performing duty under the
law which requires him to make q true
return Of his property under oath.
In regard to his refusal to permit an
appraiser to enter his house and esti-
mate the value Of his furniture, Judge
Wallace declared the case before Judge
Campbell to be sham, inasmuch as 1t
was not directed against Siebe at all,
as pretended, but was designed as a
persecution Of himself On the claim
that the case Is Of that nature, he as
serted he intends to stand on his rights
as a citizen, and 1t was on these rights
he based the defense of his refusal to
permit the expert to make the appraise-
ment.
The claim which Judge Wallace thus
makes before Judge Campbell Is one he
would not permit in his own court. The
charge against Siebe before Wallace
is as much a sham as the one against
him before Campbell. How would 1t fare
with a witness before Judge Wallace
who should declare the prosecution of
Siebe to be only the scheme of a poll
tician to persecute the Market-street
Railway Company? How would it fare
with witness who, on such a claim,
should assert his intention to stand on
his rights as citizen2 An answer can
be found in the way Secretary Willcutt
has been treated.
In his own court Judge Wallace gives
every aid he can to the politician who
is conducting the prosecution which has
for it's aim an unrevealed object which
1t Is difficult to believe to be to the pub
lie interest. There are fines and irnpris-
onment for contempt Of court dealt
out ito witnesses who do not respond to
the questions of the prosecution before
Judge Wallace His attitude on the
bench Is very different from his atti-
| tude on the witness stand. He Is one
OF the Judges to whom 1t makes all the
difference in the world whose OK is
gored This is why good citizens who
| desire to respect the courts read his
evidence with amazement and are in
doubt whether his conduct as a Judge
Is not even worse than his conduct in
regard to his returns to the Assessor
~ r OF 9-t,