The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1897-01-08
AXYELL ACQUITTED
Ihe Case Concluded in the District
Court Last Saturday.
PROVES RATHER SENSATIONAL
A Large Number of Witnesses Called
to Prove the Character of the
Principals Concerned.

not guilty -
Such was the verdict in the case of
the State of Montana versus john S.
Axtell last saturday night.
For three long days the district court
had been engaged in the taking of tcs-
timony and listening to arguments in
this cause. and its final conclusion
brought forth sigh of rol1cf.
Frank Durand was the complaining
witness i'll the case, and the charge
against Mr.. AXtell was that of grand
larceny. The defendant and complain
ing witness had for many years been
intimately associated in business and
social matters, and during 1895 Mr..
Axtell was employed as bookkeeper
in the Durand store. Last summer he
severed his connections with Durand
and obtained employment as book
keeper for L. G. johnson in Quigley.
During the month of October Mr..
Axtell was called upon in Quigley by
two men in the employ of Durand who
Informed AXtell that the books which
he kept for Durand had been examined
by expert accountants and a shortage
OF some $12, 600 had been found, which
Mr.. AXtell would be called upon to
account for The defendant was accor-
dinghy arrested and brought to Philips
burg, where he soon obtained bonds
for his appearance at this term of the
district court and the next day he re-
turned to Quisley and resumed the du-
ties OF his position, and outside Of
those directly interested in the case no
one else seemed to think of it's exis-
tence until early in this session Of
court when Frank Durand made appli-
cation to the court asking for change
OF venue and furnished numerous atfi-
davits setting forth reasons for sucl
change. The prosecution claimed that
by reason of the unfavorable public
opinion existing against the complain
ing witness that q jury cOuld not be
obtained who would render a iustifi-
able verdict for the state. The defense
filed counter affidavits of many Of the
best citizens in the county, which
disabused such an idea and the final
result was that Judge Brantly denied
the change OF venue asked for and the
trial proceeded.
The case was in nature such that
much depended upon the personal
character Of the two principals in the
afTair-namelN Durand and Axtell--
and in this way some very spicy testi-
mOny was produced. especially in prov
ing the character of Mr. Durand, many
witnesses testifying that it was any
thing but good. On the other hand,
the defense produced many witnesses
who testified to the good character of
Mr. Axtell.
The books of the complaining wit
ness were offered in evidence, and in
stead of their showing a shortage of
$12, 900 the total amount which an
peared to have been in some way
wrongfully appropriated was about
5000. The defendant did not deny hav-
ing made false entries on the books,
but maintained that he had done so at
the request Of Durand, and being EN-.
ployed by him he felt it his duty to
obey orders. It was not shown that
the defendant had taken dollar in
but the false entries seemed to
be the point upon which Axtell was to
be "cinched;'' but the law saws that
'mere false entries in books of ac-
count does not constitute a crime. ="
Hence, the jury could not have done
otherwise than acquit AXtell
During the procedure of the case
public interest became intensified from
day to day, largely from the fact, per-
haps, that local correspondent for an
outside newspaper sought to convict
Axtell through the columns of the
press This lithesome correspondent
seemed to forget that law and Justice
existed in Granite county, and it
seemed his inclination to hang Axtell
without ceremony, and to attain his
end he sought to prostitute court of
justice by circulating nwarrantable
reports regarding some officials. The
Standard, Of which Mr.
John H. Cole is correspondent, told
mostly everything but the truth about
this celebrated case.
The verdict in the case was received
by almost everyone, save those di-
rectly interested in the prosecution,
with intense satisfaction, and those
who sought to ruin the character of
good man have not elevated them
selves in the estimation of this CON-
munity.
The jury string on the case was
of the following: H. H.
Goodspeed, W. T. Hull, J. G. Calhoun,
81. A. Featherman, K. T. Wharton,
l. L. Penrose. j. L. Schoonover, John
Hickey, Archie Mcdonald, H. ]. Kol-
nooI, opl Nl:F CI,o1lo-,