The San Francisco call., 1897-01-26
FORGER SANDERS
CLEVER SCHEME
Tried TO Hire Witnesses
to Establish His In
.n0Cence.
Prosecution Finds a Statement
Which He Wrote for Their
Guidance.
Taken From the Convict'S Celimate
Who Was to Have Conducted
the Negotiations.

FRESNO, CAL. Jan. 25.-Professor
Sanders hope of freedom, based on the
Supreme Court ruling ordering his third
trial for forgery, has seemingly gone a.
glimmering. Special Counsel Kinds came
into court with a large-sized bomb this
morning, and he proceeded to hurl 1t in
the direction of the defense without delay.
In his opening statement to the jury he
told of new evidence discovered since the
second trial, exposing scheme whereby
the man twice convicted OF attaching
William Wootton's signature to valu-
able paper and who is suspected of know
ing what became of the missing rancher,
hoped to establish his innocence to the
satisfaction of the jury.
The substance of the new evidence is
that Sanders several months ago had for
a cellmate Robert Anderson, who was
sent to the States prison for stabbing a
young man named Berry at dance in
Kingsburg. Anderson did not expect to
be convicted and Professor Sanders was
of the same opinion.
They entered into an agreement where
by the former was, upon his release from
JAIL to go to Los Angeles and try to get
two men to swear in Sanders behalf. They
were to testify that they had seen John
Gnausch, Graves and William Wootton in
Los Angeles after the disappearance OF
the Reedley rancher.
District Attorney Snow has in his pos
session the statements alleged to have
been drawn by Professor Sanders, in his
unmistakabIe hand writing, which these
witnesses were to memoriZe and recite on
the stand. To strengthen this evidence,
Sanders is said 10 have written in large
haaA DFk
offering reward for the return of certain
letters and papers which had been lost on
the street.
In each corner of the paper the defend
ant had punched a hole, to make, it ap-
pear that the notice had been nailed to a
post. The two witnesses whom Ander-
son was to fEd were to testify that, be-
sides seeing cotton, Knausch and Graves
they had torn this notice off a telegraph
pole in Los Angeles. 1t was signed and
had been placed there, according to the
statements prepared by Sanders, by one
of these three. Anderson was to get the
three witnesses and Sanders agreed to pay
him to do so.
Attorney Kinds displayed the state
ments Sanders is accused>of having manu-
factured, but did not read them to the
jury. The prosecution declares there is
no question that the writing is that of the
defendant
These important papers and statements
were discovered on Anderson's person
when he was searched before being taken
TO the penitentiary. They were sewed in
a tobacco bag in his shift. 1t is under
stood that since then Anderson has con-
fesSed. He was not able to carry out his
part of the agreement with Sanders be-
cause of his conviction.
OF course if the defendant could have
produced two more witnesses who had
seen Wootton alive alter his disappear
ance from his ranch, and proved that
Knausch and Graves were not myths,
Sanders could not be guilty of forgery or
any other crime in conn ection with the
case.
Attorneys Kinds and Short enIivened
the proceedings considerably to-day with
their numerous by-pIays and side COM
ments directed at each other. First Judge
Webb asked them to desist, then he
warned them and finally he sternly or
dered them to obey. He remarked that
the attorneys knew better than to act as
they did.
the opening statement of Attorney
Hinds was comparatively brief He gave
clear outline OF what the prosecution ex-
pected TO prove, the evidence except for
that just discovered being about the same
as that adduced at Sanders second trial