The herald., 1897-12-29
TOLD YOU SO!
The Jury Acquits Webb Of
MaIfeasance
RANDsBuRG ROAD IN A SUIT
THE PROMOTERS OF THE LINE
FALL OUT OVER STOCK
McMahon's Confederate Bills Land
Him in Jail-Unlucky Johnnie
Burns Must Be Tried

Walter L. Webb, the member OF the
board of education of the Ninth ward
under accusation for malfeasance IN
office. was acquitted by the jury in De-
partment four yesterday at o'clock,
after the jurors had been out just ten
minutes. They did not discuss the mat
ter in their chamber, but took three bal
lots. one after the other. The first stood
10 for acauittal, for conviction; the sec
ond II for acquittal, for conviction; and
the third was unanimous.
In the forenoon, when Mr.. Meserve had
closed his argument, Major Donnell ad-
dressed the jury on behalf of the people,
and during his speech he let fall the fol-
lowing significant words:
"Gentlemen of the Jury-If you should
nut your ears to the ground and harken
to the rumblings of the grand jury. as
n comes down the stairs to make its re-
port in Department one. you will find
out that somebody is going to be indicted
vet for perjury. won't tell who it is; l
am not giving away the secrets OF the
grand jury ROOM
When the district attorney had f1nished
his remarks an adjournment was taken.
1t was after lunch that Judge Van Dyke
charged the jury in the following Ian
guage:
"Gentlemen of the Jury-The constitu-
ton of the state provides for the I'M
peachment and removal of officers for
misdemeanor in office. All state officers,
including judges of the superior courts,
are tried by the senate, sitting as court
of impeachment, upon an accusation
presented by the assembly; and it is de-
clared by the constitution that All other
civil officers shall be tried for misde-
meanor in office in such manner as the
legislature may provide In the penal
code the legislature has laid down the
mode of procedure in such cases, to-wit.
by an accusation in writing, presented
by the grand jury, accusing the officer
with willful and corrupt misconduct in
office.
"The willful and corrupt misconduct
in office of which the defendant in this
action is accused is that while he was a
member of the board of education of the
city of Los Angeles, from the Ninth
ward, he received the sum of $50, paid by
department, for the purpose of influence
ing said defendant in his action as such
member of the board in reference to the
appointment of said Cooper as janitor
of the school known as the Sentous-
street school, or of awarding to him the
tanitor work of said school.
However hackneyed the term may
have become by it's frequent use by pol
iticians and others, still it is as true as
ever that public Office is a public trust,
and the officer occupies the same rela-
ton to the public, whether the office
be of the nation, the state, a county or
a municipality, as trustee to his bene
fciary. Among the few rules govern
ing the relation of trustee and benefi-
ciary are the following: The trustee
is bound to act in the highest good faith
towards his beneficiary and may not by
his conduct obtain any advantage there
in over the latter, nor deal with mat
ter of the trust for his own profit, or for
any other purpose unconnected with the
trust, or take part in any transaction
concerning the trust in which he or one
for whom he acts has any interest. pres
ent or contingent, adverse to that of his
beneficiary, or to use the influence which
his position gives him to obtain any ad-
vantage of his beneficiary; and any vio-
lation of those rules is a fraud against
the beneficiary. The public has the right
to the faithful and undivided services
of its officers, uninfiuenced in the least
by any consideration of interest to the
officer not provided as his compensation
by law; and it is hardly necessary to
"a rapaint nf
reward or favor, as a condition or in
consideration of official action is in vio-
lation of the duties the officer owes to
the public, and is a misdemeanor in
office.
You have heard the testimony intro
duced in this case, and you are the
judges of its effect and value as evil
dence; but in weighing the evidence
your power is not to be exercised arbi-
trarily, but with legal discretion and in
subordination to the rules of evidence as
given you by the court. You are not
bound to decide in conformity with the
declarations of any number of witnesses
which do not produce conviction in your
minds, against less number. or against
presumption or other evidence salts
flying your minds. A witness false in
one part of his testimony is to be dis
trusted in others. In this action. being
of a criminal nature, the defendant is
presumed to be innocent until the con-
trary is proved, and in case of a rea-
sonable doubt whether his guilt is sat
isfactorily shown he is entitled to an ac-
quittal. On the other hand, if YOU find
from the evidence, beyond q reasonable
doubt, that the defendant is guilty.. if is
equally your duty to so declare by your
verdict.
After the jury had been discharged
Webb ani his friends left the court room
quietly.
THE RANDsBURG ROAD