The San Francisco call., 1898-12-10

sympathy with MT. Harpers plan. MT. Truman would have fathered the petit ton himself were it not for the fact that he is an officer elect of the city and feels natural delicacy in interfer- Ing in anything that might seem to re- fleet official action. Asa R. Wells is in the same position. He emphatically in- dorses MT. Harpers petition and, with many others. hopes to see the speedy solution of the two great questions in- volved in that petition.
 When Mir. Harper files his application for writ of prohibition this morning. he will make he Superior Court and Judge Carroll Cook defendants. MT. Harper will recite that he is a citizen and taxpayer of ti.is city and State. He will assert that as such he is bene- ficially interested in the administration of the law in this State. Particularly so in the conduct and prosecution of criminal actions. He will declare that as citizen he is interested in the prop CT and lawful expenditure of public money. This will, it is believed. give MT. Harper legal standing in the Su- preme Court. It is probable that never before has person, ostensibly uninter- ested in the Issues of a case. interjected himself in this way. MT. Harper will. however, claim his right to do so under the common law.
 He will then recite the salient incl dents of the Botkin case as the public understands them. He will speak of the indictment by the Grand Jury and of the assignment oe the case to De- partment 12 of the Superior Court. MT. Harper will then make his primary al- legation that the Superior Court has no Jurisdiction in the matter. He will de- clare that the indictment under the authority of which Mrs. Botkin is being tried charges no offense under the laws of California. MT. Harper was seen last night and he asked that this point be particularly emphasized. He does not wish 1t to appear, even by an insin- uat1on, that he is associated in any way with the defenders of Mrs. Botkin.
 lie wishes it to be understood that, personally, he is not concerned with Mrs. Botkfn's affairs. He is bringing this suit simply to determine these two questions of general public in- terest. In denying the jurisdiction Of the courts of California, MT. Harper and his attorney, Louis P. Boardman, seek only to raise the question of authority and to determine where person accused of such a crime as Mrs. Botlkin has been may be tried. MT. Harper will. therefore. ask the Su- preme Court of the State to issue a Wrlt or prohibition to restrain Superior Judge Carroll from proceeding with the trial of Mrs. Botkin and to appear in person and show cause why he shall not be restrained from all further pro- ceedings in the case.
 This most extraordinary petition will be presented to the Supreme Court this morning, and the appellate tribunal will be asked to take immediate action. If the writ of prohibition be issued by the Supreme Court the trial of Mrs. Botkin will not proceed on Monday morning. The matter, as already de- scribed, has created a great deal of interest. Many of the prominent men of this city, merchants, lawyers and professional men generally, have discussed it.
 l. J. Truman, president of the Colum- bian Bank and Treasurer of the city, said: T think a proceeding. if it could be brought in higher court which would test immediately the juris- diction of the Superior Court to try the case against Mrs. Botki~ ought to be instituted in order to save the great loss of money to the city which will follow the trial of this case. I think such proceeding highly commendable and 1t should receive the general SUD- port of every interested citizen. It has been stated with a good deal of posi- tiveness that the California courts have no Jurisdiction to try Mrs. Botkin for murder. If this is so that proposition should be established at once and as- certained as a preliminary matter be- fore this trial proceeds. The question of the guilt or innocence of the defend ant cuts no figure; the question is whether or not we are having judicial trial of the case which will effect some beneficial result. I would lend my own name to the furtherance of this object except for the quasi official position which I now hold.''
 Asa R. Wells, the Auditor-elect, ex- pressed himself in a manner similar to MT. Truman. He believed that the trial should be arrested if vital point affecting the Jurisdiction of the court was a question of serious doubt and consideration.
 T. J. Parsons, president of the Del Monte Milling Company, stated that in view of the comment made and opin- ions printed in the different news papers he had given the matter his pre- vious consideration. He said: 'I think this matter should be tested now in the courts If the thing is possible. Any citizen who possesses the requisite qualifications of citizenship should be encouraged in seeking, by any method, to have so important question solved. The trial of this case may be extended and the expense may assume large pro- portions before the end is reached. It would be a misfortune if the case must pursue it's lcng and expensive way through the courts in order to deter mine a matter which is so simple, yet so essential"
 F. w. Dohrmann. president of the - T. -s