The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-07-16

the accusations he abuses the witnesses
against him and would have the public
infer that those witnesses had con-
spired together to ruin him without any
possible gain to themselves. His state
ment is most part as follows:
Frost is, l consider, purely acting as the
agent, of those who have employed him.
his charges, suppose, were given to him
by brother-fn-law of mine, Henry S.
Weitman, who Is my bitter enemy be-
cause stopped supplying him with money
with which to carouse and gamble. This
man, who is known to be worthless, was
In San Jose short time ago, and l sup
pose told Frost a list of false stories re-
garding me.
Frost accused me Of poisoning my first
wife In order to secure insurance money,
when, as matter Of fact, my first wife
dled In sacramento Of acute meningitis
in 1888: She was attended by Drs. Cluness
and Nelson of that city at the time of
her illness, and no such thing as a sus-
plcious circumstance in connection with
her death was ever dreamed of until this
brother-in-iaw came from the East and
tried to make me support him under the
threat of accusing me of poisoning his
sister. VIII never consent to be black
mailed by anybody.
The story of a difficulty in Fresno with
young girl whom Frost intimates that /
mistreated and paid $4,000 as hush money
has for It's meager foundation the fact
that in 1893 a widow German woman in
that city, who owed me a large bill for
medical services, tried to blackmail me
by crying out from my operating room
that | had insulted her. 1 demanded an
investigation, which was held before
Judge Austin, and produced evidence to
show that the woman had not been in the
operating room for minute and that the
allegations she made were impossible and
utterly false. l was completely exoner-
ated from the charge and the affair was
recognized as matchmaking scheme by
all familiar with the circumstances
The charges of Charles Williams before
the board of managers were a great sur
prise to me. Before Mrs. Williams,
known to us as Miss Barnheisel, was
dropped, she took occasion to come to
me and express her thanks for the cour-
tesy had shown her while here. l never
subjected the young woman to any medi-
cal examination whatever and only pre-
scribed for her on one occasion here.
am open to investigation at any time.
S. II. Weitman, whom Sponogle des-
ignates as worthless" man, was re-
Gently in the drug business on Broad
way, Oakland, and Is at present a stu
dent In the California Medical College.
He brands Sponogles statements re-
ferring to himself as unqualifiedly
false. He says that he never saw
Sponogle to know him since 1882, when
he met him In Battle Mountain, Ne
vada. Since that time he has seen the
doctor only once. and that was In Oc-
toDer or november, 1887, when Welt
man was employed in the California
Pottery and Terra Gotta Company at
the intersection of Market and Larkin
streets in this city.
On that occasion T. S. Chambers, an
uncle Of Sponogle's second wife. was
with the doctor.
Il told Sponogle at that time" said
Weitman, that he had murdered my
sister for the $4,000 insurance upon her
life. He then asked to see the man
ager and 1 told him that the manager
was out; that he would be in shortly,
and that I would be there, too, when
Sponogle talked to him. I then or
dered him out of the place and 1 said:
You -, I'll kill YOU. l went and
got gun. and he left. That is the
only time l ever saw him to know him
since 1882. told him then and there
that he murdered my sister and I will
tell him the same to-day. My sister
died in Sacramento in 1883. The mat
ter was hushed up and there was no
public investigation. I was in the East
at the time"
The tears stood in Weitman's eyes
when he spoke Of his dead sister.
with reference to his statement that
he had refused to supply me with
money with which to carouse and gam
BILE, I wish to say that / never asked
him for cent and never got a cent
from him, and I defy him to prove It,"
added Weitman.