The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-03-24
UNITED STATES COURT
John Newton on Trial for Rob-
bing a Postofhce.
A PLEA OF GUILTY MADE
In the Case of Counterfeiter Schrichen-
COSTA Fine of $500 and Two
Years in the Peni-
Tertiary.

| John Newton, charged with break
| Garrison on the night of the 18th of
last month, had his trial in the federal
| court yesterday. On the morning of
| the 9th of February it was discovered
the postoffice had been broken into and
| the money drawer. containing $3.50,
| was stranger and suspicion attached
to him. He was arrested, the last grand
| jury indicted him and his trial came
up at yesterday mornings session of
the federal court. The defendant was
| represented by Chancellor O'Donnell
| and the case was prosecuted by District
Attorney w. B. Rodgers and Assistant
District Attorney English. The greater
part Of the forenoon was taken up in
securing jury, which was finally Sc
ected as follows: T. M. Adams, Peter
Conway. S. w. Graves, N. Genereaux,
| Evan Herbert, j. j. Haggerty. John
Ingram. ]. B. Kenyon, d. C. Lynch. j.
S. Largo, Sig Schilling and c. w. Sam
| mis-.
Postal Inspector James d. Wood was
first called. He told of searching the
| defendant and finding a silver thimble
in his possession which was identified as
the property of the postmistress, Mrs
Smith.
Maud j. Smith, postmistress at Garri-
son, and her sister, Deborah Smith,
were the next witnesses. They told of
the robbery and identified the thimbe
taken from the defendant as belonging
to the poStmistress and said it had been
in the money drawer, which was miss
ing when the burglary was discovered.
N. d. Miner, telegraph operator at the
Garrison railroad station. in which the
postoftice was located, told of seeing
the defendant or man dressed as the
defendant was when arrested looking in
the window about O'Clock or $50 the
evening previous to the burglary. He
was not certain the man was the de-
PENDANT.
Harry Garman, the keeper of a res
taurant at Garrison. said he never saw
the defendant till the evening before
the robbery. AT about 7 or o'clock
that evening he ate supper at witness
restaurant. Witness had occasion to
remember him, for the reason there
was another man with him and they got
into an argument which impressed it
self on witness memory. He came in
the next morning and got his breakfast
On each occasion he paid for his meal
with a silver dollar.
f. B. Shoemaker, a saloonkeeper at
Garrison, remembered the robbery. He
also remembered seeing the defendant
in his saloon the evening prior to the
robbery. Defendant showed witness IS
cents about $3.50 or o'clock and said
it was all the money he had. Witness
saw the defendant the following morn
In nd 1pc oj rha h in
car. On cross-examination the witness
said the defendant conducted himself
| very peculiarly the evening before the
robbery, so much so that he aroused
the witness suspicious. He pretended
| to be acquainted with everyone and
| told different stories about his Occupa-
ton. He tried to shake dice with an
| old German who had some money and
witness, from what he had seen of de-
PENDANT, would not permit it.
j. B. Lytle, another Garrison saloon
| keeper, was next called He said he
had been deputized to arrest the de-
PENDANT. The arrest was made about
o'clock. Prior to this witness saw de-
PENDANT in saloon and saw him spend
| 81 or SO. The postoffce robbery of the
previous evening was spoken of and
| defendant said as he was the only
stranger in town he supposed he would
be suspected. When witness arrested
and searched defendant he found about
81 25 in his possession. Subsequently the
| defendants tracks leading from the
boXcar where he had slept We're found
and near the track, between two cars,
was found the money drawer which was
missing. 1t still contained few pennies
| and Canadian bill. Witness later, with
Postal Inspector Wood, searched de-
PENDANT again and this time found an
other dollar in an oVershirt which in
this case was worn as an undershirt. A
thimble was also found which witness
identified. Cross eXamined by Chan
cellor O'DOnnell, the witness was asked
how he knew the tracks leading from
the car where defendant said he slept
to the place where the money drawer
was found were made by the defendant
he having expressed such a belief. He
said he knew the tracks We're Newtons
from the shape of them. Subsequently
the witness corrected a wrong impress
sion and said the tracks did not lead to
where the drawer was found but past
the place.
Nathan Smith. father of the postmis-
tress at Garrison. described the situa-
ton of the postoffice, which he said was
situated in the railroad depot. The
morning of Feb. q a window pane large
enough to allow of a person passing
through was broken out. The cash
drawer belonging to the postoflice was
gone. There had been a storm during
the night and witness concluded the
tracks of whoever committed the rob-
berry would be found in the fresh snow
No tracks were found running from the
station, but some We're found leading
from boxcar to saloon and near by
these tracks the money drawer was
found. Witness saw the defendant at
Garrison that morning and he was
dressed as at this time.
Chancellor ODonnell moved for the
dismissal of the case as the government
closed and was proceeding to argue the
motion when the court cut him off and
| alcI h. firAaa Il L.,