The San Francisco call., 1899-08-04
HARVEY CASE TO
Be INVESTIGATED
Grand Jury to Take Up
Charges.
Special Dispatch TO The Call.

SAN RAFAEL, Aug. 3.-The allegations
of bribery made by Mrs. ]. 2. Roberts in
connection with the trial of Joe Harvey
on a charge of conducting banking game
in his poolrooms at Sausalito have re-
cefved such consideration from District
Attorney McIsaac that the matter will
be laid before the Grand Jury for investi-
CATION by that body at its next session.
When Mrs Roberts statement was made
public to-day a sensation was created.
not so much on account of the charge of
bribery but because of the prominence
of the persons alleged to be concerned in
the affair.
For sCme time, the woman says, she
has had good reason to suspect that her
husband was enamOred of Mrs Josephine
Nelson, the wife of a contractor now in
Chicago On one occasion she followed
him to a place near Schuetzen Park and
caused considerable gossip by chasing
him with a club. Her tale of unfaithful-
ness is borne out in many respects,
among the bits of evidence in her posse
sion being a note to her husband which
she claims is in the handwriting of Mrs;
Nelson This note is written on one of
Roberts own billheads, with the headlines
torn off, and is signed &c. NJ. Crosse
In ii Roberts is requested TO meet the
writer at the Oakland ferry at p. m.
in regard to securing piece of work at
San LeandrO
When the wife first visited the authori-
ties il was merely TO get out warrant
for her husband on the charge of cruelty,
she taking this means to have him
brought back to San Rafael, Later she
discovered that Mrs Nelson had recently
fallen heir to an estate valued at $4,000
by the death of an uncle in Chicago, and
then determined to sue her for alienation
of Roberts affection. Finally she be-
came worked up to such pitch Of in
dignation in brooding over her alleged
wrongs that she concluded to be reyenged
and went to the authorities with the tale
that Trustee A. sylvia of Sausalito had
procured $50 from Harvey, which was
given to ex-Sheriff Harrison, now chief
engineer at San Quentin Prison, Tor dls-
tribution among three jurors-Roberts,
Ramon Valencia and man whose name
she has forgotten. These facts, sne
claims, were divulged to her by her hus-
band while he was partially intoxicated.
Mrs Roberts is frank to admit that her
motive in charging bribery is revenge, las
she says she would far rather see her
husband behind the walls of San quentin
than in the company of Mrs. Nelson.
Nevertheless, her tale is given credence
She is not an educated woman and could
hardly have invented so plausible a tale,
while the statements made simply bear
out suspicious harbored for some time.
1.-The evidence given against Harvey was
so plain" said District Attorney McIsaac
today that | was myStified when the
bribery were rumored at the time, but
Mrs. Roberts has furnished the first tan
gible evidence and we now have some
thing on which to work. The matter shall
be laid before the Grand Jury, and 1 am
confident that we shall be able to get
enough evidence to make 1t warm for
several persons"
Sheriff Taylor says he does not doubt
bribery was committed though he will
not pretend to say who were the agents
employed. He thinks it possible that some
of the jurors left out at first may have
sent to Harvey afterward and demanded
their share of the spoils. He has been
busily at work to-day trying to obtain
evidence and has taken the statements Of
several persons. Ramon Valencia, one of
the accused men, denies vigorously that
he ever received or asked for cent, and
further claims that he knows of nobody
else who received any money.
Despite Haryey's denial that he knew
Roberts. until the latter introduced him
self on a ferryboat, he admitted to Mrs
husband we'll but had not seen him for
weeks. He said the last time he had seen
Roberts the two had walked up Market
street together. Roberts was frequently
seen in Harvey's poolrooms at Sausalito
after the trial.
Late last evening the alleged erring hus-
band came to this city and went to the
that his intention was to collect a bill.
F[e remained there only a few minutes
and managed to leave town on the 1915
D. m. train before the authorities could
see him He slipped into his own house
while his wife was at a neighbor's and
meeting his young son there told him he
intended never to return home again but
would procure divorce from his wife
because of the things she had said against
him. When Mrs. Roberts heard Of this
with the intention of intercepting him.
but he succeeded in eVading her To-day
she again visited District Attorney Nc
Isaac and had long consultation with
him, She afterward refused to say what
she had told that official, saying that she
had been cautioned to keep what had oc-