The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-03-19

city, where the real state of affairs hal
not been fully understood, the reveal
tlon must have been astounding. TIL,
lew honest men who were in the Clarl
ranks were Shocked. E. c. Day, WHIT
was the acknowledged leader of tbs
Clark forces in the house, said during
the afternoon following the presenta
ton OF the report that he believed tina
sufficient facts had been produced tt
warrant a case against the boodlers. He
was willing to accept the facts as pre-.
scented until they were disproved. He
was undoubtedly sincere in this. but g
few hours later found him again bat
tllfs Tor the man who mad been thus
exposed. The exposure made by the in
yestigating committee made it neces-
sary for much of the work of the Doodle
committee to be done over again. There
was but one influence that could coun-
teract this disclosure, That influence
was more money. More money was
used. 1t was used as it had never
been used before in the history of this
country There was practically no lin
1t to the sums that we're offered for
votes.
The grand jury had been called to-
sether and the Investigation before
that body of the charges made by the
| investigating committee was about to
begin When the personnel of the
grand jury was known. the Clark poo
pie began to renew their activity. J.
| 5. NJ. Neill was made the chief of the
| bureau for the influencing of jurymen
and he was most Industrious. AS soon
as the jury adjourned each day, Mr..
| Neill had one or more of the jurors in
/ tow. This sort of thing went on for two
or three days. During this time the
! Clark people looked worried, but on a
| certain morning MI Neill's clerical face
| wore broad smile, This smile was
| speedily taken UP by the rest of the
boodlers and then it was generally ac-
cepted as a. fact that the jury would
| not indict Mr. Welcome. The county
attorney of Lewis and Clarke county,
Mr.. Mcconnell, had started in on the
investigation of the case with a half
hearted manner that betokened lack
of interest in the prosecution. His
father, N. w. Mcconnell, was one of the
active workers for Clark and it is d
natural supposition that it was the in
fluence of this parent that caused the
younger Mcconnell TO shake off the in
difference that had characterized his
earlier conduct of the case and to as
sumo decided interest in the defense.
10 one who was unaCQuainted with the
case, it would have appeared that M
Mcconnell was the attorney for the de-
fense instead of the states representa-
tive. 1t was at this iuncture that the
friends of the STATE who wished to see
the name of Montana purged of the
stain that had been placed upon it, sue
ceeded in getting the attorney general
assigned to assist in the prosecution.
FROM that time on Attorney General
Nolan made a splendid fight against
fearful odds. He had to contend not
only with the influence of the money
that was being so freely used by the
Clark people. but he had also to combat
the work of the county attorney, which
was clearly in behalf of the accused.
For days General Nolan made this up
hill fight. Despite the fact that there
was presented to the jury evidence that
in any other community in the world
would have resulted in an Indictment,
the members of the grand jury held out
that there was nothing to connect the
accused with any bribery. Even when
they were shown letter signed by the
son of w. A. Clark Offering money 10
Senator Myers, they would not be con-
WINGED, and later the county attorney
attempted to hypothecate that letter.
Seeing that it was useless to attempt TO
secure an Indictment against the hood
lers, Attorney General Nolan took the
position that If there had been no brb-
cry, there had certainly been a con-
spiracy and that if the jurors would not
return an indictment for bribery, they
must at least fndict the other parties
to the exposure for conspiracy This
would have served to get the case into
court and this done, there could be no
doubt of the result. The corrupt meth
DDS of the boodlers would have been ex-
posed. But the Jurors were too well
fixed for that. They would indict no.
body. The whitewash must be laid on
so that it could not rub off and they
cleared everybody. That was the record
of the celebrated grand jury. body
that has placed the county of Lewis
and Clarke in position so base and 60
depraved that she is despised by every
honest man in the state.
X
AS soon as ]. S. M. Neill assumed his
satisfied smile, the boodling operations
of the Welcome crowd became holder
than ever. There had previously been
some attempt at secrecy but now all
attempts at concealment were thrown
aside and negotiations were as open as
II the Legislature were "a market place.
One by one the 81 were won back in one
way or another. The thousand dollar
bills made their appearance again and
When 1t was once established that the
grand jury of Lewis and Clarke county
would protect the boodlers, they renew
ed their assaults against the Silver Bow
and Deer Lodge county delegations The
prices that were offered to some of the
members of these delegations were as
founding. Normoyle and Lamb of Sill
YER Bow might now be in independent
financial circumstances had they ac-
cepted the propositions that were made
to them. Normoyle might have tucked
100000 into his inside pocket and gone
his way, but he did not. Lamb might
have had bank account that would
run well up into the tens of thousands,
but he preferred honor to Doodle. Boy
Ian of Deer Lodge was another Cliff
ford of Silver Bow resisted all attempts
at corruption and snapped his fingers
at the thousand dollar bills that were
held before him. Silver Bow and Deer
Lodge could not be touched. At last
this conclusion was forced upon the
corruptionists and they turned their at
tention to the democrats outside these
counties.
Sullivan IF Granite oaupfI will