The San Francisco call., 1899-07-13
JAILED AND
FED ON BREAD
And WATER
Harsh Treatment of a Wit
ness Who Could Not
Speak English.
ORDERED BY COURT
Idaho Authorities Having a Hard
Time to Connect Corcoran With
Cheyne's Murder.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

WALLACE, Idaho, July 12.-During
the trial of the Corcoran case to-day
Judge Stewart ordered a witness con-
fined in Jail on diet of bread and
water.
L. G. Johnson, a Scandinavian. was
called by the prosecution. Johnson has
been confined in the bull pen," and
was brought to Wallace to testify. AS
soon as he came into court it was seen
he was very much excited. While be-
ing sworn he attempted to address the
Judge in unintelligible English. Attor-
ney Hawley undertook to interrogate
the witness, who did not answer. I-aw-
ley claimed the witness was able to un-
derstand if he desired to. The court
then took the witness in hand. but was
unable to elicit anything satisfactory
from him.
Mr.. Sheriff take this man to Jail
and confine him upon bread and water
until such time as the court advises to
bring him back here said the Judge.
Johnson's stolid countenance under
went not the SLIGHTEST change, and he
walked out accompanied by deputy.
Indifferent to, If he understood, the or
der.
The witnesses called by the State are
evidently proving unsatisfactory, for
lIS dliOl HSJS ldHG dllSIliPlSQ
to impeach two of their own witnesses.
Save in tie testimony of Clark, re-
ferred to Yesterday, no attempt has
been made to connect Corcoran with
the crime with which he is charged.
The evidence has been directed toward
proving the conspiracy, which the
prosecution claims resulted in the
death of Cheyne.
The witnesses to-day were all resi-
dents of Wardner, and told how en-
ployes of the Bunker Hill Company
had been stopped on their way to work
by union men on April %. The Incl
dents of the strike and the difficulties
existing at that 4irrle between the COM
pany and it's employees were detailed,
and it was shown that men had been
threatened by armed strikers. who fol-
lowed them to their boarding houses,
and there used considerable violence.
During the following week matters
quieted down, and the non-union men
were allowed to return to their work
SO that on the day of the riot the COM
pany had nearly full force.
Attorney Reddy severely criticised
what he termed the unfair and out
rageous attitude of the attorneys for
the State in Withholding from the de-
fense the testimony given before the
Coroner's Jury. The law requires the
Coroner to reduce to writing and file
with, the County, Clerk the testimony
taken before him. This has not been
done, and Attorney FOrney stated that
the inquest had not been concluded.
Reddy denounced this statement as a
mere subterfuge and said the Coro-
ner's jury had not been in session for
weeks and that the testimony was be-
ing withheld for the purpose of ham
pering the defense and of convicting
the defendant without a fair trial In
support of his assertion he stated that
the testimony was in the hands of the
attorneys for the State, who used it
whenever they desired to contradict
witnesses, but that the defense had no
access to it. The court refused to or
der the testimony filed, saying that it
was a matter entirely with the Coro-
ner.
The story that masked men had Wis
tied employees of the Standard Com
rany and threatened them with death
If they did not leave the country turns
out to be a hoax concocted by a Mis-
sourian named Hudson, who success
fully imposed it upon a reporter. It
was denied by both the State authori-
ties and miners from the first, and the
originator of 1t has now acknowledged
that 1t was not true.