Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1899-05-24
IHB CONSPIRACY CASES.
The Defense Has the Floor and Tells Of
Smuggling al the Prison,

The Defense Has the Floor and Tells OF
Smuggling at tn Prison.
Monday afternoon Detective Cook com
pleted his testimony In the penitentiary
cases, says the New Mexican. He had
learned In Missouri that various crimes
OF the gang Garner said he belonged to
were really committed.
Bernard Spears, former p%enitentiary
ysrdmaster, wa put upon tn stand. He
told how every few weeks farmer gave
him q small package OF s~trychnine, and
said he had found IL In the garden. where
a guard named Burns had dropped ii
At one time. when a whole bottle OF
stry chnine Vas handed to Spears, Garner
said u small quantity had been taken out
and tried on u dog. When the last pack.
age was received Garner said: This IL
the ,st. The gang say that they have
done their part, and they will be raising
the devil with me for not doing mine"
Mr.. Spears testified that several times
he, Colonel Bergman and o. l.. Mer
rill held meetings TO discuss the Garner
story aud the source whence came the
poison. There was hardly q week during
the eight years, under the four supetin-
tendents he served at the penitentiary,
that something was not Struggled in by
conyicts. Acids, knives, files, paper, lead
pencils and other articles were constant.
ly found, and there was always mystery
~ to the methods.
The witness, Colonel Bergman, q. l..
Merrill and a guard named Kelly con-
stantly watched Burns and Garner.
Burns conduct was above suspicion.
For four weeks Garner was sick. and one
week he was entirely out Of his head.
For two months he had been working at
the capitol. and 1t might have been com
paratiyely easy for him TO smuggle In
the poison, hide IT, for instance, In the
hollow iron OF the bedstesds. or In the
y%entilators.
Colonel Bergman and the prison Off
Gals ate the same food that was prepared
for the convicts. Orders were given not
TO allow Garner in the kitchen. The
prison officials never beliyed what Gar
ner said of alleged p%lotters Garner was
not placed In q dark cell or punished for
infraction Of the rules. because In that
manner prison authorities never succeed
in getting u true statement out Of q
convict.
When the Borregos were in the peni-
Tertiary three bottles OF acid, dies, two
saws aud other matter were Struggled in.
and 1t was never discovered how they
we're taken in. The Borregos we're pun
ished by never being allowed outside,
and, after they sawed their door, by being
kept In a blind cell.
William Cole, ex.night cell house
Keeper, caused much laughter by his
quaint and naive answers. He caught
francisco BOrrego after the prisoner
cut his way out OF the cell door. The
witness found an AK struggled into a
dark cell.
Spears was recalled and said that any
prisoner was at liberty to complain TO the
warden. Garner had said to Spears: II
10 not want my three months for good
behavior, as | would rather stay at the
penitentiary. The gang will murder me
when / get out"
Henry Bsrgmann, son OF Colonel Berg.
mann, WAS the last person on the stand,
hut produced no msterial new evidence.
lie c~ontradicted himself in an obvious
manner several times.