Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1901-10-31
GEO. E. NICHOLS UNDER FIRE.
lie IL Charged with Attempting 10
Bribe witnesses.

Bribe witnesses.
The developments in the now cele-
brated Grand Rapids water scandal
case continue to bring surprises until
IL must be confessed we could hardly
be further surprised or shocked at
anything. 1t was a matter which
naturally has attracted the attention
of the entire state, but we i'm Ionia
county have hardly expected any
thing like the events of the past few
days. Our own state senator, Geo.
f.. Nichols, who is almost as well
known in Belding as one of our own
townsmen, and who was and is one of
the leading attorneys for the defense,
has been placed under arrest, charged
with attempting to bribe the chief
witnesses to absent themselves from
the trial. Mr.. Nichols was promptly
released upon his own recognizance
and requests his friends to withhold
their judgment as he will be able to
prove his complete innocence of the
charge later
Some current newspaper comments
upon the ma tier are as follows:
If ever there was man in trouble
who felt his position keenly, that man
is Senator George +. Nichols, of Ionia,
who is now in greater prominence in
the water scandal than even City At
torney Salisbury himself. And if there
ever were friends who were surprised
the friends of Nichols can be reckoned
among those who were most complete
ly overwhelmed. They were astound-
ed at the revelations made by the
prosecution, and the apparently com
plete chain of evidence surrounding
Nichols.
The surprise is all the more keen
because of the high position Nichols
has always held at the bar and in
politics. He served a term in the
last legislature as senator from the
eighteenth senatorial district. He
was hard worker in committee, a
respected member upon the floor, and
his speech toward the close of the ses-
sion, upon the railroad tax measure,
was one of the features of the session.
Immediately afterward, Nichols an
nounced himself as a candidate for
attorney general, to succeed Henry
NJ. Oren.
What on earth do you want tc be
attorney-general for?" was asked of
him soon after his first announcement.
"Just for the experience" he ans
swered. "The salary is meagre, but
the experience of a term or two in
that Office is invaluab BILE, and the pres
tige is worth great deal. | am still
young man and ambitious and will
ing to work hard, and | ought to have
a great future before me-"
All of this great future has been
practically killed now Nichols is a
broken hearted man. He went into
this case to help his old friend, Nc
Garry, and whether he has done
wrong or not remains to be seen. If
he did do what the prosecution
charges, his friends believe that he
did it to help save his friend.
1t was evident that the charges
came upon him as unexpected as
thunder clap out of a clear sky, and
as naturally would be the case he was
pretty well upset and naturally in
clined to see the dark side, remarking
to friend: 'Of course | am inno-
cent, and can prove it. But what
will be the good of it. 1t has killed
me already and can never get over
it," We do not think it is so bad
however, and he has many friends
left yet who believe in his statement.
That he has received most
serious blow to his political career
cannot be denied however, by even
his most optimistic friends and much
as it may be regretted.