The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-12-20
OPENS FOR DEFENSE
STAN j. DoNNELLY vAINLY MOVES
TO HAVE BURNS SUIT
j DISMISSED
AsTo DUPLICATE CERTIFICATES
Accused's Attorney Endeayoring to
j Show That They Were Issued
in Good Faith ON Same
Property.

THE defense is now engaged in putting
ih it's testimony in the case of the state
dgainSt James H. Burns. The state
rested it's case just before the noon re-
cess yesterday, and when court reopened,
S. ]. Donnelly, for the defense, moved
to dismiss, his motion being practically
to the effect that the state had proven
the defendant innocent. It was a We'll
known and accepted presumption of law,
he said that public officer performed
his duties faithfully and in accordance
with law until the contrary had been
proven The state had shown that the
law required, and that it was the rule of
the county auditors office that delinquent
tax certificates must be surrendered be-
fore a refundment could be made. There
fore it must be presumed that the certif1-
Gates for the taxes refunded to the de-
PENDANT had been surrendered before. the
refundment.
! The motion. which was denied by the
court, indicated the foundation upon
which the structure of the defense was. to
be built. From the beginning the ten
dency of the testimony on behalf of the
defendant was to show that it has oc-
turred not infrequently that duplicate
certificates against the same property
have been issued, and held in good faith
by both Of the purchasers; land testimony
was introduced to show that in one case
two certificates covering taxes. for the
same year on he same property, had both
been paid.
Covered Same Ground.
THE witnesses for the state examined
In the morning session were carried over
much the same ground as has already
been covered, some of them having been
examined before.
County Auditor W. R. Johnson testified
to having made a search for certain GER
tifcates upon which refundments had
been made ALL which could not be found.
He had not been able to find the certifi-
Gates for the lots in DeBow, Smith,
Risuue and Williams addition, or the
others in Robertson's addition, which
have been referred to frequently in the
evidence. . So
William II. Swinton, manager of the
Farmers Trust company, limited, stated
that his company held the tax certificate
to lot 49, block Z, Warren and WinsloW's
addition, and had never assigned its
right to either Burns or Ducius.
aF. V. Heyderstaedt had with him In
court certificates covering lots ], 2,s3 and
4. Ashton & Sherburne's addition. which
he said were owned by himself, and
had never been assigned by him to either
Burns or Ducius. Neither had he ever
authorized either of those gentlemen to
make application for refundment of tax
.es on the property.
Z Miss Hannah Mayer, cashier in the
county treasurers office, identified checks
which had been paid to Harry Weiss and
James Schoonmaker on refundment war
rants issued at the instance of the de-
PENDANT.
To the end that they might be intro
duced in evidence. the original town plats
of Warren & Winslow's, Ashton & Sher-
Iburnes and Robertson's additions were
identified by Fred L.5Breerl, deputy reg
lister of deeds. 50 49,
One of the principal features Of the
evidence of the afternoon was, embod-
led in the testimony of George w. Blood
and H. B.eFarweil: MI. Blood estifed
that he had held a tax certificate on lot
= 8, block A, cruikshank's garden lots, for
the taxes of 1896, and that he had drawn
a refundment warrant for it a the cpun-
ty auditors office. d
Held Duplicate Certificate.
Mr. Farwell testified that he had held
q certificate against the same lot iden-
3 . AZ .~