The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1903-05-07
DIR. AMES ON TRIAL
FORMER ASSISTANT TO THE
MAYOR TELLS STORY OF
CORRUPTION.
MONEY TAKEN FROM ItWD WOMEN
FOR WHICH THEY SECURED I'M
MUNITY FROM POLICE IN
PREFERENCE.
FORMER MAYOR IS TlCKltD
FREQUENTLY LAUGHS OUTRIGHT
AT PORTIONS OF THE TEs.
TIMONY.

former mayor of Minneapolis, was the
testimony Of Irving A. Gardner, as
sistant OF the defendant at the time
OF the alleged bribery. to the effect
that under instruction of DR.. Ames be
had collected 5000 from several fallen
women. with the understanding th2e
they be allowed to conduct disorderlv
houses. Gardner was the first i'm.
portant witness sworn by the. state,
and occupied the stand the greater
part of the dav. His examination will
continue to-day.
Gardner, now a resident OF Chicago,
where he has been attending a series
OF medical lectures, testified that In
the spring of 1901 he had been sworn
In by DR.. Ames as a special deputy,
and that about Dec. is, 1901, he had
paid over 5000 which he had collected
from thirty or forty women of i'll fame
in monthly and semi-monthly Install
ments. This money was collected, he
testified, ostensibly as a campaign
fund, and only from that class of
abandoned women who did not live in
the "Ted light district" and who did
not pay regular monthly fines into the
municipal court. The women
Were rounded Up"
or ferreted out by means of a special
detail of police, dressed in citizens
clothes and chosen largely from the
outskirts of the city. The women CON
Quoted their houses under the dis
guise of candy shops. cigar stores and
bath parlors.
On one occasion a woman. whose
name Gardner said was Harris, was
arrested for keeping a disorderly
house and fined $50 by the municipal
court. When DR.. Ames learned of this
he promptly gave Gardner $50 and In
structed him to return it to the wo-
man, stating that since she made
mocth,y contribution she ought not to
suffer Il fine.
Gardner testified that the women
thus protected from prosecution often
complained to him that Street walk
ers" were allowed to solicit" in pub
lie highways. and that they interfered
seriously with their business. These
complaints he communicated to DR..
Ames, whereupon the defendant issued
an order to the police to drive all
street walkers" out of the city.
This testimony is in line with what
County Attorney Boardman stated at
the outset the prosecution would at
tempt to prove. AS soon as the ex-
animation Of Gardner is completed the
state will summon Thomas r. Brown,
formerly DR.. Ames' private secretary,
who, Gardner testified. was at the de-
PENDANTS Office at the time
The $500 Was Paid.
Brown. IL Is expected, will corroborate
the statements of Gardner with refer
ence to the internal workings of the
so-called graft" After Brown,
Christopher c. Norbeck will be exam
ined. Norbeck was q detective in
citizens clothes at the time of the al
legged bribery, and, according to the
testimony of Gardner, was promi-
nent factor in rounding up" the aban-
doned women. He pleaded guilty to
charge of bribery and is serving
torn at the state penitentiary at Still
water.
The defense yesterday made a deter
mined fight on the validity OF the In
dictment. insisting that contrary to
law 1t contained many specific and
separate charges, and moved the court
that the prosecution be required to
elect one OF the specific charges and
confine its evidence to that particular
event. G.. S. Jelly, assistant county at
torney, maintained that the several
acts OF accepting money were so lntl-
mately connected as to form one sys-
tenn of graft"
Attorney William Erwin argued the
point for the defense, but the court de-
MED the original motion.
County Attorney Fred E. Boardman
at the outset stated what the prosecu-
ton would attempt to prove. II would
attempt to show that in the spring of
1891 DR.. Ames had taken Gardner in
his confidence and unfolded a
Plan Of Extorting Money
from women keeping assignatiou
houses. He cautioned the Jurors to
bear in mind the distinction between
these women who conducted their
business under the disguise of con-
lection shops from those who lived in
the "red light district" and paid
monthly fines to the city. The women
of the former class, the state would
attempt to prove. did pay to Gardner
money in .installmeIts of from $40 to
SIS, which he turned over in lump
to the defendant. He cautioned the
Jurors to keep their minds in an open
and unbiased condition and not at
tempt to evolve any theories or hunt
for a loophole for the defendant.
During the trial DIR. Ames and HIS
wife sat behind the lawyers for the
defense, listening carefully to every
word, but showing no signs OF emo
ton. DIR. Ames frequently laughed
outright at portions OF the testimony,
and often Mrs. Ames whispered to the