The Savannah morning news., 1903-03-02

/ bride the House of Delegates to pass
House Bill No. "A. They denied that
any such thing had been attempted.
4 scared millionaire.
Every well. gentlemen" said Mr..
Folk, lit will be my duty to issue war
rants for your arrest and prosecute you
to the fullest extent of the law.
Would you rather have me do that, or
will you come back to me at the end
of three days and give me the infor-
nation demanded?'
At the end of the second day ex-
Governor of Missouri Charles P. John
son, one of the leading criminal law
yers of the Middle West, walked into
the prosecutors office.
Mr. Stoke is my client" he said.
Il have come to tell you that he is so
i'll that he cannot appear before the
grand jury tomorrow"
Governor" was Mr.. Folks reply,
I'm sorry that Mr.. Stoke is ILL., but
appear he must before me tomorrow
and tell me what l demand of him, or
/ shall see to it that he is arrested
and prosecuted to the fullest extent of
the law
The quiet, determined manner of the
young man and the set of his promi
nent jaws, made the older report to
his client that Folk means business,
and you'd better do as he says" The
result was that next day, not only
Stoke, but his millionaire employer.
Turner, walked into the grand jury
room and told of the Doodle clique in
the House of Delegates and City Coun-
Gil, and of the railways attempt to
put through House Bill No. "A with
the aid of S135 900 in bribes SIS, 900 for
the delegates and $780, 900 for the coun-
cilmen.
Another Ambitious BIun.
The bluff had worked, but it was
legally necessary to see the bride
money which had been placed in the
care of two safe deposit companies. So
Mr.. Folk began another bluff.
He went to the president of one of
the banking houses.
Mr. Blank" he said, these three
men who accompany me are grand
jurors. We want you to open box
giving the number), which contains
$4,000 in brides for members of the
House of Delegates"
The trust company's head, an old
friend of the prosecutors, laughed.
Sorry, but can't accommodate
you" he said. That box is sacred to
the leasees."
Mr.. Blank" asked Mr.. Folk, do
you realize that by the confession of
two of the men who have deposited
the money here, bribery has been
committed? Do you realize that
bribery is a crime? Do you realize
that the bride money is in your vaults
in your possession? And do you
realize that you are, therefore, an ac-
cessory to the crime of bribery and
can be arrested and prosecuted and
punished therefor l shall do this
very thing If you don't open that box
for u.s."
1t was stupendous bluff-its maker
had to bluff-but 1t worked Fifteen
minutes later the pale and shaking
trust company president led the way
to the vaults, the box was, opened, and
there lay $50, 900 in bride money be-
fore the very eyes of the circuit attor-
ney and the three grand jurors.
An hour later the same bluff was
worked but with more difficulty, at
the bank which was repository for
dence was complete, which later on
was alarmingly amplified by the con-
fessions of a fugitive. John X Muir
rell, and by members of the House of
Delegates and the City Council while
under cross-eXamination in the grand
jury room.
How Mr.. Folk Prepared for the
Trials.
Then Mr.. Folk set to work study
ing criminal law for eighteen and
twenty hours a day, so that he could
be prepared to meet the onslaughts
at the trials of the famous array of
legal talent that the defendants had
retained. This midnight toll had it's
reward-the trial records show that
Whenever this or that opposing legal
light raised a point. the prosecutor
successfully met it with another all
ways a little better.
Bluff, unceasinE work, country
court experience, and a determination
mistaken even by threats of assas-
sination and the bitter knowledge that
he would have to work for the down
fall of friends-these are the weapons
which have caused Joseph w. Folk,
just TUNED SO. to bring about the big
gest collapse of a corrupt political
ring since Tweed was sent to Jail, and
which have placed him in the fore
most rank of the leading criminal
lawyers of the day.
And yet, for all the reputati IN that
has come to him within the last two
years. he is as modest ard unassum-
ing as in the days wncn he was a
green lawyer in little brownsville,
| Tenn. or when, a care + ,a school boy,
which, according u Mr.. FOLK was
the only exciting cvsut IN his career
until he unt arthed the ooo,l!e sang of
st. Louis.