The leader., 1904-12-21
THE WHITE CAPPERS.
ATTORNEYS FOR NcNAIR PUTTING Up
STIFF fight.
Organization Of Grand Jury Which
Found All White Gaping Bills
Attacked.
Especial to n. D. rIcaynne:l

The case Of Bertram .McNair,
Deputy Chancery Clerk, charged
with white capping and conspira-
Icy, bids fair to become causus
ceIebre. His attorneys are leav-
ing no stone unturned to have the
indictments against him annulled.
Should they succeed all the work
Iof this term Of court would 90 for
naught, for they are attacking the
organization Of the grand jury
which found the bills. Naturally
the public is intensely interested
in the outcome.
Their motion to quash the in
dictment having been oVerruled
yesterday by Judge Wilkinson,
the attorneys for the defendant
came up smiling this morning
with a plea in abatement, to which
iI the State demurred. The plea
| in abatement and the demurrer
| thereto set forth the contention so
fully that they are here appended:
Plea in Abatement.
| State Of Mississippi VS.. Bert
/ McNair ct al. Now comes the
defendant, Bert McNair, in his
Iown proper person, and files this,
Ibis plea in abatement to the in
allotment returned against him,
land alleges that said Indictment
fought to be quashed, set aside and
annulled and abated, for the fol-
lowing reasons:
Upon information and belief,
defendant alleges that on the first
day of this term of court, when
the grand jury was empaneled,
sixteen persons form. the venire
!, present, which had been drawn
and summoned according to law,
were sworn in as grand jurors,
charged and retired to their jury
room with their baililf that the
Court announced before such
grand jury retired that it would
fill up the panel later; that there
upon, after the grand jury had re-
tired, the Court required the.
sheriff, OF directed him to do so,
or suggested that he summons j.
w. McGrath, David Cohn, B. I.
Hobbs and w. III. Seavey as tales
men and such parties we're so
summoned and without inquiring
into their qualifications, said par
ties were required to take the
oath administered to grand jurors,
and with a note from the Court to
the foreman of the grand jury,
were admitted into their councils
and took part in the finding of the
Indictment against defendant, and
urged and voted for said indict-
ment. The said parties we're not
selected as jurors for The term of
conrt as provided by statute, nor
were they drawn from among the
Jurors summoned for the regular
term Of the court, which began on
the day they were sworn in; and
all Of said parties were from Dis
| trict No. /, Of said county Of Lin
coin, that at the time said parties
were sworn in and sent to the
grand jury room, the regular We
nire had not been exhausted; that
lno member of the grand jury had
been excused or were absent when
|so summoned and sent to the
j grand jury room.
Defendant further alleges, on
information and belief, that said
| four parties we're private prosecu-
tors engaged in the prosecution Of
i persons suspected of white cap
ping, in the procuring Of evidence
against such persons, and that the
Court knew Of such enterprise;
that said persons had been select
ed by other private prosecutors as
| a committee to further the prose-
cutions of such persons; that said
parties had contributed money
i themselves, or their firms, or the
corporations of " hich they we're
managers had done so; that they
had solicited and collected money
from other parties with which to
pay the expenses of such private
prosecution; that they had used
some of the money to employ de-
tectiVes and attorneys; that they
held meetings and caused people
to appear before them to give in
s. formation against The defendant,
and promised such informers i'm
munity from prosecution and
punishment or made other prom
ises TO induce them to testify; that
before this court convened they
had investigated this defendant
and were engaged il working up
Ieyidence against him; that the
Court, when said parties were
placed upon said grand jury,
! knew this defendant was under III
! vestigation BY said parties, and
that they were then charging him
with an offense; that such parties
were preiudiced against this de-
fendant, and being added to said
grand jury after it had been i'm.
paneled, sworn and charged, had
retired TO its room for business
they constituted no part of said
body but by reason of such I'm,
lawful addition Of such parties
this defendant has been deprived
of his right to a just, impartial
and unbiased judgment Of the
grand jury on account of the pres
ence, influence and i'll will Of said
parties.
Defendant prays that The
above may be inquired Of By the