The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-12-02
BURTON CASE RESTS.
Six Days Granted by Court for Filing
Additional Briefs.

Washington, Dec. AIT the close of the
arguments before the supreme court yes
tor J. R Burton of Kansas from the SEN
tence of the United States district court,
at the request of Solicitor General Hoyt,
the court granted six days for the filing
of additional briefs. Burton's lawyers
said they would not file another brief, and
so far as Burton was concerned the case
was closed. 1t is not at all likely that the
court will render an opinion before the
first week in January, as December 20 it
will take a recess until January 2. 1t is
thought that the opinion will be handed
down on the day the court reconvenes az
Until the case is decided Burton will
not attend the sessions of the senate or
tor, a course he has pursued since his in
dictment last spring: He said that he
ent and that he did not expect to return
to Kansas until after his appeal had been
disposed of by the supreme court. He and
Mrs. Burton have apartments at an apart
ment house here and Burton stiIl uses one
of the offices in the Maltby building main
tanned for senators at government ex-
pense.
The closing argument of the Burton side
was presented by Mr. lehman He ad-
he concluded he was warmly congratu-
lated by Senator Culberson of Texas,
for the interior department; Solicitor Gen
eral Hoyt and others in the court room.
Throughout his argument he was listened
to attentively by the court and was in
terrupted only twice, and then merely to
answer questions to da les referred to
in the postal Investigations of the postof-
fee department.
The general line of his argument was
that Burton had been convicted, not for
accepting compensation for endeavoring
to prevent the issuance of a.fraud order
against the Rialto company, but for rem
der1ng that company service of any kind.
He stated that when Burton accepted en-
pioyment as general counsel of the COM
pany he received assurances that the men
who were conducting it were honorable.
and that its methods would be those of
a legitimate business organization. Not
only was he not requested to use his in
huence to prevent the issuance of a fraud
order against the company, contended Mr..
Lehman, but he was assured that no
such service was expected of him, as the
company would be conducted in such
strict accordance with the law that there
would be no complaint against it at the
postal department
Mr.. Lehman emphasized the assertion
that Burton had never been to the post
office department to discuss with the Off
Gals there the issuance of a fraud order.
He carefully analysed the testimony of
the governments witnesses in the lower
court and insisted that the court erred in
favorable to Burton on the grounds that
the government had not proven its
charges. In discussing the trial of Bur
ton, Mr.. Lehman urged that Judge
Adams had gone too far when he charged
the jury that if it found that Burton had
rendered any service whatever at the
postoffice department for the Rialto COM
He declared that the trial in ST. Louis
was not a fair trial in any respect. He
closed by asking the court to set aside
the judgment of the district court