The news & observer., 1905-12-13
Attacks Landlord and
Tenant Act in Charge.
A BRIGHT DEFENSE
Still Found in His Cellar, Defendant
MConshiner Produces a Forged
Contract, Showing He Was Not
in Possession of House.
Another Case.

The Federal court for the Eastern
District of North Carolina met yes
terday morning with smaller crowd
of mOOnshInerS than usual in attend
ance. The grand jury listened TO a
charge from Judge Purnelf in which
he stated that the landlord and ten
ant act passed by the Legislature OF
1903 was violatiVe of the Federal Con-
stitution and subsequent statutes aftel
me amendment prohibiting peonage
ana in which after reciting acts vio-
lativc of the statutes of the United
states he also took occasion to say
that the talk of speakers ana news
papers of conflicts between the Fede-
raj and State courts was 'clap-trap'
and based on ignorance.
In that part of his charge relating
to peonage the Judge outlined the
well known Florida indictments and
said that these and other cases had
put the public on notice as 10 what
pconage is.
Some little comment was OccaSiOned
by the charge since it is not exactly
clear in what the pcOnage 1nVolVed
in the 1903 statute exists. That stat
ute was merely an amendment to the
landlord and tenant act by which the
violation of Il contract by the tenant
after ne had obtained supplies from
meanor The act was passed at the
instance of farmers of Eastern North
Caroline whose tenants were unrclia-
bic often leaving the land without
nbtice with crops growing in the
fields In his charge the Judge took
occasion to say that peonage was
where one was forced TO work fnr
another for the payment of a debt,
however contracted, whether by court
I,h IA - he
tween the definition and the statute is
not plain.
Still in II Cellar
Only two cases were tried during
the day. One was that of Joe Davis,
charged with running a blockade dis
tiIlcry in the basement of his house.
In this case the prisoner put up a
novel defense. He claimed that he
rented the house from one Wicker
and sub-let the same to one John
Snow. He had not been living in the
house, himself. he said, and in sup
contract between Snow and himself
for the rent of the house.
District Attorney Skinner was ia
ken by surprise by this testimony but
took the paper and made the defend~
ant do some writing for the jury with
the result that it was apparent that
his name had been signed to. the al
ieged contract by some one other
than himself; while the paper indi-
Gated that both the name of the de-
fendant and the name of Snow had
been written by the same person.
The jury marched in after some lit
tie deliberation and found the defend
ant guilty. He was afterwards given
a sentence of eighteen months.
George Washington McDiarmid.
The other case was one of retailing
against George Washington McDiar-
mid, black and grizzle- headed and
experienced in the ways of the court
There was testimony that George
made a practice of going about twenty
miles to Hoffman for liquor when the
government distillery was running;
also the testimony that he had on
one occasion sold direct to man
named Monroe. Also, a young wit
ness by the name of Blue testified re-
luctantly against his friend with the
truthful name.
There was a suggestion of plot and
counter-plot involving the enmity OF
hash of the defendants former eX-
perience with the court in which he
claimed he had been fooled into sub
mitting when he was 'cused of selling
ticker when he hadn't, etc. McDiarmid
protested his innocence with num-
Der of "Yassahs'' and "Nosashs" and
had "nuthns to do wild it's but it
was no use. The jury found him
guilty and he has not yet been SEN
fenced.