The Topeka state journal., 1905-12-22
dean HASAREPLY
Says Didn't Violate Promise to
Senator Smith.
Saw Accused Statesman Day
Preceding Indictment.
HE HAS A GOOD CASE.
Only a Question Whether
Evidence Is True or False.
District Attorney Had No Feel
ing Against Smith.

J. s. Dean, who today retired as
United States district attorney for
Kansas, comes back with a number Of
stiff body blows for Senator Fred Du-
mont Smith.
Smith was indicted by the federal
grand jury last week on the charge of
bribing a federal officer, or more
technically of forming a conspiracy to
influence by means of valuable consid-
erations an officer from acting in cases
pending before him. On Monday Sen
ator Smith gave out an interview in
the State Journal in which he attacked
Dean, saying that he had not been al
lowed to go before the grand jury to
explain his case, even though Dean
had promised him the privilege. Smith
attacked the Indictment as being full
of holes, and suggested that Dean was
sore on him because he had not "lain
down. on Senator Long, in Deans in
terests in his fight for reappointment to
the Office of United States attorney.
Mr.. Dean was in Kansas City prac-
tically all of this week in the Kaw
river injunction cases. He returned
yesterday. This morning, upon being
apprised of Smiths caustic interview,
he authorized the State Journal to
print this reply:
"I was in Kansas City when the in
terview was published, and was en-
gagged in the Kaw river cases. Ny at
tention was not called to the interview
until now. I am very much surprised
at the character of the statements
made by Mr.. Smith.
Smith states that I promised to
have him taken before the grand jury
in the event that any matter concern
ing him was brought before the grand
jury. Smith knows that statement is
not true, because he was in my Office
the day before the grand jury made its
report, and knew at that time that a
case was pending against him before
the grand jury. He asked me to give
him a chance to go before the grand
jury in the event that there was any
matter involved needing explanation
from him, and told me where he could
be found in case he was needed I
should certainly have sent fer him to
go before the grand had there been
any reason for doing so, but the evil
dence before the grand jury was such
that if true, Smith and his associated
defendants are guilty as charged in
the Indictment.
mo explanation was needed. It was
simply a question of whether the evi-
dence of the witnesses subpoenaed by
the government was true or false. That
issue could not in the very nature of
things be tried out before a grand jury.
1t would have been an unheard of pro-
ceedine to have taken a defendant under
such circumstances before the grand
Jury whose proceedings are necessarily
in secret, and tried out the questions
of fact in that manner I would have
subjected myself to WeIl-merited rebuke
to have sanctioned such a proceeding.
No one regrets more than the necessity
of the indictment, for I have always
been on friendly terms with Smith and
always regarded him as my personal
friend In the contest for my reappoint-
ment for United States attorney, did
not ask Senator Smith to lay down on
Senator Long in my behalf, nor did ex-
pect him to do so. He told he VOlun-
tarily that he was for me for reappoint-
ment and believe that he was, so that
instead Of being sore at Senator Smith,
felt very friendly towards him.
"The grand jury gave his case very
careful and conscientious consideration
and reached their conclusion unin-
fuenced by any outside influence what
ever [ notice that the senator severely
criticizes the legal form and sufficiency
of the indictment. He had best reserve
his criticisms for the supreme court of
the United States, since that tribunal
has approved the form and sufficiency
of an indictment precisely like the one
in question. In fact the indictment in
this case was drawn in substance and
form precisely like an Indictment passed
upon and approved by the supreme
court of the United States.
what Senator Smith does not know
about the form and sufficiency of in
dfctments would probably fill several
large volumes"