The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-05-29

EUII1
black and ugly as the State Journal
said. Say what you please, that trans
action was simply using the state treas
ury as q brokerage Office. You relnen-
! Der how Mr.. GODDARD hesltated when
asked if he knew of any other similar
transactions, and the inference OF his
testimony was that such things nae
been going on continuously ana nau
1T seems to me that these fnstruc-
tons absolutely settle this case. You
know Mr.. Smith and Mr.. Hessin sald
they bowed to the instructions, and then
they proceeded to argue directly asalhst
them. / want Mr.. Williams TO ten
you how. if you follow these 1nstrue-
tions, you can escape returning YER
dict for the defendant
Now it IS conceded that the scnooi
fund commissioners took the valuation
as fixed by the state board of equal
zation and under the instructions OF the
court this was an unlawful act
The court says that if the plalntlH
acted With others to do thing wrong
full it constitutes a conspiracy. The
court in substance tells you that what
was done constitutes conspiracy.
THE court tells YOU that the pur-
chase of those bonds was unlawful
The court tells you that this act was
a conspiracy If you do not ind TINS
to have been conspiracy then con-
spiracy can never be proven. And -
you find that this was a conspiracy 1t
constitutes a compete utIe1ASc
Doesn't it look black and ugly for
the attorney general to promulgate q
rule overturning the precedent Of A.
years to enable his friends to unload
on the school fund a lot of bonds2
Doesn't it look black and ugly for
Burrow to vote for the increase in the
COmanche county assessed valuation,
and a few minutes later vote to accept
Godard's Comanehe county bond pro-
pOsitiOn2
when a land Spectator can draw out
of the state treasury money to finance
a bond deal?
Doesn't it look black and ugly
when that bond broker gets $3.50 ex-
cess interest from the state, just
enough to pay the interest on his kan
sas City note?
Doesn't it look black and ugly
when he pays that money back at the
request of the attorney general2
This cleaning up sentiment IS
sweeping the country like a tidal wave
II swept the state of New York. It
permeated into Missouri, and now it is
felt throughout the state of Kansas.
The people are interested in this. Do
you suppose the people would vindi-
cate this gang of public officials?
There is an impression in Kansas
that they are in the control of a sub
sidized press. Do not give them cause
to think that they are in the control of
a muZZIeQ press
Mr.. Williams Closes.
F. L. Williams then closed the argu-
ment on behalf Of the plaintiff. Mr..
Williams is Attorney General Coleman's
law partner at Clay Center and was
formerly Governor Hoch's private sec
rotary. Mr. Williams commenced his
speech at 1880.
great many extraneous matters into the
argument He said that Bale Wag-
goner had made a stump speech on po-
litieal issues He then reviewed the
charges made by the State Journal
You have a right to judge the credi
bilfty of a witness by his appearance
on the stand. I call to your attention
the appearance of Mr.. Coleman, and
his denial of the existence of any CON
spiracy. He denies the charges made.
He denies that any secrecy existed. Mr..
Burrow and Mr. Dayhoff also deny
these things
The case is reduced to one issue:
L Mr.. Matson believe on the 10Th of
August, 1904, that this article he had
written was true? Did he believe Mr..
coleman had acted corruptly? What is
Mr.. Matson's testimony? He is their
only witness He says he does not be-
lieve that Mr.. Coleman ever had
money consideration; he says he has al
ways held a high opinion of Mr.. Cole
man. Yet these attorneys would have
tered into conspiracy to unload these
bonds on the school fund commission
ers. Is there any evidence that Mr..
Coleman did one single thing apart from
his duty?
The curt has said that bonds in ex-
cess of Is per cent OF the valuation
fixed by the county assessors cannot be
purchased by the school fund commits
sioners. It has been claimed that the
law of 1903 as part OF the conspiracy.
Bale Waggoner was a member of that
legisla ture, and that's not all. but Bale
Waggoner voted for the bill. So if
there was a conspiracy, Bale Waggener
was in it just as much as c. c. Cole
man.
But there wasn't any conspiracy.
There is nothing to show that the school
fund has not been wisely invested"
Mr.. Williams then reviewed the his
tory of the Comanche county bonds.
He said:
Mr. Waggener would have you be-
lieve that those bonds are still tainted;
that they can never clear themselves for
the original ilIegality. The supreme
court has sustained the character of the
bonds, and that settles it. The bonds
are good After the bonds have been
held valid and have been refunded and
again refunded is there any faint that
goes to the validity of the bonds2 Not
for q moment It has been suggested
that the state will have to make an
appropriation to pay off these Comanche
county bonds. Is that duty any differ
ent because the bonds are held by the
school fund than il they were owned by
H. D. Thompson of Des Moines2"
i want to speak of the ruling made
by Mr.. Coleman concerning the basis
Of valuation. Mr.. Coleman says that he
believed his opinion to be correct and
he believes it now The court does
not agree with him. But the books
are full Of disagreenents. Does 1t fol-
low that because one lawyer disagrees
from another that he is corrupt? This
question is far from settled 1t is set
tied for the purposes of this case but
that is all. The supreme court has said
that either of the valuations may be
used in making the levy of the county.
and Mr.. Coleman held that this being
the case either valuation could be used
as a basis for the purchase Of bonds