Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1906-09-28
RAILROAD MONEY
USED IN POLITICS.
Omaha Line Official Makes Admission
and Minnesota Inquiry Is
Halted.

ST, PAUL, Mimi. Sept. 2l.--A. W.
Trenholm, general manager of the Chi
cago. st. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha
railroad, admitted on the witness stand
yesterday ut i hearing before the Min
nesota railroad and warehouse commits
sion that his company had used money
tor political purposes. When the wit
ness was asked if the money had not
been used to defeat Robert Nj. la Fol
lette for the Senate. the members of the
commission brought the hearing to
sudden termination and refused to allow
MIR: Trenholm to answer the question.
MIR. Trenholm was asked directly il
his company had not paid the salary OF
a certain official while he was engaged
in political work outside the state.
believe. said the witness, that
such has been the case, and that we have
paid Il few expenses of that kind"
Inquiry Is Shut Off.
The question was put by Mr. Mana
han. attorney for the Minnesota Ship
perS and Receivers association, and he
was ordered by the commission to sit
down and take up anOIhCr line of in
curry. On his refusal to do so the hear
ing broke up in confusion, and Mr.. Tren-
holm was excused.
Mr.. Manahan appealed TO the commits
sion to be allowed to so on and show
that the money paid to one G. Andrews,
train dispatcher once employed by the
company at Itasca, Mimi, to so into
Wisconsin to secure the election to the
Legislature of men unfavorable to La
Toilette, was paid by the Omaha road
with the knowledge of Mr.. Trenholm.
and that the vouchers were on file in the
offices of the road. where the expense of
conducting an anti-La Toilette cam
paign were charged to operating cX-
pCnSeS."
The inquiry was started from infor-
nation received bgy Mr.. Manahan
from member of the accounting de-
partmcnt, who stated that the vouchers
which Andrews filed were jotingly re
ferrCd to i'll the office as antiLa Fol
lette vouchers Armed with an order
to examine the accounts of the Omaha
road, MIR. Manahan was refused the rec
ordS which would reveal the payments
alleged to have been paid to the Itasca
agent to work against La Toilette.
Mr.. Manahan declares that lie has evil
dence to show that Andrews went to
New Richmond, Wis, for the purpose
Of securing the election Of Senator MoSh
Gr, who was known as one of the lead
ers of the anti-La Toilette forces. The
evidence which he has will go to show
that in q quiet way the road used its
influence and money to secure Senate
unfavorable to the La Toilette inter
estS.
Unless the commission does not close
the door to further inquiry into the mat
ter Mr.. Manahan declares he can bring
witnesses who will show up the entire
proceedings and that an examination of
certain of the vouchers Of the company
will support his charge.
The hearing was on the reasonablencSS
of commodity rates, and when the Wis
consin matter came up the commission
cOntended that the fact that the Omaha
made political contributions was not rel
evant to the hearing.
Mr.. Trenholm made the statement that
his company had paid political debts be
fore his attorney had time to interpose
an objection, and the members would
not believe that he had answered it I'M
til the reporter read it from the records.
Ira B. Mills, chairman of the commits
sion, when Mr.. Manahan declared that
he wanted it shown up whether the mon
ey was spent in Minnesota, Wisconsin or
New York, ordered the attorney to sit
down, saying his question was not per
tinent.