The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-06-07

/ than the Aie0aI aCt'Vily was o'o'''' -
procuring affidavts.
Jury labored two hours and htty-
five minutes yesterday,
There was considerable less interest
manifested yesterday than on former
days In the proceedings of the grand
Jury of the Hastings Court investigating
the alleged frauds in the Democratic city
primary election Fewer spectators at
tended the opening of the Hastings
Court ut II o'clock and fewer people
hung about the lobby to try to catch an an
echo from the grand Jury room.
This may be due TO the fact that tho
novelty Of the thing has Worn off, or 1t
may be due to the hot weather (and
yesterday was indeed hot day. 1t being
especially warm In and about the City
1Iall) or it may be due to the fact tlIt
the waiting public has about reached the
conclusion that this Investigation of al
legged election frauds will in the end be
just like ali that have preceded 1t, a
march up the hill and down again. a
tempest in a teapot or any other thing
that finally ends In buster and wind,
with nothing accomplished. Most likely
the latter proposition fully explains the
lack of interest yesterday.
Men who start out to practice fraud
in an election, be 1t a primary or a
general election, usually put up all the
gaps as they go along, and 1t will re-
quire mighty astute and cute grand
jury to catch them, and moro than an
average petit jury to convict them even
should an Indictment get through the
upper doors. There have been investi-
cations before, and so far as know
nobody Is serving a term in the peniten-
tiary for praeticing fraud in a Rich
mond election
Thus spoke q quiet citizen yesterday,
as he passed through the City Hall cor
ridor and was told that the grand jury
was investigating alleged frauds in JEFF
ferson Ward. That remark, properly ana
lyzed, means a whole lot
Lawyer Gay Stirred Up.
Mr. w. =. Gay, "a combination lawyer
and notary public, who was somewhat
active in procuring afildavits OF voters
as to how they voted in the primary,
seems to have heard a whisper through
the walls of the grand jury room that
not few Of the atlantis have gone be-
fore the jury and repudated the atfida-
Wits the lawyer-notary certified to, and
he hastens to explain on the outside how
he took atfidavits by. wholesale. He says
that after he got the aftldavits he did
|
statement. but incorporated all their
names In three notarial certificates.
sta ting that they had voted either for
Selph, Phillips or Noble. These certi-
ficates were signed by Gay himself.
Mr., Gay says it Is a common practice,
where many make afidavits as to the
same subject, for the notary TO adopt TINS
me-saving procedure "hcn, ~ me et Us
of the law, Is equally as good as state
,nents actually signed by the atlantis.
Then getting his dander up, the bright
Young lawyer declared with emphasis
"If I knew that any OF the persons who
made those afidavits before me In the
jefferson Ward election cases, had since
sworn to contrary statements, Woulo
forthwith have them arrested on charge
Of periury I would do 1t of my own
initiative without waiting for any action
on the part of the grand jury
Two Hours Hard Work.
The grand jury went to thelr room
promptly at II o'clock ana MAJOR ot"as
{ Alien the foreman, requested that the
witnesses be sent to the room as rap1diy
as possible, intimating that none OF mem
would be detained very land.
Among the witnesses was Policeman
Kuhn. who said he was not voter IN
the precinct and hadn't the slightest idea
as to why he was summoned.
August Brandt was another early arr
val. The poll-book shows that ne did not
go to the polls. kIe is among the attiants
for Selph.
William yVhitlock was the next wit
ness. He is a Republican and does not
live In the First jefferson precinct. lie
represented Joseph 0. Phillips IN the poll
Ing booth.
What his testimony had to do with
the case doth not appear as yet
| Other witnesses examined were Isaac
| Mchaels. p. Maroni Sill Harrison, ].
Mass!e. j. T.. Burrnss. ]. W. King, W.
| NJ Turpin, n. Johnson, Isador Cohen,
M. Fernandez, It, ]. Woody, J. ],
Murphy, John O. Hagan, r. Il. Manning.
| Archie Steiner. 3. d. BEDFORD, II. Ruben
stein, Thomas II. Saunders. William Red
ford and S. G. Miller.
Not Through Yet.
The examination of the last witness
was concluded at about :5 and the jury
| spent three-quarters OF an hour In dis.
cussion. This Indicates that the body Is
! nearing the end of its nrduous task, anG
the foreman's request made later that the
| jury be furnished with clerk to-da,
tends to confirm the opinion that thei,
labors Will be completed and repor
/ made to The court this afternoon, DOS
1 sbly during the morning session OF tn
/ court. r
At l:5 the jury reported progress ant
We're adjourned over to II o'clock thi.
morning.
Those who claim to have watched
events, as closely as one can watch
through brick wall. express the opin
Ion that not less than two, possibly four
indictments will be reported.