The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-06-13
Former POlitica! Bcss of Frisco
Furnishes Sensation of Day
in Trial of Mayor.
PROSECUTIONS OPENING
STATEMENT is MADE
Alleged Grating Official Faces
Scathing Denunciation of
His Administration.

SAN FRANCISCO, June 12.-This
was an earburning day for Mayor
Schmitz. Seated at the eounsel-table
before the altar in the Jewish synago-
que on Bush street he heard Abe Ruef,
his former political friend, philosopher
and guide, practically call him n per
iurer to the jury, and with that same
jury he listened to scathiug dcnuncia.
tion Of himself at the hands of Preso
cutor Hiram Johnson.
And if there was balm for seourgea
feelings in the speech that closed the
day. the speech of his own Attorney
Barrett, he took no open heed. Indeed
during most of the two hours and TWEEN
ty-ive minutes Mr.. Barrett was speak.
ink the Mayor was either gIancing over
newspapers or buried deep in type
written pages of testimony. But nc
word of the prosecutors address es.
capped his sensitive ears.
Ruef Furnishes Sensation.
Ruef was Of course the sensation OF
the day. To hear him do one of two
things. de rounce the Mayor as A
sharer Of his French restaurant fees
and therefore n pcrjurer, or ''fall down
on the prosecution by refusing TO tes.
tifr tn anything of the sort,
More than thousand people 1ocked
TO the Bush street temple morning aud
noon and found seats or standing room
in the auditorium that is Judge Dunno g
temporary courtroom. Not few OF
them were women. Among these was
Mrs. Francis j. Hcney, wife OF the pro.
scutor. She occupied a front row seat
in the gallery.
POIicnmpn wnrn m ON rd nDut ire and
downstairs TO preserve order and keep
the aislcs clear. IT was their first ap
pcarance, too Once in the forenoon
session, and once again IN the after
noon, Judge Dunno threatened to ad.
Journ court to give the bailiffs a chance
to drive all the spectators out of the
synagogue. if disturbance by laughter
wer repeated. That was when Ruef. IN
der cross-eXa aminatiop.- said be chad
met Elisor Biggy. his monthslong
iailer. and again when some other bit
OF drollery appealed 10 the crowd. Lit
tie enough there was TO laugh at all
day
Divided With Mayor
Ruef s appearance on the stand as q
witness in rebuttal for the prosecution
is now accredited to the tactical error
of the defense in letting the Mayor
testify. for IL was to refute the Mayor
deuials under oath that he had partici-
pated in Ruef's ''fee - that the pris-
oncr eX- boss was called Ruef told the
jury that he went to Schmitz s former
residence, 2S49 Fillmore street, now
used by Biggy as jail for Ruef, and
there handed to the Mayor at stated in
tervals one-half of the fees of $4,000
and $4,000 paid him by the proprietors
of the five foremost OF the French res
taurants Of San Francisco before the
fire,
81 SAID substantially this. Mayor.
! have received the $1,000 from tho
French restaurants men. and J would
be glad 10 hand YOU half, Then [
handed him S95O0 in currency is tho
way Rnef pat il 10 the Jury. This was
after the defense had exhausted its best
efforts to shut both question and an
swer out on the ground that the former
was not properly rebuttal, because in
his direct examination no such matters
had been broached TO the Mayor. Judge
Dunno decided that the pertenency of
the question could not be doubted
The opening address for the prosecu-
tion by Hiram w. Johnson, son Of for
mer Congressman Grove l.. johnson. and
one of the foremost criminal lawyers
of the State. occupied one hour and
fifteccn minutes II was mastery IN
argument and in cloQuencc. Mr.. John
son avoided anything like an attempted
resume of the evidence in all its yolum-
inous detail He selected rather the
main peaks and steering by them en-
dcavorcd to pilot the jury over a short
course to conviction.