The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-09-29
GRAFTERS TRY TO
KIDNAP EDITOR
Fremont Older of San Francis
: co Bulletin Arrested and
Hustled Out of Town.
CRIMINAL LIBEL CHARGED
RELEASE OBTAINED AT SANTA
BARBARA.


Older. managing editor Of the San Fran
cisco Bulletin, who has been active in
aiding the prosecution OF the bribery
graft cases in San Francisco, was taken
off a southbound Southern Pacific train
at $50 o'clock this morning by a force
of twenty deputy sheriffs, who served
warrant for his arrest to appear in the
superior court before Judge S. e. Crow
at 10 O'Clock this morning on habeas cor
pus proceedings TO rescue him from the
hands of a constable from Los Angeles,
who, it is alleged. virtually kidnapped
him in San Francisco.
Word was received here early this
morning of the reported kidnapping of
Editor Older, and of his enforced trip
TO Los Angeles in the custody of
deputy sheriff. Attorney Cobb-Francfs
]. Heneys ssociate-telephOned to Rich
ards & Carrier, local attorneys, and asked
them to institute habeas corpus proceed
ings to take Older from his captors on
the train.
Judge Routed From Bed.
Judge s. E Crow of the superior court
was reused from bed at a. m. and all
necessary papers prepared, empowering
the sheriff to capture Older by force II
need be. All available deputy sheritfs
and police were on hand and boarded the
train promptly as soon as IL came TO
standstill. The first search failed to re-
veal Older or his captorS, but on going
through the rear Pullman car second
time he was seen and recognized A copy
of the warrant and habeaS corpus pro-
ceedings were then served on Older ana
shown TO Deputy Constable Ben Cohn
of Los Angeles, who had him in charge.
Older and the Santa Barbara officers left
the train without resistance. Attorneys
Porter Ashe and Luther Brown were on
the train and accompanied the deputies.
Escorted by several deputies Older was
conducted to waiting automobile and
rushed to the court house to await a
hearing.
Charged With Libel.
The legal ground upon which he was
taken by the Los Angeles officers was a
warrant for his arrest issued by J. w.
Summerfield. of a justice court in Los
Angeles, and sworn to by brother Of
Attorney Brown. 1t charges Older and
r H. Corrothers of the San Francisco
Bulletin of San Francisco, with criminal
libel in connection with the alleged at
tempted kidnapping of ex-Supervisor
LOnergan. which was frustrated by De-
tective Burns.
Last Wednesdays issue of the Bulletin
contained an account of certain actions
of Luther Brown in connection with it.,
in which ii is alleged that he had been
in company with a disreputable woman.
The warrant was issued III Los Angeles
because Attorney Browns home is there.
In telling of his arrest and spiriting away
Mr.. Older said:
Decoyed by Telephone.
Il was in the office of Francis J.
Heney yesterday afternoon about .
o'clock, waiting for Rudolph Spreckels,
when a telephone message came for me.
] answered it and asked who il was, re-
ceiving the reply that il was a Mr.. Sta
pleton, and that he was at the Savoy
hotel l asked what he wanted, and he
personal business. / hesitated and he re-
peated that 1t was very important and
personal business. which he could not
discuss over the telephone. I suspected
that il was a trap and told Attorney
Cobb so. He said of course IT was a
trap, but I determined, however, to see
Just what it was and told them to leave
word for Rudolph Spreckels, when he
came in, that if 1 was not back soon
they would know what was doing. After
leaving Heney's office I noticed that two
automobiles were following me on Van
Ness avenue. They dashed 10 the curb
and four men jumped out of one of them.
A warrant was thrust into my face and
! was told that 1t was from Los An
geles.
Hustled Out of Town.
81 protested that I wanted to see my
attorney about il, but they would not
let me. The four men had surrounded
me and hustled me into the automobile.
In II were two deputy sheriffs and two
others. one of whom I think was a Cal
hOUn detective. In the other car were
Attorneys Ashe and Brown"
Mr.. Older said that the men prom
ised to take him before Judge Carroll
Cook. who had countersigned the war
rant. but instead Of doing so rushed him
at the rate Of thirty miles an hour to
Redwood City. where they got on a train
with him.
When they seized me on the side
walk" said Mr.. Older, they searched me
TO make sure that had no weapons. In
the automobile the man next to me thrust
something which l supposed TO be a re-
vOlver against my side and told me he
would shoot If l made any disturb
ance."
Finally the captive was permitted Ia
dictate a message to Rudolph Spreckels
He was unaware of the habeaS corpus
proceedings until Santa Barbara was