Evening star., 1907-08-15
HAS GRANTED NO IMMUNITY
In a Single Action Against Corpora
tions or Combines.
THE ONE INSTANCE KNOWN
CT EIr. Moody Granting Leniency to a
Railroad May Be Negatived Be-
cause 1t Did Not Keep Faith.

Attorney General Bonararte carefully
falls to observe the demands from Wall
street for "reassuring' statements from
the administration that 1t means to do
better toward corporations than is talked
about All efforts to have the Attorney
General say something 'reassurinS' have
failed When he was asked today whether
he had any message for stricken Wall
street that would carry balm to wounded
souls he said-
Il have been accused of talking too much
lately and I think that ! had better keep
quiet 1t does seem to me, though, that
officers of corporations and enterprises that
have not violated the laws of the country
have no occasion to be anxious. If they
are innocent as doubtless hundreds of them
are. they do not need to worry. The gov
ernment seeks only to punish those Who
have deliberately and detiantly violated the
countrys laws"
Has Granted No Immunity.
Mr. Bonaparte was asked whether the
Department of Justice pursuing pol
ley of granting immunity to certain viola
tors of the law so as to play them against
others it desired to reach. He said that no
such policy was being followed, and that
since he became Attorney General he had
against corporations or combines. So far
as he could now see he did not propose to
do so. The question grew out of the rev.
elation that former Attorney General
Moody now on the Supreme Court bench.
promised immunity to officials of the Chi
cago and Alton railroad if they would sup
ply the testimony upon which to convict
the Standard Oil Company Of accepting re-
bates from railroads. This was the case
uyba IlJ6p fined 20 SfaOd4rd
over 500 100000 and then proceeded to d.
rect the grand jury at Chicago to inquire
into the Chicago and Alton for granting the
rebates to the Standard. Mr.. Moody there
upon wrote to Judge Lands telling him OF
the promise that had been made to the
railroad. The Attorney General has not yet
received a letter from Judge Lands, who
has stated his intention of inviting the at
tention of the Department OF Justice TO the
alleged fact that the Chicago and Alton
Is charged with not having kept faith with
the government and is not deserving of i'm
munity.
When Mr.. Bonaparte does hear from
Judge Lands he will look carefully into the
whole proposition. He will read a tran
script Of the evidence taken in the case.
and if he sees that the Chicago and Alton
did not play fair with the government he
may decide to ask that action against the
road be pushed.
No knowledge of Other Cases.
The Department of Justice has no knowl
edge whether former Attorney General
Moody made promises of immunity in other
cases instituted during his regime in the
Department of Justice. These promises are
not matters of official record, being simply
the passing of the word of the representa-
tive of the government
The following on this subject was given
out at the Department of Justice today:
Attorney General Bonaparte stated this
morning that he expected to have a con-
ference on Monday next with District At
torney Sims former District Attorney Nor
rison and MIR. Wilkerson, on the subject of
the Chicago and Alton cases, and that,
until he had held such conference.
statement in regard to the matter involved
could. of course be made. lie said that he
understood that certain testimony and
statements were TO be presented to him,
and would receive careful examination and
SilpTariDn.'