New-York tribune., 1907-08-16
FREEMAN .4SS4ILS RIKER.
Jcrscy Politicians Hit Hard at
.SOmmcr Dinner.

untold secrets nf the grand jury room were told
tonight 10y Alden Freeman. the reformer and
chairman of the county committee Of the nde-
pendent party at a dinner given by him at his
home in East Orange to Frank H Sonmer
Sheriff of Essex County and a candidate for
nomination for Governor. Mr.. Freeman made
a speech to his guests which was probably the
most sensa tional address which has been made
since the campaign for good government opened
in New Jersey several years ago He attacked
Chandler w Rixer: his brother. William Riker.
clerk of the Supreme Court Chief Justice Will
lam :. Gummere and ex-senator James Smith, jr-
81 would the people Of New Jersey
against alecting 20 public office. especially to
the Governorship. any man who has been ap-
pointed the Judiciary. 10 public prosecutor
ship 10 any stale board of taxation or assess
ment," said Mir. Freeman. The exceptions are
rare as to prove the rule that appointments
by governors of this state. whether elected as
Republicans Democrats, made of men who
are carefully considered as to their being safe
men fer the interests who be counted on
the side OF special privilege and who have no
idealistic or old fashioned notions about popular
rights. The trail Of the serpent lies over them
all
SO I say that l only rejoice the apparent
detection from the Colby ranks of the Boss of
Orange William Riker. He was not at the
started When Gardner Colby told that MIR.
Ril1er was coming TO conference at Everett
Colbys house in Lewellyn Park 1 strongly pro-
tested but was overridden. / said TO Gardner
Colby that / was he would live to regret the
day that William Riker included in our
counsels
After going into political history, dating from
the time the Colby reform movement began,
in which the names of William Riker and his
brother. Chandler W. Riker, freely re-
ferred to. he told of the inner workings of the
grand jury following the investigation of the
Clifton avenue accident in which nineteen high
school children were killed by crash between
trolley car and Lackawanna train.
He then bitterly assailed Mr.. Riker and Chief
Justice Gummere, charging them by implication
with delaying the proceedings and interfering
with the course Of justice. In the course of his
speech he said:
Different members of the jury told me that
they were being approached from the outside.
Thousand dollar bills by the of one Of the
officers of the company to use his influence TO
quash the Indictment. The same man told me
of loans called by financial institutions of New
ark and contracts held up
l followed that trial with the closest attention.
and the Public Prosecutor utterly neglected TO
bring out the essential point in the testimony.
The engineer of the trolley company. Arthur A.
Reilner under oath told us of the grand jury
CURED, long considered place OF danger
and that he directed TO prepare plans for
a deraiIing device at Clifton avenue by David
Young. He testified that he drew up plans
for such a device. II found that his
mechanism cost more than $1,000 and he testi
fled that Mr. Young told him they would not
put il in. as the company could not afford the
expense
This was the essential point IN determining
the criminal negligence Of the officials Of the
company and Mr. RIker never brought out
word Of the most important testimony in the
whole case
Mr.. Freeman then spoke Of the relations be-
tween Senator Smith and Edward Fl. Wright,
Essex mblyman. which have eliminated
in suit for slander. in which Mr- Wright de-
mands damages in 100000 from the former
Senator.
Following the dinner. Mr. Freeman gave Sher
if Sommer a reception. Those at the dinner
included Gardner Colby. George w. Tomkins,
Edward II. Wright. Alexander r. Fordyce Jr.,
Under Sheriff Charles NJ Mason Joseph p.
Tumulty. James 2. Logan, Peter McCord.
Thomas F. burning. Herman T. Walker, Ed
mond A. Whittier. Charles II. Ingersoll and
George z. Cutley.