The San Francisco call., 1907-02-12
JURORS HUNT FOR
EAVESDROPPER
IN ATTIC
San Rafael Almost Has
New Sensation in Feud of
the Cochranes and Taylor
BRIBERY CHARGE
INQUIRY FUTILE

San Rafael almost had a new sensa-
Hon in connection with the Cochrane-
Taylor feud yesterday during the in
vestigation by the Grand Jury of the
charge of jury bribery in the Keefe
case. The inquisitors had been in ses-
sion about an hour when they heard a
noise between the ceiliag<of their room
and the roof. 1t must have been made
by an eavesdropper who had made his
way UP the ladder i'm an adjoining
room 10 the trap door leading to the
rat and bat inhabited silences of the
spider-webbed attic.
Foreman Fred P. Howard led the
celebrating host and scaled the lad
der. closely followed by W. T. Price.
who boasts the title of "the Kicker
of Mill Valley" He in turn was fol-
lowed by George Ring. The trap
door had been unlocked. That looked
bad. so Constable George NJ. Agnew
was sent for.
Then the door was opened and Fore
man Howard raised his head into the
dark and echoing emptiness Slowly
he made his way into the forbidding
attic. and with equal cautiousness
other jurors followed. bat f1uttered
against the roof-rarters, but not
juryman moved a muscle.
Carefully but firmly. as men with
duty to perform. they stepped upon
the single board which permitted
reconnoitering over the lath and
plaster to the farthest reaches of the
attic. A complication ensued when
Juryman Hazelton attempted to make
his way through the trap door He was
too large and had to leave the heroics
TO smaller men.
But the investigation proved about
as fruitless as the inquiry into the al
legged $4,000 bribe giving. There was no
one to be found All the newspaper
men were rounded up. but they estab-
lished satisfactory alibis, and the cause
of the noise must go down in San
Rafael history as another mystery too
deep to penetrate.
Father Byrne who, it was stated, would
come from Napa to corroborate the
statement of Father Egan. failed to at
tend. He pleaded by telephone pre-
vious engagement, and as he lived
more than thirty miles from the meet
ing place of the Grand Jury, he could
not be legally forced to come. Instead
he is said to have told over the wire
what he knew of the matter.
In this connection Father Byrne is
quoted as having said that shortly
after the conversation between c. II.
Beardsley and Father Egan, the latter
told him about il. This conversation
was substantially the same as the story
that Father Egan gave to the Grand
Jury. to the effect that Beardsley had
told the witness of giving $4,000 to Pat
Cochrane to be used by Attorney James
". Cochrane in bribing the jury in the
Keefe perjury trial. This was the con-
versation that Beardsley denies ever
having had with Father Egan.
Dr. Wickman was another witness
summoned to testify to hearing Father
Egan say, four years ago, that Boards
ley had told him of a bribe fund
handled by Jim" Cochrane. II. H.
Lynch, a newspaper man, was on hand
to testify as to how .Taylor's scath-
ing letter had come into print in San
Francisco Taylor declares that the
letter in which he made the bribery
charge was addressed to NJ. F. Coch-
rane and was secured for publication
without his knowledge and printed
despite his emphatic protest.
Lynch is also said to have testi-
fed before the jury yesterday that
Jim" Cochrane admitted in his pres
ence the receipt of $4,000 as his fee in
the Keefe case, but declared that it
was a legitimate charge for legal
services.
The Taylor-Cochrane feud now rests
with the jury, and will probably expire
easily. Beardsley will not be indicted
because his innocence of wrongdoing
is apparent to the jury. misunder-
standing between Beardsley and
Father Egan as to what he had said
is believed to have been the cause
of the latter's statement which led to
Sheriffs Taylor's charges. The Coch-
ranes cannot be indicted even if there
were sufficient evidence of bribe-
giving, which there is not. because of
the statute of limitation. Sheriff Tay-
lor cannot be indicted because he is not
involved except in so far as he re-
peated the story of bribery as told by
Father Egan.