The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1907-09-25
ALTON RAILROAD
IS HELD immune
DISTRICT ATTORNEY SIMS READS
LETTER FROM ATTORNEY
GENERAL BONAPARTE.
GOVERNMENTS PLEDGE
Not to Prosecute Railroad Company
is Upheld Although Some Doubt
Exists as to Latter's Good
Faith.

Chicago, Sept 24.--In the United
States district court for the northcrl
district of Illinois today proceedings
were dismissed upon instruction from
Attorney General Bonaparte and the
special grand jury discharged. In hts
letter of instructions to District At
toney Sims the attorney general re,
cited the circumstances under which
the arrangement with the Alton was
made and concluded as follows
AS to how far the assistance of
the railroad company enabled the
prosecution to establish its cause and
secure a conviction at the trial ther 4
may be some room for a difference
| of opinion, and can understand that
! the testimony of one employe of the
railroad company, called by the gov.
ernment as witness In rebuttal, may
have raised some doubts as to the
good faith with which the company
carried out its pledge to the govern
of all the attendant circumstances, In
cluding all the facts to which you d.
rccted my attention, | find no ground
for more than suspicion or conjecture
imputing such bad faith to the rail
road company. There is certainly
nothing In the nature of proof that ii
failed to comply with its pledge. and
see no room to doubt It's co-opera
tion was of great assistance, If not
absolutely essential, to the success
Of the prosecution.
1t would be alike unworthy and
impolite for the government of the
United States to get the benefit Of
snrh an agreement as was made In
this case, at least in very large part.
and then assert doubtful grounds on
which to repuduiate its pledge of i'm
munity. Through the agreement the
Indictment of the Standard Oil com
pany of Indiana was made possible
and its conviction at the trial at least
greatly facilitated | can find no suf
ticient ground to deny to the Chicago
& Alton Railroad company and its OF.
ficers the immunity which constituted
the consideration for the aid thus Of
fered 1t is proper to say, in this con
nection that | was personally ignor.
ant Of the fact that such an agree
ment had been made until informed of
it by NJ. G. b. Morrison, your prede- |
cessor in office, after the grand Jury
mad been sumomned by Judge Lands. |
Of course, | was aware, through the |
official information received by the
of the aid rendered by |
the Chicago and Alton Railroad com.
pany in connection with this trial. but |
had assumed that this aid had been |
with no agreement as TO i'm |
munity from prosecution on the part |
of the government. At the trial of the |
case of the United States VS.. McGre- |
gor and Upton in the district court |
IF the United States for the district |
of Maryland, the court (Hon. Thomas
J. Morris, at the instance of the pres.
INT attorney general of Maryland |
Hon. William Sheppard Bryan. lead
ng counsel for the defense in that
'ase, instructed the jury as follows:
The jury are instructed that Z
Is an established usage In court of
Justice that where an accompliee is
luly admitted as a witness in a Grim.
nal prosecution against his associates
{ he testifies fully and fairly. he will
rot be prosecuted for the same of.
ense'
Il took part in that case as special
counsel for the government and | AZ
'rme that. in that recent prosecution
# the Standard oil company of In.
Llama. the Chicago & Alton Railroad
relied upon the established
sage in court of Justice asserted in
his instruction. regarding itself as
in the position of such
witness as is therein mentioned aud
without any express assurance of i'm
nunity.
AE eDpu - lHH ldfiS tf the case
we're brought to the knowledge of the
department. or az least. as soon there
fter as it could be verified. the pledge
4 immunity given In the present case
ras called to the attention Of the pre-
iding Judge. II is a source of regret
o the department that the facts con
ectcd with the promised immunity ,
0uld net have been laid before the
ourt prior tn the entry of the order
the special grand jury
'nqucstionably this would have been
one had these facts been known To- !,
be Deparement Itself. but this ON
iissiCn canHCt Cf course. after the
uty Of the department on the prem
ies. and ] therefore instruct you u
lake sEch motion CT take such ether
roper action. a. you may deem neccs-
lry 10 give eject under existing ci-- !.
Imstaaecs n the promise Of immu1. :,
(Concludsd on Fourth Paee.l IL