The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-03-21

for Eighty-fiye Cent Gas Instead of Seventy-fve Cent--Furthermore, it ia
 Said, He Bribed Them in Connection l With a Telephone Franchise.
 San Francisco, March 20.-The grand l jury tonight returned seYenty-f five in dictments charging bribery. Of these slxty-five were against Abraham Ruef. for years leading politician, and ten against T. V. Halsey, former agent of the Pacific States Telephone company. Halsey is now in Manila installing a telephone service.
 A statement to a representative of the Associated Press by Assistant District Attorney Francis J. Heney, the first authoritative announcement that Heney has made for publication in regard to the number of indictments returned by the grand jury to-day, says in substance:
 Of the sixty-six indictments charg- ing Abraham Ruef with bribery, eigh- teen are for the alleged bribing of the board of supervisors in connection with the granting of fight permits to the so- called fight trust. Ruef is charged with having paid each one of the eigh- teen supervisors $500, and one indict- ment was returned for each supervisor alleged to have been bribed. Eighteen indictments against Ruef are for brib- ing the eighteen supervisors to vote for eighty-five cent gas, instead of sew enty-tive cent rate, it being charged that each one of the supervisors was paid $750 by Ruef, Thirteen inddct- | ments against him are for the alleged bribing of thirteen supervisors in con- nection with the granting of a fran chise to the Home Telephone company. The telephone company bid and paid to the city $25,OOO for the franchise. In connection with the same matter, four- teen indictments were returned against T, V. Halsey, formerly general agent of I the Pacific States Telephone 6 Tele-
 graph company, for the alleged brib- l ing of four supervisors to vote against
 the granting of franchise to the rival l company
 According to Heney, Halsey is charg- ed with having paid tf4iFteeE superyis- 1 ors $5,O00 each and to one, James E. Gallagher, $10,OOO. Halsey, 1t is said, agreed to pay each supervisor $2,5o0 ad-' ditional if the franchise was not grant, 1 ed to the Home company. Of the four- teen supervisors, who it is charged, were bribed by Halsey nine, MT. Heney 1 said, turned around and took money from the other company to vote for the franchise, two of them re- turned part of the money they received. The Home Telephone company besides the s250O0 bid for the franchise al total of 900 to the super visors, said MT. Heney, all of hich pass ed through the hands of Abraham lRuef Eight supervisors it Is charged, were bribed by Halsey with $6,00O each, are alleged to have taken $9,5O0 from Ruef to grant the franchise to the Home Telephone company. Four supervisors who Mr. Heney said did not accept a bribe from the Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph com- pany to oppose the granting of the franchise to the rival company, are all legged to have taken bribe of S6,OO0 each from Ruef of the money furnished the latter by the Home company. Ono supervisor, Req. according to Heney, did not accept the money in connection with the granting of the telephone franchise. Supervisor Gallagher, Mir. Heney declared handled the money for the board in connection with Ruef and all are said to have received $10,00o
 Seventeen indictments charge Ruef with bribery n connection with the granting of the trolley franchise.
 Judge Coffey fixed the bail at S10,00O on each indictment or a total of $640, GOO for Ruef and $1O0,00O for Halsey.