The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-16

vi n 1O, IJVt
Shortridge left. Frank Murphy rose and
made n similar statement He declared,
however, that while the case had reached
point where he could 10 longer continue
as an attorney for the defendant. he
would nevertheless remain in the court
room to give him the benefit of what Id
vice and counsel he could.
Ruef Pleaded Guilty.
Ruef Csc, trembling under a great emo
/ tional strain. He spoke with great diff
Guilty, BY this time the courtroom was
crowded and most of the spectators were
IF your honor please, desire to make
a statement. | do so after only a short
conversation with my attorneys to whom
/ have only within the last hals hour dis
closed my determination and against their
expressed protest I take this occasion
! to thank them for their services, fidelity
and friendship.
notwithstanding the courts findings
yesterday that this trial might be safely
carried on without serious injury to my
health, physical and mental, 1 wish to as
sure you that my personal condition Is
such that / am at present time abSO-
lutely unable to bear for two or three
months daily the strain of an actual trial
of this case. the consequent continual
nightly preparation therefor, the neces
Sary consultation and conversations with
my attorney in regard thereto, to say
nothing Of other cares and responsible
ties.
Moreover. the strain of these proceed
ings upon those whom 7 hold nearest and
dearest of all on earth has been so grave
and severe that, as a result of these pros
ecutions their health has been under
mined they are on the verge Of an imme-
date collapse. and their lives are indeed
now actually in the balance.
How He Was Corrupted.
81 have occupied a somewhat prominent
position in the city of my birth, in which
have lived ali my life. where are all
my ties. whence, when the time comes, 7
/ hope to pass into the eternal sleep 1
have borne an hCnOred name; in my pri-
vate and professional life there has been
no stain: in my public affiliations until
the municipal campaign of 1905 and tie
election of the present board OF SUPER
viSOrs. the abhorrent charges of the press
10 the contrary Notwithstanding, no ac-
ton of mine ever gave just ground for
adverse criticism or deserved censure But
the assault of the press and their failure
to credit honesty of purpose and desire to
hold together a political obligation, which
has been built up with much effOrt-means
of holding it together being otherwise i'm
pOssible-did in measure influence me
and corrupted the high ideals for which
had heretofore striven.
Ready to Endure Prison.
81 don't know what my sentence will
be. For myself I do not greatly care
I say to you now, and you can judge if
! boast. that no man possesses physical
nerve more than I do. I could face a
crowd of 5000 men, of 10000 men, every
one with a rope in his hand and call
ing for nv life. I could face them
calmly and meet my end without
hinching. But the suffering OF those l
love l could endure no longer / say
10 not Nrha will
be. If it be five years across the bay,
1 can meet that when it comes I be-
lieYe that with my personality and
leaving out of consideration the feel
ings of those who love me. and have
stood by me. I could spend five years
in San Quentin almost as comfortably
as in a hotel at Napa Springs. But if
the step / took this morning had meant
five years or fourteen years, or four
teen hundred years. the fear of that
would not have deferred me.
II have made no confession. l know
much. Some things I shall tell. Some
things I shall not tell. Whenever an
innocent man has been forced in cor
ruption against his WILL that man I
shall protect. Whenever q man, be he
high or low, has entered into corrup-
ton with his eyes open, that man 1
shall expose.
Dragged Down by SchmItz.
81 will not say at the present mo-
ment that Mayor Schmitz is guilty of
the charges that have been brought
against him or that he is innocent.
will say this: I wanted to break away
from Schmitz before his reelection a
year ago last November. and said to
him: i am sick of the whole thing and
I want to get out. ] can't stand for all
these labor union buns you have gath
cred around you and viii appoint. They
would eat the paint off a house In
answer the mayor begged me to stay
with him. and nut uD the argument
that these fellows must be allowed
their share or we would never hold the
machine together. There was all too
much truth in that.
Il stayed with Schmitz and I stayed
with the machine that at great la
Dor and pains had built up and assem-
bled. l found then that ] had taken
a step away from the high and clean
ideals with which I earnestly assure
you l originally entered the political
field. ] found. in short, that 10 hold
this machine together / had to permit
and connive at corruption. In the
state of affairs existing it was neces- |
sary But 1 myself never asked a dol |
lar Of any man, never took 4 dishon- |
est dollar from the public. The things
did were things that hurt no one.
BoodIing Supervisors.
Before the Doodle board of super
visors was elected I warned them
against crookedness in Office Imme- |
diately after their election 1 got them
together and / said 10 them: Now, !
you - - -, if any one of you
takes a dollar. I'll prosecute you my
self and l meant it, / was in earnest. |
But I found I could not carry out my
threat and keep the machine from
going to pieces. Schmitz was right |
about that. And so much Of this cor
ruption was needles. Needless I mean |
from the giver's end of the deal. Take. |
for instance, the trolley franchise. |
Everybody wanted the street railways |
electrified. There would have been no |
opposition if the application had been
merely and customarily laid before the |
board. 1t would have been granted |
But the press of San Francisco had |
taught the public to. believe that every |
was a crook that the |
whole city government was rotten |