The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-03-30
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logical thing that could have hap
pened. I am especially pleased that
the failure to indict me was not be-
cause of the bar of the statute of
limitations. but because of the fact
that there was absolutely no evidence
against me. I was not reying on the
statute of limitations, but on the mer-
its of my defense; in. other words, the
total failure of Drenning's case. Dren-
ming has been parading before the
public for months with the almost
daily assurance that he had sufficient
evidence not only to fndict, but to
convict me. I have refrained from
noticing him, but now that the mat
ter is over I feel that / might be ex-
cused from saying just word.
1.-THE whole matter has turned out
as I expected. I asked the privilege
of going before the grand jury myself
which is a course never taken by
any one who has anything to con-
cea1 or by one who has any fear that
later on he will be a defendant in a
criminal case. In fact I was one of
the very first to sign the petition call
ing for grand jury, for l wanted
this matter. thoroughly investigated.
when it is remembered that the
average grand jury will promptly in
dict any person against whom charges
have been made, especially charges
such as were laid upon me, it is in
deed gratifying that no bill was found
! in my case. Why, you have only to
remember that Judge Peter S. Gross
cup, q federal judge, living in Chicago,
and one of the purest men in the
country, was actually indicted for
murder few months ago by an
Illinois grand jury, when the only
ground for such conduct was that he
happened to own stock in a railroad
and in the negligent operation of one
of it's trains a man was killed. Just
think of it! Indicted for murder on
such a showing! OF course the inddct-
ment was quaShed as SOON as the at
tention of the court was called to the
matter-and, of course, Judge Gross
quilted under such evidence, but he
was indicted just the same.
For the grand jury to have return
ed true bill against me, would not
only have been altogether unwarrant-
ed by the facts as know them to be,
it would have been actually against
all the credible evidence Offered. In
view of the false and malicious state
ments which had been made against
me for months by certain members
of the present city administration,
pane1ling of the grand jury, the result
is very gratifying to me. Dreaming
tried in every way to persuade the
grand jury to indict me, and in his
persecution of me committed crimes
for which he richly deserves to be in
dicted himself.
even if had been indicted, am
confident that the judge would have
instructed the jury to acquit me even
on Drenning's own statement of the
case. And yet Dreaming has the
idiocy to state that he expected not
only to indict, but actually to convict
me on such a showing. Any school
boy in the lower grades with a thin
BILE full of brains knows better.
1.-THE fact is, that there is not a
word of truth in the charge that I ev-
err received one cent unlawfully as
city engineer, and no one can honestly
say that I ever did. The whole mat
ter originated in a malicious lie in
the first place, and this lie furnished
an opportunity for Dreaming and a
few others to attempt to pose before
the public as great benefactors and
ride into office on what they supposed
uas a popular wave"