The San Francisco call., 1908-08-30

Indignation that cOWed the powers thal
had been ruling the city like Turkish
province. and gave swift and decisive
support to the district attorney in the
stand he had taken. Success followed
success. Supervisors were trapped,
confessions obtained and an admission
of guilt even Of the boss followed
Then the attempt was made to prevent
the return to Office of the men who
had uncovered the facts of bribery
obtained the indictments and secured
the first convictions on this evidence.
But the people overwhelmingly voted
their confidence in the men and the
work, and the herculean task pro-
ceeded. Then came the annulment OF
the first indictments and convictions
by the higher courts, the disagreement
Of the jury in trying the boss who had
confessed his guilt under another in
dictment. and the twice attempted as
sassination of the states principal wit
ness.
RUFF ADMITTED GUILT
The people have not forgotten that
on October 2e. 1906, Ruef attempted to
seize the district attorneys Office and
dismiss Langdon and Heney; that on
November % Schmitz returned to San
Francisco and was welcomed at Dream
land theater by Ruef and a crowd of
his followers; that Schmitz declared his
innocence; that Ruef said: Il have
often said that I have never committed
a dishonest or an unlawful act I re-
peat that now; that on May Is, 1907,
Ruef said in a court of law, with dra-
matte tears of ostensible repentance,
Il am guilty.
It is still remembered that in March
Burns trapped the three supervisors
and then obtained the admission of the
others Of the organized scheme of pub
lie plunder, of Sunday caucuses with
Ruef and of the regular chain of money
passing; that under oath Lonergan
granting fight permits to the fight
trust. The money was paid to me by
Supervisor James L. Gallagher; that
when Gallagher was asked, who gave
you the money TO pay the supervisors
in the fight trust?" he answered.
Abraham Ruef'; that Gallagher has
stated under oath that he received
thousands of dollars from Abraham
Ruef to bribe the supervisors.
NULETFIED GUILTY PLEA
Again, on March Is, the Ruef plea of
guilty became legally nulliied by the
appellate courts decision declaring the
invalidity of the Indictment. On May
21, in the trial of Abraham Ruef for
bribery. the jury disagreed. On August
1e. 1908, after protracted preliminary
hearing, Police Judge Cabaniss held
Ruef TO answer before the superior
court on the charge Of bribery, stating
that there appeared to the satisfaction
of the court sufficient cause to believe
the defendant, Abraham RHef, guilty Of
the offense with which he stood
charged for his commitment for a
felony, viz, bribery.
These are the facts. Their legal
weight remains to be determined by a
jury. We are not trying the case now
we are thinking things over. These
facts of public corruption, obtained
under oath from various witnesses, all
agreeing in every detail-do they not
raise a suspicion in a reasonable man S
mind that some one is guilty7 And, If
besides being a reasonable man, he is
q just and honest man, will he be salts
fed with anything but an honest YER
dict on these facts? That is the one
issue that all men of the city should
stand firm on-just one issue-justice;
and to obtain justice means to demand
an honest jury and an honest verdict
TACTICS CONFUSE PEOPLE
But instead of keeping to this one
issue-the peoples cause of justice in
a true verdict on these facts-the
minds OF many in the city have be-
come confused and have been diverted
into false "cul de sacs'-smau byways
Of spectators criticism. sidepaths that
lead into weary morass of nowhere.
into echoing the attempts to weaken
the city's cause by placing their own
ofncers constantly on trial, most
curious method of ascertaining who are
the persons responsible for the mass
Of corruption uncovered by these verv
officers of the people Such men have.
oddly enough, forsaken the issue of
their own cause.
Much has occurred to try the moral
endurance and strength of purpose
Of the citye the early discouragement
of the, undoing of the first several
months work by the overthrow of the
extortion indictments and contictions.
the protracted delays permitted by our
highly technical procedure, and the de-
lay which the attempted assassination
Of the states witness made necessary.
namely taking his testimony IN a pre-
iiminary hearing before a committing
magistrate to preserve it in case an
other such attempt might succeed and
destroy the necessary link.
SEEK TO CONFUSE PUBLIC
To this, then. must be added the
continual attack upon the officers con
Quoting this cause, an attack so con-
unuous and so well adapted to serve
the purposes OF men having cause to
fear the issue of justice that the citi-
zen was forced to conclude that there
has been a concerted effort to con-
1use the public mind, to weary it and
weaken 1t, that in the general apathy
and chaos of opinion there might be
some escape from the damning evi-
dence Of public corruption that has been
exposed in the city.
San Francisco must assert its man
hood The city must refuse TO be
stampeded. San Francisco must not