Los Angeles herald., 1908-09-25

The councils special committee for
investigation of the charges against
George Vacher, city dog catcher, and
his assistants put In six hours yester-
day, but did not finish hearing the tes-
timony of the witnesses provided by
Mrs. L. e. Giese, the humane off1cer
who preferred the charges. Niles Pease,
president of the council, and Councll-
men Lyon, Dromgold and Blanchard,
who compose the committee, were pres
ent. Councilman Lyon presided at the
meetings, which were held in the coun-
Gil chamber.
Members of the committee were in
dignant at the tactics adopted by At
torney w. w. Wideman, who appeared
for the dog catchers, and after the
afternoon adjournment seriously dis
cussed barring lawyers from the hear
ing this morning. Wideman took UP
more than half the time of the COM
mittee with what the members con-
sidered trivial objections and a dis
cussion of technicalities such as the
actual decease of a dog said to have
received its quietus.' In consequence
a hearing which ordinarily would have
been finished in two or three hours was
dragged through two long sessions yes
terday and will be taken up again at
10 o'clock this morning.
Damaging Evidence
Testimony brought out yesterday
tended to show that the city dog
catcher has purchased dead dogs and
puppies to collect money on. This was
sworn to by Addison Johnson, who was
formerly employed by Vacher, and by
Dan Jones, who said he sold the dog
catcher a dead dog and eight young
puppies and collected $3.50 for them.
Evidence was also introduced to show
that dogs had been secured outside the
city limits and that decoy dogs were
used by the dog catchers to secure
dogs. on some of which the license had
been paid.
Addison Johnson said the practice
of scalping puppies ana dogs found
dead was a common one while he was
employed by Vacher. Mrs. Giese
charged that the practice of securing
young puppies and raising them at the
pound until oil enough to be scalped
was carried on in a wholesale way.
Peter Mcneil, a former deputy of
Vacher's, was accused of being the
owner of decoy dog. Mcneil was put
work for Vacher. Captain Dodds, pro-
baton officer at the juvenile court,
testified that Mcneil is a minor who
has served a term in the Whittier
school, from which he is now out on
probation. Another minor who was
given q star by Vacher is j. Chris
topher who swore that he will be q
years old next January.
Wideman's attitude toward the wit
nesses struck snag when he tackled
Dan Jones, the colored man who testl-
fled to selling puppies to be scalped at
the pound. Jones proved a suave wit
ness and answered Wideman's insults
with an elaborate pollteness.
Attorney Fails
Wideman endeavored at the outset
to have the matter taken entirely out
of the councils lnds by raising the
objection that no authority existed to
compel the attendance of witnesses.
When Il is was jverruled he endeav-
ored to drill the statement into the
witnesses and 20 frighten them by the
statement that Mrs. Giese's attorney,
Grant Jackson, was endeavoring to i'm
peach them.
The Vachers claim that they will
have ten witnesses for every one pro-
duced by the Humane officers. Mem
bers of the council committee are dis
posed to finish up the hearing this
morning and will cut short any draw
ing out of the proceedings.
The purpose of the charges as
brought by Mrs. Giese is to secure the
establishment of a new pouad system
and to prevent the Vacher family from
having any connection with it.