Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1908-01-11
3rlIBONE IS FREE
LTT7II TINl TllTTT WI ITTW TT7HIT777
Jury FINDS MOT GUILTY"
lin noted IOAHO CASE.
Meyer is Freed Also by Judge Wood
Orchards Trial at Caldwell Next
Term of Court-Simpkins Still at
Larqe-Pettibone Very Sick Man
Goes to Denver.

Boise, Idaho. Jan. 5.-The end of
the prosecution of the men charged
with the murder of Ex-Governor Frank
Steunenberg, with the exception of the
cases of Harry Orchard and Jack
Simpkins, came Saturday with the ac-
auittai of George A. Pettibone Charles
IL. Meyer, president of the Western
leased later and will return with Pet
tibone in few days to Denver.
The case of Orchard, the self-con.
fessed assassin of Steunenberg, is in
the hands of Prosecuting Attorney
Van Duyn of Canyon county No state
ment as to the future procedure in
that case has been made. but it will be
called during the next term of court
at Caldwell, when it will probably he
finally disposed of.
Simpkins, a member of the eXecu-
tive board of the Western Federation
of Miners, who is charged with COM
plicity in the crime, is a fugitive from
justice, and the charge against him
will stand.
When the Meyer case was called by
Judge Wood, James II. Hawley, repre-
senting Prosecuting Attorney Van
Duyn, signIfied the desire of the state
TO have an order of dismissal entered.
81 am satisfied" said Judge Wood,
that the course taken by the district
attorney and decided upon by attor-
neys for the state is the proper course
to be taken in the matter. l have
watched the evidence carefully. so far
as the connecting and corroborating
evidence under the statute was con-
cerned and it's application to this de
fendart, and there has certainly moth
ing been developed in the cases that
would justify the court In submitting
the case against him to jury, unless
there was considerable additional con-
Meeting testimony than that which has
been shown in the two cases that have
been tried, and for that reason the
case will be dismissed and an order
entered generating the bail of the
defendant"
MCGEE and Allen Also Freed.
At the request of the state the cases
against DR.. MCGEE and C. w. Allen,
charged with perjury by reason of tes-
timony given by them in the Haywood
case, was also dismissed. Although the
Pettibone jurors agreed that their de-
alterations should be kept secret, 1t
has been learned that on the first
ballot the vote was to 4, the major
ity being for acquittal. The second
ballot resulted in vote of to 3. The
third 10 to 2, and so it remained all
through the night The two holding
out for conviction were finally won
over.
Pettibone and Meyer received many
kilograms of congratulation, chiefly
from Colorado friends. Petibone, a.
though ill for the last two weeks,
walked to the local headquarters Of
the Western Federation.
No demonstration of any kind
marked the reading of the verdict
which made Pettibone a free man.
After two years Imprisonment
awaiting trial. the defendant, pale and
emaciated because of his long illness.
merely smiled as he heard of his free
dom, and a moment later he was SUI
rounded by his attorneys and friends
His wife, who has been by his side
at every session of the court during
the trial, wept for JOY.
Attorney barrow Happy.
Los Angeles, Jan, SIT is unneces-
sary for me to say" barrow said,
that l am delighted. l am gratife1
beyond measure. had, of course,
expected an acquittal."
Mr. barrow then dictated the fol-
lowing message to George A. Petit
bone: Congratulations; come here.
have flowers enough for two funerals. -
Commenting further upon the result,
Mr. barrow said:
There was never anything to these
cases but Orchard. He related a weird,
fantastic, exciting story, but there was
no confederation of it that tended of
itself to incriminate anybody The
country had seen in the Haywood trial
what a monster liar he was. 1t was
not safe to take the life of any man
on such testimony. In the Pettibone
trial the people had become accus
toned to the story of Orchard and
thoroughly discredited it. Very little
attention was paid to it,
81 should think that the prosecution
would now dismiss the case against
President Meyer.
Even Orchard testified to very little
against him. and no one else did. This
fact that he was admitted to bal
showed that the prosecution held theil
case as being weak"