The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-06-19

the stand and testifes to having gone
with--Ford to the mint and obtained
the first $4,000, and having gone with
him when he got the second S50.009.
and yet Mr.. Abbott didn't have an
mixing of what the money was for. II
may have been some secret purchase
that the United Railroads was about to
make. Mr.. Abbott, we may assume.
was a confidential assistant of Mr..
Ford. 1fsthe matter was a legitimate
and lawful secret enterprise IL is
strange that Mr.. Abbott was not told
about it. II it was an illegfumate and
crooked transaction it is not strange
the position where nobody except AbTa-
| ham Ruef and himself could testify
to what occurred between them.
LEGITIMATE DEAL IMPROBABLE
So say it was natural for Mr.. Cal
houn not TO tell Mr.. HolbroOk. pro-
vded he had a crooked deal on hand,
but If he had an honest deal on hand,
a straight deal on hand it is utterly
| improbable that he did not tell MI
Holbrook how he intended TO permit
| the people of San Francisco to decide.
| If it was straight deal on hand it is
utterly improbable and is contrary TO
reason and therefore 1t does net raise
reasonable doubt in any mans MIND.
1t is utterly improbable that no mem
| Der OF the board OF directors would
! hear of the 100000 coming TO the
mint If it was for some legitimate
purpose.
They admit that they were putting
| in a new cable system on Suffer street.
and they admit that the cable system
cost as much to construct as the con-
| duit system and We know that IL is
constructed in exactly the same way;
! and it is shown in proof here, and IL Is
shown by these reports of experts that
it costs less to operate the underground
conduit than ii does to operate the cable;
and they have admitted here in this
letter that IL can be operated, but is
more efficient than the cable. There
could only have been one reaSOn-that
they didn't want the demonstration,
and that is the reason that there IS
opposition to the Geary street road
/ being made an underground conduit.
| even at the present time. because IL
| will become a demonstration OF what
requires no demonstration to any man
/ who has visited Washington in the last
1 five or six years or has visited New
4 York in the last five or six years, who
/ has had the demonstration there he
doesn't require to have it made over
again here.
What does that mean-"the contin-
ued or threatened use of the cable
/ SYSTEM"
SEEK TO GEORGE PEOPLE
! Why, it was being threatened on SUIT
| ter street. And was that the reason
TO coerce the people? Why. of course
| it was; the threatened use of the caOle
system on Suffer- street was to coerce
and all the property owners on suffer
street to consent TO the overhead troll
/ ley. to get rid of what was there then.
And. as pointed out a moment ago,
because of the demonstration that
would have been made IL the under
] ground had been put there.
/ Why, some of the members OF the
board had already expressed them
! selves at the time of election and had
said that they favored the underground
conduit for Suffer street. Had Mr..
/ that they had changed on that sub
| iect? Had Mr.. Ruef reported back to
/ him even at that time2 Was Gal
/ lagher mistaken in his dates? Had
/ Had the newspaper controversy In re-
| gard to the overhead trolley given
who had been eating fresh meat al
ready so recently Did they see from
| what was in the newspapers by way OF
an agitation on the overhead trolley
/ matter that there was something COM
/ ing through pretty soon? We're they
! looking for it already? And had Mr..
| Calhoun been apprised of the fact as
| to how much it would take?
! They could have started their cable
and they could have given the ~~p-ie
/ Of San Francisco, inside of a week,
good service on Market street with
their cable But no, the deal had been
made before the fire. There was the
/ opportunity for carrying it out. And
word was given out that they could
/ not put it back into shape for a year.
/ That would satisfy the average man
| who would not investiga for him
self. and everybody wanted transpor-
| tation, and it would be a rood excuse
/ for the board of supervisors and Ruef
| wouldn't lose any political prestige.
And so we find MIR. Ford going to
| find at once preparations are made.
And in addition TO that they had al
ready been granted the temporary per-
nit by the mayor on Saturday. Mr..
| to know more than his testimony would
| indicate.
WITNESSES HAD POOR MEMORY
| Talk about II recollect'' being a
/ badge of falsehood in a witness as
Mr.. Moore claims, what witnesses had
! this Stand-the Doodle taking super
visors or the gentlemanly oficials of
the United Railroads? What super
visor will you match in forgetfulness
with Mr.. Mutually? Why. he hardly
knew he was alive, in the days follow
ing the fire, except that he was very
remember any of the important things
about which he was asked. He doesn't
even remember having gone TO Ruef's
office. In fact. declares he did not go
there. And there could be no possible
reason for Charley Heggerty, Ruefs
| office boy. swearing that he did go
there, II he didn't.
| What does Starr remember? After
being away long enough to forget he
come back here; sneaks in. 1t is true
| he registered at the Fairmont hotel
I
room; he went right over to his home
| He had seen Mr.. Mutually in New YORK:
| he had told Mr.. Mutually that he wanted
/ to come out and / asked him what
reply Mr.. Mutually made, and his an
1 swer was that he didn't say anything.
Now, wasn't Mr.. SpreckeIs justified
when Mr.. Phelan reported back and
this letter appeared In the newspapers,
and Mr.. Phelan reported that the way
| in which Mr.. Calhoun attended to leave
| 1t TO the people of San Francisco to
! decide, as to who Mr.. Spreckels had
already made up his mind that they
were boodlers, because Mr.. Spreckels
! had previously agreed to raise fund
of 500 900 to prosecute Ruef and the
Doodle board and to have Mr.. Heney
undertake the work. Wasn't he iusti-
1 fed then. when this letter came in
saying to himself. why, this is a
! himflam game on the part of Mr.. Cal
houn. He proposes to bride the board
/ of supervisors and give the citv of
| San Francisco $500 900 merely as a 500
| to prevent IL from destroying the po-
/ litical supremacy of Abraham Ruef, Tor
Ruef TO put through a thing that was
so opposed 10 the wishes of the people
of San Francisco?
CALHOUN's CHARACTER
PORTRAYED
III he was willing to put the under
ground conduit on Suffer. why not on
Market IL he was willing to put 1t