The San Francisco call., 1909-02-27
POLITICS BEHIND
GRAND JURY FIGHT
Politician Who Whipped Push"
in Forty-fifth Victim OF
Covert Attack
Secret of Grafter's Assault on
Grand Jury Barred as
Ring Plot

Luke Fay the democratic politician
and capitalist. is the grand juror
against whom George A. Knight, at
torney for A. K. Detweiler fugitive
Home telephone company official di-
rected his~covert attack before Judge
Cabaniss Friday afternoon. Knight
would not deny yesterday that Fay was
the man he had meant, although he
asked not to be quoted for publicat tion.
In an informal way he let it be under
stood that Fay was the individual whom
he had asserted was an employe of
William J. Burns. He declared that
the reason for his reticence was his
obligation to the court not to mention
the jurors name until he presented his
case.
FAY ADMITS TT, TOO
When Fay was interviewed he read
lily accepted the fact that he had been
singled out for the double attack on
District Attorney Langdon and him
self
Fay explained the opposition on the
part of the machine orator and attor-
ney for the graft interests on the as
sumption that for % years he,- Fay.
has been fighting both the democratic
and republican machines. He assumed
that knight and the higher up inter-
ests knight represents would feel as
If they were killing two birds with one
stone if they could embarrass District
Attorney Langdon and injure Fay with
the same missile.
Fay is to be sworn as a grand juror
this morning, along with his IS col
leagues on the inquisitorial body.
Judge Cabaniss has set the time for
impeachment and the appointment of
the foreman at $3.50 this morning.
George A. knight, in his subtle at
tack on Fay's qualifications as a grand
juror, said that he represented poor
widow who lost her savings in the
California safe deposit and trust COM
pany, and -intimated that he would
start an investigation of the district
attorneys Office for alleged misconduct
in granting immunity to J. Dalzell
Brown, manager of the defunct bank.
WILL SPEAK IN STREETS
IF I can not get a hearing before
the grand jury, knight. in his grand
Eloquent way, said yesterday, Il shall
go down south of Market street and,
speak in the street and arouse the
people"
Nor would. he admit that there was
any Interior motive on behalf of the
graft defense that has been called into
this fight against the district attorneys
Office
Luke Fay, in a statement made last
evening, stated that he has known for
q month that plot was brewing to
keep him off the grand jury. He said
that later he might speak more freely
on that particular matter. In regard
to knights attack on his qualifications
and affiliations. Fay said:
xrnur<- lSnn
The machine has had it in for me
for 25 years because l have always
fought machine methods in both the
republican and democratic parties.
have taken an active interest IN poll
tics since l was first able to vote, but
never but once ran for office, and
then simply because no other demo-
crat would take the nomination for
assemblyman.
The republican machine just now
nurses a grudge against me for the
work which L did at the last election.
This resulted in the election of Charles
Lightner to the assembly and the de-
feat of Louis Parente in the Forty
fifth, one of the strongest push dis
the younger anti-machine workers of
the district we exposed plot after plot
of the machine to stuff the registra-
tion. lists. The push" stopped at moth
but every time we baked their trick
cry.
guess it must be because we barred
their crookedness, SO often that the
push" crowd thought that 1 must be
Burns man or some kind of a de-
tective. But l never did any profess
sional detective work in my life. 1
have been in politics, fighting the ma
chine. for more than a score. of years
though and I have learned a thing or
two about its methods.
DEFIEs KNIGHTS INNUENDOEs
So far as knights innuendoes and
his statement. directed against me, to
the effect that / have been an employe
or am in any way closely identified
with William ]. Burns. 1 want to say
that such is absolutely not the case,
and / am willing to take the witness
stand before George A. knight or any
one else, and defy them to produce
scintilla of proof that 1 have been as
sociatad with Burns.
1t has been my experience in poll
tics that the machine and those fight
ing the graft prosecution are pretty
closely allied. and it would be killing
two birds with one. stone if Knight
and the machine and higherup forces
he represents could er1barrass or him
der Mr.. Langdon through me, and at