The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-06-19

the men charged with Offering the
bTibeS.
The Oliver grand jury. empanelcd
under the direction of Mr. Heney In
October. 1906. heard the confessions
of the supervisors on March 10, 1907,
and during a period of is hours re-
turned over 800 indictments against
various persons charged with COM
plicity in the briberies.
Mr.. Calhoun together with Abraham
Ruef and three subordinate officials
of the United Railroads was indicted
on fourteen counts. three of which
were returned by later grand jury. 1t
was charged that the corporation had
secured from the supervisors in May
81, 1906, permit authorizing substi"
tuition of the overhead trolley system
for the cable lines partially destroyed
by the earthquake and fire of April
16. 1906. Calhoun and the other de
PENDANTS were accused OF having paid
Ruef SchmitZ and the supervisors
5000 900 for their services in securing
the permit for the company and each
indictment was based upon the money
TIrey l.. Ford, general counsel for
the railroads. was ono oil the officials
implicated in the indictments and
during a period Of eight months was
tried three times. In the first in
stance a disagreement resulted and in
two subsequent trials Ford was ac-
quilted. Ruef's trial upon one OF the
SO called trolley indictments WAS conf
menced on August n, 1908. There
was an interruption OF several days
subsequent TO November IS, when
Francis ]. Heney was shot down In
the court room by an eX-convict who
subsequently committed suicide In the
county Jail and three volunteer prose-
cutors took the case which ended Dc
cember 10, 1908. when a jury returned
a verdict Of guilty.
On December % Ruef was sentenced
10 fourteen years in San Quentin pen
itentiary and since then has been con-
fined in the county jail, awaiting ac-
ton on an appeal to the higher court.
The prosecution during the several
trolley trials has attempted TO provo
that Calhoun on the day following the
final passage of the permit, sent from
New York to the mint in this CITY
5000 600, which he previously author
lied the mint officials to pay 10 TREY
l.. Ford The money, as is admitted.
was withdrawn in three installments
by Ford. who presented orders S,sneu
by Calhoun. il was alleged by the
prosecution that within a few days
after each OF Fords visits TO the mint
NO received a call from Ruef
Following this theory James L. Gal
lagher. chairman of the supervisors,
testified that Ruef had paid him over
$4,000 in July and an equal amount
in the following month Galihgner
declared that he had retained Slb,ouo
for himself. had paid $4,000 10 An
drew NJ. Wilson. one of his lieuten.
ants. and had given $4,000 TO each .ot
the supervisors 1t was affirmed ny
the prosecution that Ruef and Schmitz
divided tho balance OF the Iund
to about S1l5.0oo.
The specific indictment upon whicn
Calhoun was tried was the offer OF
a bribe of $4,000 10 Supervisor Fred T.
Nicholas, to influence his action up
ON the trolley permit Nicholas call
ed as the first witness admitted the
acceptance OF the money for that purT
pose.
Since the trial first commenced
great number of new issues. more or
less important, have been presented
for the jury's consideration.
In March when the trial was near
" two months old. warrants were is-
sued for the arrest of several men
charged with stealing documents from
the Office OF William J. Burns, special