The San Francisco call., 1909-09-16
IN LONG REPLY
HCKFRT SAYS
SWEENEY LIED
Candidate for District Attorney
Answers Many Charges
of Labor Leader
Denies Truth of the Statements
Made in Speech at the
Heney Meeting


denial OF all the charges of cowardice.
anti -unionism and pro-Japanese activi-
ties made against him by John W.
Sweeney. former president of the San
Francisco labor council
Fickert issued yesterday long
statement, which not only denied the
charges actually made against him by
Sweeney. but some that Sweeney did
not make, and for the purposes of his
statement he accused Hiram w. John
son of attacking President Taft In
the course of his statement Fickert
says, Mr.. Sweeney also lies when he
says that ! was deserter from the
army
. STANDS As DRAFTED
When il was pointed out to Fickert
yesterday that Sweeney had not ac-
cused him of desertion from the army
3 OF which he was never a member. and
that Hiram W. Johnson had not men
TONED the name of President Taft in
his speech al the Novelty theater
Fickert declared that he was right by
necessary implication and permitted
. his statement TO stand as drafted.
He insisted that in criticising Secre-
tary Ballinger johnson had, by neces-
sary implication. made an unwarranted
attack on the president, and that
Sweeney's charge of desertiDg the flag
meant the same thing as desertion from
the army, Notwithstanding that deser
rion from the army is felony. Here
is F'ickert's statement exactly as he
gave il TO The Call:
The charges made against me at the
Heney meeting at the Novelty theater
on September 1, while L was absent
discredited labor leader. are absolutely
false. He willfully and deliberately
lied in each and every statement made
hv him on that occasion 1t was a
wicked and malicious attack prompted
by persons who did not have courage
enough to make the statements them
selves. and so retained this assassin OF
character to act as their mouthpiece.
NEVER DROVE TEAM
sweeney knows he lied when he says
~scabted' during the teamsters
strike. I have never driven team OF
horses in San Francisco in my life.
During the teamsters' strike my SYM
pathy was strongly with the union
men, and especially so after Mayor
Phelan issued his tyrannfcal declara-
lions that If the teamsters did not go
10 work he would have them dubbed
until they did. During that time l
was practicing law and coaching the
Sta nford football team l had an of11ce
with W =. Kollmyer and E. R. Taylor,
the present mayor, Mr. Taylor and Mr.
KollmFer can verify this statement 1t
necessarily follows that Mr.. Sweeney
lied when he said that 1 got off of my
team and beat small boy.
Furthermore. I have never taken
case against organized labor, while, on
the. other hand, 1 have refused TO appear
as attorney in several Injunction cases
against union labor organizations.
am attorney for the international
ship builders and helpers of America
As their attorney l prevented Mr.
sweeney from disrupting their local
lodges and this. in part. explains his
willingness to lie about me- The other
part is the money he draws by grace
Of AIessrs. Spreckels and Phelan as sec
retaTy of the childrens playground
commission Necessarily he takes their
orders
In addition. have represented many
union men in personal injury cases
= gsinst public service corporations. On
tie other hand. my opponent, Mr.
Hepey. has always been bitterly OPP
posed to union labor, except when run
ming for Office. He accepted employ
-faeiTt from Mr.. Patrick Calhoun. as his
arbitrator and partisan in the rallro5d q
employees strike.>- and withdrew only
when more lucrative employment
presented itself.
: TIES ANOTHER CASE
He was the attorney who opposed
union labor in the case of Lowe ct al
ct al This case was tried in the United
States circuit court in San Francisco
IN 1905, and a most radical injunction
was obtained against organhiaeo h6; la5or,
from speaking or writing anything
, concerning the nonunion manufacture
of cornpIainants' hats. The precedent
established by Mr.. Heney resulted in
the decision in the Buck stove case
against the American federation OF
labor in which case Samuel Gompers,
Jobn Mitchell and the national secre-
tary of the American 1ederauon OF
labor were sentenced to imprisonment,
an action which bitterly aroused the
union men Of the country. Mr. sweeney
forgot 10 mention this fact ana, there-
fore. I take the liberty OF reierrihg
10 it
Mr.. Sweeney also lies when he says
that I had agreed to enter the army
and afterward refused, and that was
a deserter from the army During the
Spanish war the president had MADE
rreparations 10 call for additional sol
diers. l. with Others organized cav
airy troop and stood ready and waiting
the presidents call carpe Was 70 capsaldh sudden
end. and the additional men We're not
called for Thereupon 1 enlisted IN
Troop A, n. G. c.. and served out my
term and was promoted TO second
Lieutenant.
NO Stanford man who ever wore
uniform of his country would accuse
me of having cold feet" because they
are all brave men who would not de-
scend to perjury nor any other crime |
TO injure an opponent. They hight IN
the open. face to face, and have none
Of the assassins lust for stabbing an
adversary in the back. Some OF them
were killed in action. Dut tnose VINO |
returned will rally TO my campaign.
SAYS HE RESIGNED
Mr. Sweeney also lied when he said |
] was dismissed from the government |
service as assistant United States at /
torney. Il have in my possession |
copy of my letter of resignation and
the original letter Of the attorney gen. |
eral accepting my resignation. The
assertion that ] was dismissed for hav-
ing confused case of smuggling with
a violation of the quarantine law. is /
wiilfui fabrication During my term as
assistant United States attorney / won /
more cases in two years than Mr.. Heney /
did in four years while acting In /
similar capacity. Only one of my cases
was ever reversed on appeal / secured /
the first conviction in the land fraud |
cases.
ssThe statement that I have always |
taken sides with the Japanese against /
union labor. is also false. / have /
handled a number Of cases for Japanese
where Japanese were suing other jap /
anese. In the school case (which, by
the way, was a friendly suit brought 1
nv agreement under the suggestion OF
President Roosevelt to test the extent /
Of the treaty making powers of the
United States.) ] was retained on ac-
count of nv knowledge of federal pro-
cedure and accepted the services un-
: