Los Angeles herald., 1910-02-10
HERMANN CALLED
oily POLITICIAN
HENEY OUTLINES CHARACTER
OF ACCUSED OFFICIAL
CONVENTIONS OF GoVERNM ENT
ARE SUMMED UP
Prosecutor Says Ambition for Sena-
torial Toga Caused Accused
to Wink at Dishon.
est Acts
TAssociated Pressl


PORTLAND, Ore, Feb. 9.-Francis j.
Heney today made his argument to the
jury which is trying the case of former
Congressman Binger Hermann, charged
with conspiracy to defraud the govern
ment, and told them why the govern
ment is asking conviction.
Mr.. Heney spoke in an easy conVersa-
tional tone, rarely raising his voice,
| but he nevertheless held the undivided
attention of the court and jury and a
court room full of spectators through
out the long day.
Mr.. Heney took up Hermann's per-
| sonal character and mentioned that es-
| timable men had testified that it was
good. He said he wished to direct at
tention to Col. Harvey w. Scotts testi-
mony, especially one editorial he pub
lished in his newspaper. as best de-
Scribing Hermann's character. This
editorial stated that Hermann was a
perpetual office seeker; that he was
not high type Of statesman, generally
wrong on the money and tariff ques-
tions, but he was sleek and oily poll
tician, in palaver and JUNCTION unsur-
passed.
"Palaver unsurpassed, JUNCTION unsur-
passed." explained Heney. Certainly
on the witness stand he was 'palaver
unsurpassed and certainly he was an
oily politician.
Federal Contention
Heney said the government did not
contend that Hermann received intrin-
sic compensation for the part he played
in the alleged conspiracy, but it did
claim that he was a perpetual candidate
for United States senator, and that he
kept men like Special Agents Ormsby
| and Loomis in office year after year
when he knew they were dishonest, SO
that these men might advance his SEN
atorial candidacy, pretending all the
| While that we were deceived by the
| character of our agents in the field"
Heney asserted that Hermann not
only winked but closed his eyes tightly
and permitted vast frauds TO be perpe-
trated by that gang of politicians in
| oregon who could advance his chances.
| The speaker said that if a gang of
men wanted to get a reserve created so
as to get fraudulently the school lands
they would select a location for a re-
serve where one ought to be located,
such as the Blue Mountain reserve.
| If they believed a certain government
official was honest in his public utter
ances and that he opposed Withdrawals
of public lands from entry because of
the frauds perpetrated, declared Heney,
they never would 60 near him, but if
they believed that he was a sleek and
oily politician whose public utterances
were to make his constituents think he
was all right and that he was talking
| to the gallery" then he would be just
the kind of man they would approach.
A Crafty Man
Heney declared that Hermann was a
crafty man. A characteristic indica-
tion of this that while not appearing TO
want the senatorship, he was making
a continual effort to obtain it.
Another indication, the prosecutor de-
| clared, was his attempt while testi-
flying, to make it appear that former
Secretary of the Interior Hitchcock
was an enemy of the people; that he
had never made any effort to secure
the repeal of the lieu land law and
the lumber and stone act but that
Hermann himself was the only one
who tried to secure such repeal
! The facts as shown by the defen-
dant's own witnesses, Heney said,
were that Hitchcock made as great
an effort to get these laws repealed
as Hermann did.
Mr.. Heney talked at length on the
anonymous letter from Oregon which
was received in the general land office
| In 1900.
This gave full explanation of how
the land spectators were defrauding
the government.
Accusing Letters
| Two days later, the prosecutor said.
when Hermann received the Zabris-
kie letter and the Holzinger report, the
one advising Hermann of frauds in the
| Blue Mountain reserve and the other
| confirming its revelations, Hermann
knew that they We're conclusive evil
| dence of guilt
| At first he tried to conceal the Ia
briskie letter and the Hozinger re-
port and when that failed he declared
that he had never seen the citizen let
ter, although, Heney asserted, it has
been proved that Hermann ordered that