The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1910-03-04
Senator FIatly Denies That
tie Took Bribe.
CONTRADICTS BENZ CONGER.
Declares That Latter and Hiram G.
Moe Testified Falsely When
They Said He Accepted
$1,000 In Envelope.

Albany. n. Y. March 3. - Senator
Jotham p. Aids, who recently under |
charges OF bribery resigned his posts |
as president pro TEN. of the senate |
and as Republican majority leader |
went on the witness stand today be- |
fore the full senate, which as commit |
tee of the whole is sitting to investi /
gate the bribery scandal
Senator Aids made positive denial |
of the bribery charges. insisting that
his continued opposition to all legis |
lative measures aimed to give high |
way commissioners the right to spend |
eXtravagant sums for bridge construc
tion was the motive prompting Sena- |
tor Benn Conger to first oppose the
election of Aids to the senate leader !
ship and, secondly to back up his OPP
position with the bribery statement
Aids branded as false the story told
by Senator Conger and Hiram G. Moe
to the effect that Aids demanded ST.
900 to kill legislation hostile to the
bridge companies and that Moe hand
ed him $1,000 in an envelope in the
assembly lobby on April 23, 1901.
1t is expected that the testimony
and cross examination of Aids will
last four days, that counsel on both
sides will sum up next week and that
the senate will be in a position to vote
on March 10 if it sees fit to do so at
that time.
Hiram G. Moe of Groton was fairly
outdone in the Aids trial by George
j. Daniels. assistant postmaster at
Norwich. Aids home town. and
marvel at details that make him as
confident that Aids did not get an en-
velope on April 23, 1901, containing
$1,000 as Moe is that he did.
All of that eventful day when Benn
Conger and Moe said the three en-
velOpes containing the corruption fund
were handed out Daniels swore he
was in the constant company Of Sena
tor Aids According to the witness
Aids was not in the ways and means
committee room at the time Conger
and Moe swear the bribe was slipped
to the senator.
Examined by Mr.. Carr Daniels said
that he had been assistant postmaster
at Norwich for four years. He was
clerk of the assembly ways and means
committee in 1901. He remembered
the last day of the session that year.
because the stenographer, Mr.. Gibbs,
was sick. Daniels was at the commit
tee room at s n. IN. Later Assembly
man Costello and Miss Barry. the ste
nographer, came into the room and,
hanging up his coat said to the wit
ness:
Il don't want you to get away from
this room today, for don't know what
minute | Slay need you"
Daniels gave in detail all of Mr..
Aids movements in the committee
room and said when Mr.. Aids went
out he told him to follow on. Daniels
said Mr.. Aids told him he was going
down to the governors room to get
the emergency messages that are usual
on the last day of the session.
In the executive chamber. Daniels
said Aids handed him an envelope
to take TO the senate clerk. Mr.. Aids
followed him to the senate floor and
was in sight of the witness while he
handed the envelope 10 the clerk. Mr.
Aids returned to the assembly, said
the witness, after instructing him to
go back to the committee room for pa
pers and to bring them to him in the
assembly chamber. Daniels said he
was in the ways and means committee
room at 10 o'clock and did not see
COnger then or any other time.
Asked if anything like the transac-
tions as Conger and Moe described,
which included the handing of the
! 81, 900 envelope to Aids. took place in
| the room, Daniels said il did not.
/ Although Judge Van Wyck of coun-
sci for Senator Conger went at Dan
/ iels severely ON cross examination and
had him admit that Aids had got him
a clerkship at Albany and was always
| his friend at Norwich the witness was
/ altogether as stolid as Moe and figured
as the third party for the defense
equally as successfully as did Moe,
who said he delivered the goods"