The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1911-11-10
SHURTLEFF SAYS
HE ASKED BRJ II Ne
Former Speaker Acknowledges
Helping LOrimer.
MIR. ShurtIeff Enlisted Support OF
Minority Leader-Ira C. CopIey At
tributes His Support of Lorimer
to Desire to Defeat Hopkins.

The support of Lee O'Neil Browne
Tor Senator Lorimer was enlisted
by him, testified Edward d. Shurtleff,
speaker of the Illinois house during
the 1909 session, before the Lorimer
investigating committee of the United
States senate in Chicago.
Mr. Shurtleff said he approached Mr..
Browne on the subject at the sugges-
ton of either Senator Lorimer or one
of his close friends
His personal solicitation Of the aid
of the man who is accused Of having
acted as paymaster for Senator Lori
mer was one of the features Of Mr..
Shurtleff's testimony In the two
hours he was OH the stand he told a
good deal of the inside history of the
senatorial deadlock and of his election
at the beginning of the session as
speaker through bipartisan combina-
ton
Ira c. Copley, member of congress
from Aurora and ancient enemy Of
Former United States Senator Albert
]. Hopkins, also an Aurora resident,
was also a witness. Mr. Copley's testi-
mony related to his opposition to Mr..
Hopkins and also to the statement by
James Kelley that he had informa-
ton regarding the Hopkins plot to + r.
chase Democratic votes.
He said he visited Mr. Lorimer in
December, 1908, and asked him to be-
come a candidate for senator. but that
Mr.. Lorimer refused on the ground
that he preferred to remain in the
house. Mr. Copley said he would have
liked to have aided in the election of
Governor Deneen as senator, but that
his chief purpose all along was to de-
feat Hopkins.
Edmund Burke of Sangamon county
explained before the Lorimer investi-
eating committee of the United States
senate the circumstances leading to
Former Senator d. w. Holstlaw's con-
fession that he received $4,000 for his
Lorimer vote and 500 from the jack
pot Mr. Burke denied emphatically
that Mr.. Holstlaw was influenced to
frame up" a confession along certain
lines, as alleged by counsel for Sena.
tor Lorimer
Lee O'Neil Browne gave a better
account of the manner in which the
Lorimer forces lined up Republican
and Democratic votes for the senator
than any witness who has yet testi-
fed. There was no effort on his part
to pass responsibility along to some
one else.
For the most part Mr.. Brownies
story was similar to that which he
told before the former senatorial COM
mittee, although he was allowed to go
into greater detail.
He repeated his denials that he paid
Charles A. White, H. J. c. Beckemeyer,
Michael Link, and other Democrats of
his faction for their Lorimer votes or
that he had the slightest knowledge
OF corruption in the election of Sena-
tor Lorimer.
Always cool and self-possessed, r..
Browne invariably had an explanation
for his actions at the tip OF his tongue.
Neither John J. Marble, attorney for
the committee, who conducted the di-
rect examination, nor any of the SEN
ators was able to trap him.
Browne admitted that Lorimer COLI
tributed to the fund for his defense
in his two trials in Cook county and
that other prominent men, whose
names he could not remember, also
contributed; that he met Edward
Hines, who is alleged to have boosted
that he put Lorimer over" in Chi
cago
The admission that Senator Lorimer
contributed to the Browne defense
had never been made before, and
caused a sensation in the hearing. His
inability or unwillingness to tell the
names of other contributors reused
the committee to ask many questions
about the source of his defense fund.