The Topeka state journal., 1911-08-01
GIVES ALL FACTS.
Continued from Page one.l

!
ton of whether House drank beer in
Erie or nearbeer.
House Denies 1t Was Erie.
1t now develops that J. E. House,
the newspaper man mixed up in the
Dawson -StubbS controversy, did not
drink beer in Erie at all, on the occa-
sion referred to by the attorney gen
eral in his answer to the governors
mandamus suit. Dawson simply
| jumped at conclusions when he as
lsumed that Erie was the town referred
/ to by House in his newspaper letter
wherein he spoke of drinking beer
over a bar in a country town.
House declined today to give an in
terview in regard to the attorney gen.
erals answer, filed in the supreme
court, but when asked point blank if
Erie was the town he had in mind, he
replied that it was not. 1t might
have been any one of a dozen towns in
eastern Kansas, according to Mr.
House.
MI. House knew that they sold
"silver top in Erie, and on the last
occasion he visited down there was
offered some of the stuff He did
not drink it, however, as he did not
like it. But he knew it was silver
! top" when it was offered to him.
The following extracts from the at
torney generals answer set forth the
latter's defense in the House case:
Questions Governors Right.
the right OF W. r. Stubbs as governor
to bring this action in the name of the
state of Kansas on his relation, and
alleges that the name of the state as
plaintiff has not been invoked herein
! by the attorney general, or by any
county attorney, or by any officer au-
thorized by law to bring such action
! in the name of the state of Kansas,
nor does plaintiffs petition state a
cause of action against defendant, and
1 defendant respectfully submits THAI
this cause should be dismissed.
! Defendant denies the fact to be
that the letter of the said J. E. House
4 to defendant contained any informa-
| tion of any value to defendant regard
| ing violations of the prohibitory law in
various cities in this state, and denies
that it contained any true information
| of which this defendant was not al
ready better apprised than Mr. J. E.
1 House. and denies the allegation that
said letter contained nothing of a per-
sonal character, but admits that it
contained nothing which should not
/ be seen by the chief executive charged
with the faithful execution of the laws
/ of the state, and denies that the in
formation in said letter will aid the
! chief executive in the performance of
/ his duties in that regard, and defend
/ ant sets out said personal letter of Mr..
! House and refers to the same else
where in this answer.
Defendant further says that about
I the same time, and on the 7th day of
/ July. 1911, defendant had a personal
| conversation with the said J. E. House
! in which Mr.. House declined to give
any information concerning the mat
/ ters aforesaid; and defendant was call
ed upon to exercise his best discretion
| as to whether or not he would insti-
tute an inquisition and subpoena Mr..
House under the statute, or seek other
| sources of information concerning the
! same. And while defendant denies the
right of plaintiff to examine and re-
1 view this discretion and denies the
| right of this honorable court to re-
/ view and examine this discretion vet
| in candOr and out of respect to the
| court defendant says that he deter
1 mined not to subpoena Mr.. J. e. House
! for the reason that Mr.. House would
| decline to give the information and
! that defendant would be compelled to
| prosecute the said J. E. House for
/ misdemeanOr. in Shawnee county,
/ Kansas. the home of the said J. e
House. where he is highly respected
/ citizen; and defendant believes that
4 such prosecution would fail either
/ before the jury or perhaps be instruct
/ ed out of court on the ground that the
/ information that the said J. F. House
was Withholding from defendant was
/ of no service to a prosecuting officer
/ In the discharge of his duty: and that
such a prosecution would not only be
! ineffective but that it would tend to
/ bring contempt upon the attorney gen
erals Office and greatly DELAY and him
! der the cause of law enforcement and
tend to bring the prohibitory law into
ridieule.
Had Other Means of Information.
'On the other hanG this defendant
! has many sources Of inrorTnati-Y. con-
corning the violations of the prohibi-
| tory law, and at the time he made the
/ determination not to subpoena Mr. J.
E. House he believed that within a
/ re&SOna BILE time he could gather the in
formation withheld by Mr. House without
resarting TO su-h drastic measures to
| secure it, and in due time. as soon as
his manifold duties would permit he
set on foct inquiries and did locate
| the small toWH TO which Mr. House
referred in his newspaper article, which
| small town is the city of Erie and the
| dry territory referred to by Mr. House
is the county of Neosho and the small
/ club referred to by Mr.. House is the
! Erie club located in a brick building
two stories high situated on lot if
| teen 05). block eight (S), city of Erie
| proper. That the said small club is a
social club composed of a number of
respectable citiZers Of the city Of Erie,
and Hon. Seth G. Wells, formerly audi
tor of state. is president Of said club,
| and that il the club room proper there
is not now and has not been at any
time within the past two years a bar
within tie precincts of the club nor any
| to~ ~ati1g Hduers sold thereat or
therein, but associated herewith on
the ground floor in the same building
is q restaurant conducted by one Chas.
Willison and connected with said rest
auraHt in open vicw Herewith, where
all may see, is a bar over which IS
sold openly and publiciy a certain de-
doct;on or beverage entitled:
That Nearbecr.
s'Silver Top. a delightfully."- ccol. re-
freshing and iDvigorating beverage
| made from the famous Holiday -pring
waters and TIE choicest of materials.
Guaranteed by Us under the national
pure food and drugs act. June so. 1906.
and also Under the state pure food
and drug laws. An unf-rmented bev-
49,, aist, h.. I ic11lil E-acfl