The evening times., 1911-04-24

ACS AZ tuo 6IdI0, OF ulHOarue0t from
practice Of law. Conviction would
also mean the removal OF Judge Cow
an from Office.
There will be forty-eight senator's
voting on the impeachment, only one
member having been permanently ex-
cused. To avoid impeachment it will
require only sixteen votes, while
thirty-three will be necessary to con-
vict. Senator Movius of Richland
county has been absent from the trial
up to the present time, but a SUBJ
poenae has been served upon him to
attend the remainder of the trial.
Net Every Charge.
In many particulars this trial must
stand forth prominently as being un-
usually interesting. The manner in
which the charges of the prosecution
have been met by the defense has been
peculiar, flat-footed denials being
made of every charge that has been
lodged against him Of drunkenness in
public places and drunkenness upon
the bench. 1t is on the latter charge
that particular attention has been CIV
en- by both sides, as it is generally
conceded that even though Judge
Cowan might have been proven to
have been under the influence of Ii
quor once or twice outside of the
courtroom, it would be difficult mat
or to impeach.
= here arc several instances in
No drunkenness upon the bench is
CHI 70, There are two Rugby Incl
denth q or three drug permit hear
ings, IN e. 'tion to one or two other
incidents\ ~ have been alleged to
have, have taken / en- q in the courtroom at
during the June I'm OF court, 1909,
is the one on which the prosecution
will in all probability be given par
ticular attention in rebuttal. This is
the one that Scott Rex has testified
to, and in contradiction of whom sew
eral attorneys have been called, maxi
ing fiat footed denials of any intoxica-
tion upon the part of the accused.
The charge of drunkenness during
the times the drug permit cases we're
before him in Devils Lake have also
been fatty denied, as have the several
other cases Of this nature. 1t is look
ed upon either as question if mis-
taken judgment or of deliberate mis-
statement and it is for the court Of
impeachment to determine which Of
the two actually exists.
With regards to the Minot stock
yards incident, the Minot law office
incident, the Churchs Ferry depot
platform, Lakota hotel, three election
day, Hansboro, Bisbee and Gilbertson
store incidents, there has also been
absolutely fiat denials of guilt. The
Minot incidents, Churchs Ferry and
Gilberts0n store incidents are not in
cluded in the specifications, hence the
court does not take any vote upon
those, evidence on them having been
introduced by the state merely for the
purpose of proving the general charge
Of habitual drunkenness.
Drugstore Charges.
On the charges of frequenting drug
stores and purchasing liquor therein,
no evidence was introduced by the
defense, the manner in which this
charge has been met being largely
that Of attempting impeachment of
the witnesses for the prosecution, to-
gether with the revealing Of prejudice
against Judge Cowan upon the part
of those witnesses. There was not a
great deal Of evidence on those charg-
es for the prosecution, either.
Generally speaking, it is practically
entirely upon the question of drunken
ness that the outcome of the case
hinges, and it is to those charges that
both prosecution and defense have
given their attention.
| 1t has been the purpose of the de-
tense throughout to show that the
case is nothing more or less than the
outcome of the political fight that does
and has existed in the city of Devils
Lake for number of years, with
Judge. Cowan on one side and the fac
tion that is pushing the Impeachment
case on the other side.
Will the Impeachment Go.
That this case has resulted in the
creation of a spirit or sentiment an
tagonistic to the principle of the i'm
peachment there Is no doubt, and such
sentiment will without question be
found in the next legislative assem-
bly, in the Introduction of bills that
will propose new methods of dealing
with questions Of this nature. That
the bringing of an impeachment case
into the state senate, purely a politi-
cal body. cannot bring about the di-
vorcing Of the political phase of the
situation, is admitted, but just what
method can be determined upon as a
substitute Is difficult to say.
Many Features Injected.
There have been so many features
injected into the proceedings that in
reality have no connection with it,
that in some instances the real issue
has been befogged. Through certain
newspapers of the state attacks have
been made upon different members of
the court, and marked copies of those
papers find their way regularly into
the. court chamber. In fact, an at
tack published upon one member was
mailed to every other member of the
court.
Practically everything that has hap
pened in Devils Lake in the last two
or three years has in some manner
or other cropped out during the trial,
and anywhere from an ordinary dog
fight to near-murder seemingly has
been brought into the limelight as
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