The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-03-31

The ground OF Impeachment EN-.
brace, and those specified in the con.
stitution and statutes. !. e.--habitua
drunkenness. crimes, corrupt and NAL.
feasance and misdemeanor in ONCE.
Thereafter articles of impeachment
in pursuance thereof, were adopted b,
and It Is upon these articles, with tht
pleading of the defendant in response
thereto, that the issues are framed
which now come on for trial.
The prosecution OF these articles
was by the house Of representatives
entrusted to a board Of managers, con.
sisting of Chairman Geo Homnes, A
p. Hanson, VIM. ". O'Connor, r. A
Nestos and Robert Norheim.
The duties imposed upon the man
ayers have been delicate and onerou:
and the time allowed for the perform.
ance thereof has been very brief.
Presidents and reports of prior i'm.
peachments were few and not readily
accessible, and the managers were
therefore left largely without this most
valuable guide to aid them in the
solution OF the questions presented.
The tide of feeling ran high. excite.
ment was intense, and this added to
their difficulty.
/ The result of their labors is about
to be laid before you. In presenting
them, the managers say that they have
known no party and no craftsmanship;
they have recognized no faction, M
clique, no friend and no enemy, not in
terest no passion, prejudice, bias
antipathy or inclination.
The sole and only aim of the man
ayers has been to ascertain the pur-
pose and end of these proceedings
as outlined in the constitution and the
statutes and carry that purpose and
end into effect without fear or ia
Yor.
The articles of impeachment, en-
brace eight charges with a total of
ninety specifications and 1 shall brief
ly state the substance of these charges
and outline the evidence which will
be submitted in support thereof. to-
gether with such a reference to the
statutes and the common law touching
thereon as may seem advisable.
Charge 1. This article includes but
one specification, the substance OF
which is that Mr. CoWan, being judge
has been habituaIly addicted to the
excessive use, Of intoxicating liquors
to the extent that his mental facul-
ties and physical powers have been
impaired to a noticeable degree. and
that his periods Of intoxication have
been so frequent and protracted as to
materially interfere with the perform
ance Of his duties as judge.
This specification includes, there
fore, charges of private as well as OF
public intoxication.
In support thereof, therefore, the
managers must submit all the testi-
mony which will be submitted in sup
port of the eighteen specifications OF
the second charge, and in addition
will call witnesses to testify to some
forty or fifty other instances of in
toXication, both public and private, al
the same time presenting, as graphi-
cally as possible, the result of the
qualification of these appetites by the
accused upon his conduct of the du-
ties of his office.
The managers have not gone back
of the year 1905, deeming it unneces-
sary to show more than conditions
existing during the past four or five
years; during the year 1906, two OF
three specific instances Of drunken
ness will be established, most of them
in public place. and which might
have been specified under the second
charge; each year thence forward the
number of such incidents increases
save perhaps 1906. while the culmna-
ton comes in 1910, during which year
they became as frequent as almost II
not quite one per month, beginning
with the Slayen's trial at Rugby in
January, 1910, where he delayed the
trial of the case for thirty-six hours
or more; the case was set for Tues
day morning, Jan. %, 1910, it was an
important case; it had been transferred
from McHenry county; jury had been
called; Judge Cowan left Devils Lake
on Monday, Jan. "a. and reached Rug
by shortly after noon of that day; al
though distant less than three blocks
from the hotel he was unable to reach
the courtroom until Wednesday after
noon, more than forty eight hours
thereafter; during the progress Of the
trial he fell asleep because of the ex-
hausted mental and physical faculties
During this thirty-six hour period
he kept to his rooms in the hotel
gratifying his appetite for strong
drink, the jurors, the witnesses, the
attorneys and court officials stood
about the streets and in the court
room, discussing the condition; dur
ing the progress Of the trial he fell
asleep and the disgrace of the judi
ciary was increased by the spectacle
of bets being made in the presence OF
the jury relative to some incident OF
the trial; the ruling he might make
or the period that would elapse be-
fore he should awaken.
Upon city election day of that year
april ~ he appeared upon the
streets of his home city under, the in
fiuence of liquor.
On primary election day, (June 29,)
he repeated the spectacle.
Later in the year, (Oct. 15,) after
an effort had been made to cleanse
his home city of the unwholesonne
conditions alleged there to be existing
he entered into an alteration at the
postoffice with a minister relative
thereto: protesting against the efforts
then being made to stamp out the
trade in Intoxicating liquors carried
on in Devils Lake; this minister will
testify that Mr. Cowan at that time
was under the influence of intoxi-
eating liquor.
On Oct. 81, 1910, hearing had been
called before him upon petition for
the cancellation of the druggists per-
mits at Devils Lake; among the petit
TONERS and persons interested in such
cancellation were many estimable
ladies; these ladies attended at the
hearing: the hearing was set for Z