The San Francisco call and post., 1913-12-19
COAL FIRM
DENIES ALL
Gull I
Western Fuel Attorney Says
Every Company in Country
Follows Same Practices

Every man In the coal business in
the United States is guilty of fraud If
the overrun. on which the government
| has based its indictments of the West
ern Fuel officials, is considered the re-
suit of conspiracy said Stanley
Moore, one of the attorneys for the
defense. during an argument with
Prosecutor Roche over a question that
was asked of David c. Norcross dur
ing the cross examination
! The defense brought out the fact
that the Folsom street plant of the
fuel concern Is the same today as 1t
was when the Western Fuel company
that the company had paid an average
annual dividend of 8 per cent during
its business life. The cross examina-
tion also brought out the fact that the
company experienced big losses in
handling Australian coal.
SPLIT COAL BUSINESS
On redirect examination Roche de-
veloped the fact that the Western
Fuel company during its early life
made contract with the Wellington
Colliery company to split the PROFITS
| of the coal business at this port 80
| 50.' The contract provided that one
/ concern should purchase Australian
| coal and the other British Columbia
coal. These two concerns had joint
control of the Western Transport COM
pany. which did all the barge business
of the Western Fuel company. While
the defense brought out the fact of
| the existence of the transport COM
pany as owner of the barges used by
! the Western Fuel company, it dis
/ guised the fact that John l.. Howard
was president of both concerns and
| that the Western Transport company
was absorbed by the Western. Fuel
| company in 1907. The transport COM
pany was paid. according to Norcross,
/ by the tonnage of the 'outturn,' or
the weight of coal delivered He
stated there was no other record of
| the weight.
Persisting in his sudden change of
| front, Edwin Powers failed to show
up at a second appointment TO meet
Special Prosecutors Matt /. Sullivan
/ and Theodore Roche last night and
! the government is still at loss to
know how important his testimony
will be in the Western Fuel company
! fraud trial.
| With only the statements made by
/ Edwin Powers before the grand jury
to guide them, the prosecutors an
nounced today the former assistant
superintendent OF the fuel concern
will be an early witness and a deter
mined effort will be made to learn all
he knows of the inside" workings
of the big corporation.
BROTHERS MAY BE CALLED
According to Prosecutor Roche, both
Edwin Powers and his brother, David.
whose expose of the alleged practices
of the Western Fuel was one of the
first pages in the story of the Indict-
ment of the Western Fuel company,
may be called by the government to-
morrow.
The cross examination of David c.
/ Norcross. Secretary OF the fuel COM
pany. was resumed when court con-
vened at 10 o'clock
William H. Tidwell, chief special
agent for the treasury. who secured
the evidence on which the Indictment
Of the eight directors and officials OF
the company was based, Is slated to
follow Norcross in the witness chair.
GRAND JURY MEETS
The federal grand jury met at 2
o'clock today to resume its investiga-
tion of the circumstances surrounding &
| the prosecution OF David Powers this
week on the charge of betraying a
young girl
1t was the fling of this charge, dis
missed twice four months ago, that
i led Edwin Powers to make the state
ment that the prescription of his
| brother was a "frame-up'' and would
result in his telling such a story for
/ the government that the prosecution
| would need no other witnesses"
Speaking of his change OF attitude,
Powers said today.
Il will tell the truth when I am
called as witness. I am not after
either side. Any question they ask
me will be answered truthfully. /
am not going to tell anybody outside
OF the courtroom what | know about
| the case"