The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1913-06-18
COTTON MEN ENTER
NOT GUILTY PLEAS
TRIAL AT GUTHRIE On iNOlCT.
MENT CHARGING COMBINA-
TION.

Guthrie, Okla, June 17-William
II. Coylc. millionaire cotton seed OIL
man of Guthrie and owner of a string
of gins, went to trial today in tie
district court here on an indictmen;
that CHARGES him with forming a
combination at Crescent, Okla, this
county, to raise the price of ginning
to So per bale. thus cutting out out
side buyers and destroying competi.
tion. The merchants at Crescent
were buying cotton and paying about
20c more on the hundred pounds than
the ruliug market price and then
getting it ginned at $3.50 per bale
There is second Indictment
! against Coyle, alleging similar
transaction at Lowell this county.
There are two of the so-called cot
ton trust' indictments. They are
against Coyle, F. f. Houghton and
T. Cook Of Guthrie, w. o. Cawthorn
andR. A. Nose of Oklahoma City, and
various companies officered by the
also includes A. Buenting of Guthrie
as a defendant. The charge is that
pools Were formed to control cotton
prices and ginning
All defendants pleaded not guilty
when court opened today, and follow
ing a conference of attorneys, sew
erance was asked and granted by
Judge A. II. Huston. 1t was elected to
try Coyle first. His attorney is c.
G. Hornsr but ell attorneys employed
by the other defendants are assist
ing. They are c. b. Ames and d. A.
Richardson of Oklahoma City, former
members Of the state courts; Dever
aux & Hilbretth and Dale & Bierer of
Guthrie.
The jury is composed of George
A. Watkins, race hor9eman; John
Towers, barber; Moses Weinberge~,
capitalist; ]. II. Neher, merchant
Sam Garrett. realty dealer; NJ A.
Hutchins, farmer, and o. f. Fowler,
secretary of Eagles lodge, all of Guth-
rie; w. D.. Knight and Fred Wagner
farmers of Coyle; J. w. Havenstrite,
farmer of Lowell; Walter Roper, far
mer of Falls, and F. A. Bonner,
realty dealer of Crescent.
1t was ordered tonight by Judge
Huston that the jury not separate,
but remain together until the trial
is over. Shelton Morris and Capt
Farmhouse were named bailiffs.
West Springs Surprise.
Attorney General West, assisted by
Arthur Swank, assistant county at
torney. is prosecuting the case. I'M
mediately after the opening state
ments we're made, West began intro
ducing as exhibits a large number OF
letters, carbon copies and other pa.
pers, and began proceedings by pro-
ducing witnesses, former employees Of |.
Coyle and other defendants, to iden-
tify the letters and other papers if |
possible. AS fast as West would in
troduce the letters they were handed |
by Lin to the defendants and their |
attorneys, who went over them eager
ly.
The indictments were returned IN !
October, four years ago. and the cases |
have been pending since, on notions |
to Quash, in the various courts. The |
first probe was commenced at Cres- |
cent. this county, because of the ac.
ton of the merchants in organizing |
to buy cotton Independent Of ginners. |
In making his opening statement,
West said that he intended to show |
that the conspiracy as to cotton pri- |
ces did exist and that the price of |
ginning was raised to shut out indie
pendent buyers.
In reply, Attorney Horner declared |
he would prove that it costs about |
$50 10 gin a bale of cotton and |
that at $3.50 bale the ginner loses
81 GO lie declared the Crescent gins |
were not custom gins, but owned by |
laen Who were compelled to own them
in order to get cotton seed for their
oil mills, the gins simply being feed
ers and that only as a business pol
isy was cotton ever ginned for other
parties. There were three gins at