The Washington herald., 1915-05-13
'W0LLMAN J0LTS
LOEB TESTIMONY
Barnes Saw Loeb After Sen
ator Was Chosen, Says
Gotham Broker.
.ODELL NOT AGGRESSIVE
c. o. P. Leader Willing to Support
Independent Democrat. Wit
nesses Assert.
ODELL NOT AGGRESSIVE
BY JAMES J. MONTAGUE.

BY JAMES J. MONTAGUE.
Syracuse. May 1e-Opening the assault
with a direct attack on the Veracity o
William Loeb. jr., the plaintiffs force:
in the Barnes-Roosevelt libel actor
hammered for four hours today on such
| OF the Roosevelt defenses as are still
standing.
The blow at Loeb was swift and hard
William ]. Wollman, of the stock broker.
/ age firm of ]. S. Bache & Co, fatty
disputed the story Loeb told when on the
stand. Moreover. after Wollman's testi
mony the jury must believe either him
or Loeb. There is no possibility that
both could have been mistaken.
Says Meeting Was Year Later.
Loeb, when he rallied to his old chiefs
defense. swore Barnes had told. in the
spring of 1911, of his agreement to let
Murphy elect United States Senator
without Republican interference. At that
time Loeb testified he asked Barnes to
help elect an independent Democrat
The place of the conversation he gave
as the private dining room of J. s. Bache
& Co.'S New York office.
Wollman today swore that he was pres
ent when Barnes and Loeb met. He
corroborated Loeb as to the circum-
stances of the meeting. but he insisted
that il did not occur until 1872 or 1913.
In 1872 or 1919. of course. no question of
the course Barnes might take in the
Senatorial fight could possibly have
arisen. The Senatorial deadlock was a
thing of the past. OGorman. its ulti-
mate product, was installed in Office.
Invited Loeb to Luncheon.
Wollman fixed the date positively as
after the election of President Wilson
With a Democrat in the White House
he said, he knew that Loeb. then col
lector of the port of New York. would
soon be looking for new job.
One of Wollman's partners wanted to
look the collector over before offering
him the presidency of the international
Bank According to Wollman. this wa:
the first time Loeb had ever been at
con for the purpose of a conference.
Barnes card was sent in while Loeb
was lunchinE. The two met at the
table. All this was related by Loeb
save for the years difference in dates
difference which, in view of what
happened in the meantime, is absolute
ly irreconcila BILE. Wollman said Loeb
was introduced to him by Peter Fucker,
a Broadway lawyer. Mr.. Bowers, though
he tried hard, could not shake his tes-
timony.
OdeII Not Aggressive.
OF those marshalled for todays bat
tie. Wollman was the only one who
is not a politician as well as the only
man whose testimony really landed
square inside the Roosevelt fortifica-
tions. Former Gov. Odell, whose en-
trance into the trial was viewed with
some alarm by the Colonel was not
disposed to take any aggressive &C
ton.
Odell. who was called to the stand late
in the afternoon. glanced carelessly at
the glowering Colonel when he took
He spoke clearly and with positiveness.
part to yes or no.
As the Barnes people expected Odell
insisted that no individual Democrats
had contributed anything to the cam
paign fund of 1889 and 1880. This dis
puted the statement attributed by
Roosevelt to Barnes that A. n. Brady
and Robert c. Pruyn. Of Albany. had
made such contributions.
Partially Bears Out T. r.
Odell admitted that individual DEM
rate funds. which bears out to some
extent the Coloners charge that men
of both parties We're contributing to
politics.
Gov. Odell refrained from stating
that the funds he collected went to
help elect Mr. Roosevelt governor He
denied that any promise had ever been
made to anybody in return for contri-
buttons. He was State chairman, he
said. in 1900 and had charge of the
finances OF the campaign.
Were you at any time the dominant
leader of the party" asked Mr.. WINS
Il don't know" said Odell.
Vote Could BE .De1ivered."
Senator Eton L. Brown, former SEN
ator Edgar T. Bracket. and Assembly
men Sweet and Hammond all testified
to a conference with Barnes on the
Senatorship in 1911, the purpose being
to show that Barnes was willing to
support an independent Democrat
Brown went so far as to say that it
was thought that the Republican vote
could be delivered" He tried to take
that back Is soon as he had said it, but
Mr.. Bowers. who was Cross-eXamining
him for Roosevelt. would not permit
him to do so.
All the witnesses including Bracket
who likes Barnes as little as he does
Roosevelt. maintained that the Albany
boss has never attempted to give them
any instructions as to how to vote and
had never mentioned to them any
agreement to support Murphy's candi-
late.
Mr.. WINS effort to secure the same
kind of testimony through Democrats
both OF the Murphy and antiMurphy
variety was frustrated by the court.
Tie Shamea the Rainbow
Former Speaker Smith of the assem-
,ly, wearing a tie that slammed the rain
DOW. was put on the stand and asked
( he had ever heard Of such an agree
nent.
Il couldn't he expected to know of
t." said Smith. You can ask that
question of the Republicans who might
nave received instructions from Mr.
Barnes. The Democrats would surely
'eceive no such instructions"
The former speaker left the stand,
Ind Mr.. WINS permitted former Sena-
or McManus, who was there for the
,ame purpose, to go his way unsworn.
Also he excused William Church Os-
porn, former State Democratic chair
nan. who had been expected to give
Iimilar testimony.
The witness who went after the Colo
nel hardest was John Hutchinson, al
Barnes lieutenant who visited the de-
'endant in 1914 for the purpose of finding
put his intentions toward the guberna-
torial nomination.
Hutchinson said he met Mr.. Roose-
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