The Washington herald., 1918-06-08

trial. A month or so before Moneys arrest. the
chamber declared its intention to make San Fran
cisco an sopen shop town"
District Attorney Charles A. Fickert, who prose-
cuted Mooney, PROCESSES to be sure Of his guilt
despite evidence which has to light since the
trial
This evidence has to do with a witness named
Oxman, who swore that he saw Mooney and the
other defendants near the spot where the bomb
exploded shortly before the internal machine
brought death to parade watchers This testimony
practically cnched the States case and the death
sentence quickly.
After Moneys conviction there came to light let
ters confessedly written by Oxman prior to his hav-
ing been called to testify. The plain import of these
letters is an attempt by Oxman to suborn perjury
in corroboraton of the vital testimony which he
to give, and which, in fact he did give against
Mooney. The cases against Mrs Mooney and Vein
berg fell to the ground, and Nolan was not tried
All these facts are as told In the report of the
United States Mediation Commission, appointed by
President Wilson, in its report to the Chief Exeeu
tive of the United States.
Here follows few quotations taken from that
report:
There can be no doubt that Mooney vas re-
garded as labor agitator of malevolence by the
utilities (meanng public service corporaton of San
Francisco, and that he the special object of
their opposition"
when Oxman was discredited the verdict
against Mooney was discredited."
"The attorney general asked the Supreme Court
that, in view of the Oxman exposure, the case
should be returned to the trial court for new
trial" ....
1--WE are in this war to vindcate the moral
claims of unstaincd processes of law however slow
at times such processes may be. These claims must
be tempered by the FIRE of our devotion to them
at home"
"Your commission therefore respectfully recon-
mends that the President use his good Offices to
invoke action by the governor of California and the
cooperation of its prosecuting officers to the end
that new trial may be had for Mooney whereby
guilt or innocence may be put to the test OF un-
questionable justice"
The President of the United States has asked
the governor of California to commute Moneys
sentence to life imprisonment The governor can
not grant Mooney new trial This was in the
power of the California Supreme Court when it
heard the appeal and refused to order the case back
to the trial court for rehcaring.
What should be done, of course, is to send
Mooney back for another trial and see whether
jury will convict him the strength of Oxman's
evidence now This cannot be done. The time
for that has passed.
Tom Mooney must de-unless the governor Of
California commutes his sentence or pardons him.
William D. Stephens is governor of California
He holds the life of Tom Mooney in the hollow OF
his hand. Will he ignore the appeal OF the Presi-
dent of the United States? Will he cast aside the
finding of the United States Mediation Commission? /?
Will he push Tom Mooney through the trapdoor
of the gaows on the evidence of this diseredited
witness Oxman? Will he pay no heed to this ap-
peal from Judge F. A. Griffin, who presided at the
trial of Mooney and who sentenced him to DEATH
Il believe that all OF us who were participants
in the trial concur that right and justice demand
that new trial OF Mooney should be had in order
that no possible mistake shall be made in case
where a human life is at stake