Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1918-12-27
bOUCk CLEARED Of
ESPIONAGE CHARGES
GOVERNMENT DISMISSES CASE
AGAINST STATE GRANGE
MASTER.

On motion of Clarence L. Reames,
special assistant to the attorney gen.
eral, charges again William H. Bouck,
master of the Washington State
Grange, that he violated the espion-
age act by seditious statements dur
ing a speech at Bow, WASH, last
summer, were dismissed in the United
States district court in Seattle last
Saturday by Judge jeremiah Neterer
Why the federal government asked
the dismissal of the charges is ex-
planned in detail in a written motion
filed by L. Reames.
Acting on that motion Judge Jere-
miah Neterer caused the Bouck in
dictment to be quashed and the de-
fendant's bond exonerated. At the
same time the court granted a motion
to cancel the trial date in the BOuck
case which was set for January 81.
Bouck was indicted and arrested as
the result of an address he made at
Bow last spring. In this he was al
legged to have bitterly assailed the
government for it's conduct of the war
and discouraged the purchase of Lib
erty Bonds.
In the motion filed yesterday
Reames says that the testimony of
persons who were present at the
meeting where the Bouck address
was made is SO widely divergent as to
raise a serious doubt as to whether
the defendant said the things charged
against him in the indictment.
The reasons which prompted the
government to request a dismissal
were given by Mr.. Reames as fol-
lows:
Based on Sworn Testimony.
The Indictment was returned and
filed against the defendant, based up
on sworn testimony given before the
grand jury by number of reputable
citizens as witnesses, to the effect
that at Bow, Wash, during the course
Of a public address the. defendant had
stated that If the war lasts three
years the war debt would amount to
OO,OOO,OOO,OOO; that the war debt
Is placing a great burden upon our
children and their children; that the
bond issue would make our children
slaves forever; that the revenues of
the United States in years to come
would not be sufficient to pay the in
terest on the bonds; that the rich
men would grab all of these bonds;
that the government was allowing
the corporations and monOpolfes to
rob the farmers of IS per cent OF
their products; that the war would
continue until the profiteers made
millions of dollars out of it, and that
the profiteers would grab all of the
Liberty Bonds and we would be under
the reign of the rich men for years
to come; that the war should be
placed upon the 'pay-as-you-go'
plan, and that II we could not pay as
we 20 the expense should be cut
down until we could pay as We go;
that the capitalists had brought
about the war for their own gain;
that this was not a war for democ-
racy, but that it was rich mans
war: that we were forced to fight
against our will and that congress
had no right to declare war without
submitting the mater to vote OF the
people.
Denies Making Statements.
Immediately following the presen'
tation of the indictment, the defend
ant announced that he did not make
the statements charged against him
in the indictment. The attorney rep
resenting the defendant advised me
that not only did the defendant deny
having made the statements attrib-
uted to him in the indictment but
that the defendant did not himself
believe in the truth of these state
ments that the defendant was sup
porter of the several war measures,
was assisting the government IN the
carving on Of the war and that at
the trial the defense of the defendant
would be that he did not make the
statements attributed to him.
thereupon caused very careful
.re-examination of all the facts to be
made. While this examination was
being conducted, the defendant re-
ouested a continuance Of the trial un-
til January 21, 1919. The govern
ment consented to this continuance
because 1t desired the additional time
in which to complete its examina-
ton.
have now caused to be conducted
a thorough, painstaking examination
into all the facts of the case, and the
result of this examination Is as fol-
lows:
The defendant did deliver speech
at Bow, Wash, upon the day named
IN the Indictment. There were pres
-. =. tho time the sDech was doliv.