The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-01-28
POLITICIANS GO
ON TRIAL TODAY
Delays Due To SnowbOund
Trains Hindered Fraud Case
Yesterday
SEN. NEWBERRY PRINCIPAL
Duration of Trial at Grand
Rapids is Variousiy Estimated
at From One to Two Months

| Grand Rapids, Mich, Jan. 27.--The
trial of United States Senator New
berry and a hundred and twenty-three
| co-defendants on charges os election
fraud and conspiracy, scheduled to
begin today, was postponed until to-
morrow because snow bound trains
/ delayed the arrival Of a number of
witnesses and talesmen.
OF the 135 men indicted by the fed
! eral grand jury last November nine
| have entered pleas of nolo contenders
the case of one has been continued
| owing 70 illness, and another upon
whom service has not been obtained
was said to be in South America.
| Twenty three pleaded mot guilty" and
81 stood mute when arraigned.
| The governments case was in
| charge of Frank d. Daily, former
| United States district attorney at In
dianapolis. Martin w. Littleton, OF
| New York, headed the legal forces OF
/ the defense, which are said to number
about fifty. Aside from the defendants,
| the 135 Yeniremen, attorneys, court
| attaches and nine newspaper men, rev
We're able to gain admittance to the
court room today before announcement
of the postponement.
| The possible duration of the trial
was variously estimated at from four
weeks to two months. Both the gov
| ernment and the defense were ex-
pected to call several hundred wit
nesses. The first witnesses to be
called, it was said, have been sum-
moned from Washington and New
| York.
United States Senator Truman II.
Newberry and 134 other men were
charged with corruption, fraud and
conspiracy by the federal grand jury,
which investigated the senatorial
election of 1918. When the indictments
were returned November 80, last, Uni
| ted States District Judge G. w. Ses-
sions, who assembled the jury, indi-
Gated the evidence obtained by the in
quisitors disclosed that between $780,
600 and s1,00O,O0O had been expended
frauduIently in connection with the
election.
The indicted men included every
member of the committee that conducted
the Newberry campaign, and state,
county and municipal officials in
virtually every county from Lake
! Superior to the Ohis border.
The conclusions of the grand jury
We're embodied in two blanket indict-
ments They charged violation of both
federal and state laws by use Of sums
of money far in excess of legitimate
expenses in the campaign, and viola
ton of the federal corrupt practices
act, which penalties payment of money
to voters. Use of mails ''to defraud all
the people of Michigan was further
charged against the campaign commit
tee More than 100000 Of tfrs con-
tributed fund. it charged, was con-
verted to the personal use of some
Of the campaign managers
James w. Helme, former state dairy
and food commissioner, who opposed
Henry Ford for the democratic nomin-
alton in the senator sat primary, an
other clause of the indictment alleged,
was compensated by the Newberry or
ganization for making the primary
race The alleged purpose was to pre-
vent democratic voters from lining
up with Ford in the republican
primary.
Attached to the indictments was
list of more than two score covert
acts These contained charges that
number of those indicted had given
rewards ranging from promises of
good job" TO payments of sums
ranging from s5 TO s2.750 in return
for support in the Newberry campaign
One country editor was alleged to have
received a ton of PRINT paper.
The grand jury investigation was
conducted by Frank G. Daley, Of In
dianapolis, former United States attor-
ney for Indiana. It was ordered by the
department. Of justice October Is, and
was based, It was announced. on COM
plants filed with the department -and
also published charge.s of fraud anu
corruption made by Lieutenant
Governor Dickinson, of Michigan. and
-others.
Senator Newberry and thirteen or