The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-08
fEWBERRY CASE
 ARGUED BEFORE
 SUPREME SUI PRREEM|Y|E COURT C00UURR1
Conviction Is Denounced as Gross Perversion of Justice By Counsel, Who Claim
 Grievoue Wrong Done
:sy Associated Prose

l Sy Associated Press 1 Washington, January 7.-Conviction of Senator Truman H. Newberry of Michigan and 16 others of conspring 1 to violate the corrupt practices act l was denounced as gross perversion l of justice" by counsel for the senator and was upheld by the government as a salutary lesson to those who would purchase an election by paid propa- Ganda" before the supreme court to- day when arguments in the appeal were heard.
 Charles F.. Hughes, former associate 1 justice of the court. who headed coun- | sel for the defense, asserted that only l through "grotesque" construction of 1 the statutes had the government been I able to present any case to the Jury. ] He quoted the government brief as 1 showing that it was admitted that no | restriction was placed by law on the 1 expenditures of d political committee | in behalf of any candidate, nor on the 1 amount such committee might raise 1 for a campaign, and further that no l attempt was made by the government 1 to show that Senator Newberry had himself contributed in excess of the legal limitation of $3,750. The entire basis of the governments case, Mir. | Hughes told the court, was that this legal committee, having legally raised a legal sum of money for a legal pur- pose, became an illegal conspiracy be- cause its candidate was aware that more than s3.75O was being expended"
 PREVIOUSLY WRONGED 4 "Mry- Newperry and the other defend ants" Mir. Hughes said, have suf- fered grievous wrong through. pro cesses of so-called justice which this court should correct"
 | Apart from the direct attack on the conviction as illegal and unsustained by the evidence, the defense attempted to show the court that the corrupt practices act itself, so far as it at tempted to limit campaign expendi- lures for legal objects, was unconsti- tutional.
 Solicitor General Trlerson, present. ing the governments case, took issue | with the thory presented by the defense as to what constituted violation of the corrupt practices act. Senator 7, New berry, according to Mir. Frierson. being desirous of entering the race for senator in 1918, called a conference in New York of Paul King of Detroit, afterwards his campaign manager and Frederick Cody of New York, former l superintendent of Detroit schools. At
 
 campaigns cost arose, and MT. Frer- son said Newberry was told it would trequire the expenditure of S50.000 or 1 more." Having agreed to enter the race on the express condition that this 1 sum would be expended, the govern ment held that he, Cody and King had entered conspiracy to defraud the provisions of the statute.
 i EXCEEDED S2OO,O0O As q matter of fact Mir. Frierson added. more than $176,00O was shown to have been spent by the report filed by the campaign managers and this sum did not include money spent in | behalf of Helme, a candidate for the nomination of the democratic party" Deposits and withdrawals from banks made in behalf of the campaign az gregated in excess of $200,O0O, the prosecution argued.
 Tn the absence of Chief Justice White, who was detained at his home by slight. indisposition, Justice Me- kenna presided and. with practically every other member of the bench, in terrupted counsel frequently to as,, questions on specific points.
 Replying to question from the bench as to whether each of the IT defendants had been equally identified with the conspiracy, Mir. Frierson said
 
 Ladd of Sturn Bridge. Mass. as tbe l exception.
 While he was not prepared to con- fess error in the case of MT. I.add Mr. : F'rierson said. he was frankly douht ful as to the governments position , the evidence against him having been fragmentary. Ladd, a former master of the Massachusetts state grange. wa. fined s1.o0o.
 CYST OF ARGUMENT
 Arguing that the mere fact of a can didate's knowledge should not be ac. cepted as making what would be per fectly legal a violation of the law. Mir. Hughes said:
 The government says in effect that a political committee may raise and spend millions, if it will shut it's candidates in keg until after the nomination is won Associate Justice tIcKenna caused a general smile, even in the austere pres ence of the supreme court. when he askd MT. Freeman if the varying sch tences had Teen based on the theory } that some of the defendants were worse conspirators'' than others. "One could have been more culpable ir the eyes of the court than another" ths solicitor general agreed.
 Each side was allowed two hours and , quarter for argument Neither had used its full quota when the court ad journed until Monday noon
 While the fight to determine Senarol Newberry's legal right to his seat wa, in progress, the Senate privileges ant elections committee continuedA the re icount of votes cast in the Michigan con. test. With 3l of the 2,2OO state precincts accounted for, Henry Ford had made q lnet gain of 32s over MT. Newberry. it was announced tonight.
 Find No True Bill