The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-11-26

The truth of the prediction is now
matter of history. The conduct of the
trial, what the attorneys did and didn't
do. and the fact that HOWat was con-
Victed and is now in Jail is also COM
mon knowledge. Briefly. the remarks
of the late Sheppard and other mem
bers of the defendants counsel relat-
ing to the merits of the industrial
court law were very short and limited,
the correspondents wrote that Shep-
paTd's plan of attack was frequently
interrupted by warnings and rulings
from the bench without little effort
On the part of the states attorneys,
that the scrap which had won for
sheppard many a lawsuit was often
broken. that the thousands of HoWat
sympathizers present were forced to
stage all of their demonstrations at
the city park. several blocks away
from the court house: and that after
the jury had found the union leader
guilty, HOwat and his attorneys laid
most of the blame for the verdict at
the feet of the judge in not admitting
certain evidence and because of his in
structions to the jury.
Not Question at Issue.
1t was well known that Howat and
his supporters expected to rely much
upon the prejudice against the indus
trial court law to win the case and
when the court informed them that
whether the law was a good law or
bad one was not the question at issue
and could not enter into the case,
much of their hope was gone. The
skilled Sheppard, with his brilliant
oratory could have wrecked the states
case by his attacks upon the law had
he been allowed to go that far, be-
cause the measure is distinctly I'M
popular in that section.
Judge Boss. who under the jury's
verdict. sentenced HOwat to term
of six months in the Cherokee county
Jail when the mine leader refused to
give bond not to call another strike.
pending an appeal of the case, first
came into prominence when he held
the office of prosecutor or Cherokee
county from 1918 to 1917, TWO terms.
When he went into office. that county
was d wet as the Pacific ocean and
about that time. along with Crawford
county was receiving mucn publicity
as ar oasis when one did not have
time to cross the Missouri line. The
countrys close proximity to Missouri,
however, along with the foreign ele-
ment in the coal mining districts, was
largely responsible for the condition.
The miners, assisted nobly and will
ingly by the thirsty natives, furnished
the demand and the distance to Mis-
souri, and the Joplin wholesale liquor
houses made the rest easy.
Much Free Advertising.
ness of the two counties gave two at
torneys general and some OF their as
slstants lot of free advertising, espe-
cially at election times as those were
getting back toward the good old days
when enforcement of the prohibitory
liquor law was still one or the real
issues and a frequent stump speech
topic among candidates for law en-
forcement offices, but it was Boss,
when allowed TO play his own hand,
who took most of the kick" from
Cherokee county. When he success
fully prosecuted the Missouri Pacific
railway company, on whose line many
of the coal mining camps were located
against hauling liquor into the county,
later tying up all of the wagons that
were used to haul booze across the
state line, having them held to be
nuisances, the thirsty ones of the
county experienced for the first time
the horror OF living in a dry country.
Hundreds OF convictions followed and
when Boss went out of office the first
of 1917, his successor, Don H. Elleman,
had only to take over the reins to
keep the casual visitor to tnat county
from thinking he was over the line in
Missouri.
Because of the record he had made
and his success in politics, Boss auto
matically joined the ranks of the many
other famous citizens of his home
county. including DR.. Charles II. Huff
man. former state senator, at present
lieutenant governor and a candidate
for governor: Al +. williams. United
states district attorney; Tom Botkin,
former secretary of state; Judge A. H.
SkidmOre, at present state senator;
Judge c. A. MCNEIL, S. c. Wescott, W.