Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-04-28
CON[EY OWNED
MUCH Of GOODS
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| goods from the prison store. He testi-
fled that he was working at the dairy
barn, that on the evening in question,
he was not sure what day, he saw
men moving some stuff from the store
and it occurred to him that it must
be MIR. Conley's stuff, as there was
a change at the prison at that time.
and that. later, a truck came up and
from four to six loads Of goods were
moved. He said he went to the store
between Z and 1880 p. m. and stayed
until they got through, about $50 or
10 p. m.
On cross-examination, he said, Con-
ley had been reasonably fair to him
and when he saw Conley was moving
he went over to help. He said it was
pretty generally known that Conley
had a lot of personal stuff at the store
and that he kept a commissary there.
Loads Of Moved Goods Described
He said he first carried out two
boxes of ammunition, Winchester shot
gun shells. and also handled some hair,
such as is used in making hair brides.
Cass testified that when the truck
came up to the store the guard, Ack-
ley. told him to get on the truck and
place the stuff. He described the
goods hauled in the several loads as
follows:
First load: Some barrels and boxes
from the front part of the store; one
box looked like it contained paint.
one barrel had 80 to 80 pounds of salt,
and there were some handles and a
barrel containing what looked like hard
ware.
Saa~-l 1-, f~, L, -
paint, some boxes that had stuffed
birds in them and some decoy ducks.
some loose hay forks, a big bunch of
pick and ak handles and some sad
dies.
Third load: Principally commissary
stuff.
Fourth load: Principally commits
sary stuff, a box of canned goods and
some cans of tobacco.
Fifth load: Tobacco, a lot of
matches, one or two heavy boxes of
canned goods and some other stuff. He
said these two loads were taken from
the commissary room in the store.
The witness testified that there were
possibly Il or 10 saddles-all used sad
dles-removed, together with a few
pieces of harness and some horse col
lars. He believed one or two of the
collars were new.
He said he quit work around 1C
p. m. and went to the clubhouse and
that he heard a truck or two after he
went in.
Food Taken to Lake Ranch
W. NJ. Bulfinck, also a convict, testi-
fled as to the receipt of supplies at
16, 1921. He said he was caretaker
at the lake place from the first Sun
day in January, 1921, until April II,
1921, that on the evening of April 10,
Jimmy Doyle and ellis came driving
out there with a load of supplies. He
said they brought five 10O-pound sacks
of flour, four 10O-pound sacks of sugar.
one sack of oatmeal, two boxes, the
contents of which e did not learn, and
two quarters beef.
Buchfinck said he came to Montana
in the fall of 1917 and bought a ranch in
Madison county, where he stayed until
he went broke. losing in the neighbcr-
hood of $4,000. He said he decided
to go south to raise corn and when
leaving was arrested on a charge Of
stealing d horse, but that when It WAS
shown that he had bought the horse,
the charge was dropped and he was
charged with killing a calf. He said
he killed the calf all right. but II was
an estray which he had taken sp and
fed. For this he was sent to the pen
itentiary.
Witness Enjoyed Liberties
Upon being cross-examined by At
torney Choate. Buchfink said he was
released from prison last fall. his SEN
tence being reduced after he had writ
ten a letter to Governor Dixon which
Warden Potter said was a good letter.
He said in June Potter told him it
would be necessary to make a state
ment, which he made and signed in the
presence of Potter. He said he went
out of the state, to Rock Springs,
Wyo.. after his release, without per-
mission from the parole commissioner,
who, however. did not object TO his
leaving the state because he had to
go away to get work. He sa'1 he
wrote to Warden Potter from Rock
Springs and received a letter in reply
in which nothing was said of the Con-
ley case.
Another Story, as KipIing Says
Frank Foster, of Anaconda, a
butcher, who had been q convict and
in charge of the prison butcher shop
for a time, qualified as to being a man
of family and familiar with the appear
ance Of sacks of flour and sugar by
admitting that he was the father of
IS boys and two girls. He said he was
born In Germany and came to this
country in 1890, being married three
years later to a woman he had known
in Germany. He said he was sentenced
to prison from Deer Lodge county May
2, 1920, for a term of two to four
years, and was paroled May II, 1921.
He was in the prison meat shop at
the time Potter succeeded Conley and
that on the evening of April IA. 1921,
Conley passed the shop and told him
he wanted ham and bacon and later a
boy called and got a box of each, No.
l Premium brand.
The next day, he said, Mullan took
four cases of army bacon. 72 pounds
to the case, and on April 16 he got
three 5O-pound cans of lard. He said
on April Is Doyle and ellis got two
nuarta1x of beef for the YaIfnn ranch