Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-06-03

He told that Of the several ware
houses erected with prison brick and
prison labor upon his own land, one
was built to take care of the big prison
potato crop and another to hold the
5000 bushels of wheat produced one
year from the A. C. NJ. ranch. He sand
these warehouses had never been used
except for prison purposes, We're no
god to him and he would like to turn
them over to the state for what he
had invested in the property. lie said
n small warehouse had been erected
for the purpose of enabling an artificial
stone maker to establish Il plant to
produce marble for buildings in Deer
Lodge, with the agreement that he was
to teach the prison employees the met
hod. He said this method was later used
in making artificial marble for the m
terror trimmings of the prison office
and in the buildings at Galen and Warm
Springs. and the warehouse had since
been used for making and storing apple
butter for the prison.
The state, on re-cross examination
conducted by Mr.. Rankin. brought up
the subject of potato production on the
various ranches and introduced copies
Of letters written by oCnley in 1917,
one saying 400 acres had beer put into
potatoes, another saying the prison
would have at least 10000 sacks of
potatoes. and still another saying the
production had ben $4,000 sacks.
Says Mistake in Figures
Mr.. Conley said there was some
mistake in those figures as he had got
ten probably $4,000 sacks of potatoes
that year, consisting Of five carloads
off the Flathead ranch, six carloads off
the A. c. NJ. ranch and from 1000 to
5000 sacks off the Aylesworth ranch.
1t was to care for this crop that one
of the oCnley warehouses was put up,
he sadi.
Asked if the books did not show he
had credited the Flathead ranch with
$1.5O per hundred for the potatoes
raised there, he said he had done that
when commission men told him they
were worth that and if he held them
until spring they would bring probably
$3.50. He said they were held until
spring. could not be sold and most of
them were thrown away.
Questioned as to a letter from Conley
to Governor Norris, October :. 1912,
referring to a payment of $1,000 per
witness told Mr.. Rankin to look up his
claims. which should show what had
actually been paid by the state.
IF you have any claim fo- 81 900
for rent for the year 1910 you would
have sprung them. with thai bunch
back of YOU shouted the witness.
That bunch of porch climbers would
not overlook anything like that"
The attorney general then asked him
if he was not on yary good terms Of
friendship with the members Of the
various prison boards. and he replied
that he never knew Governor Norris,
Attorney General s. c. Ford or Secre-
tary of State c. r. Sewart until afer
they were elected. He said oil others
were personal friends, although Gov |
Stewart was a democrat while he, !
Conley, was a republican. !
Questioned further regarding money
which he claimed the prison had saved
the state in the matter of work done
the highway commission, ConIey
said there was a lot of service which
had never been paid for. and he csti-
hat the highway commission now
the prison $4,000.
Then the attorney general reverted
to the milk question and aked if the
had shipped any butter to Cali
To this he replied he had ship