New Britain herald., 1926-10-08
BUCKNER ASSAILS
 ACCUSED IN PLEA
(Continued from First Page)


 told you here that he fought his last campaign on the Jesse Smith issue. He probably reasoned, and justly so, that too much inference would be drawn from his admis- sion of an innocent, as far as he was concerned, conversation with smith, but I have no doubt Jesse smith did tell him the claim should be passed"
 Type Of Evidence.
 Much of the evidence in the trial centered on the question of validity of the two claims Richard Merton, German metal magnate, presented in 1921 for the Societe Suisse Pour Val CUTS De Metaux.
 The government adduced much testimony to show the claims were false, and that Merton paid John T. King, late republican national com mitteeman from Connecticut, s441,- 900 to rush them through the of- fees of the attorney general and the alien property custodian. Testimony also was adduced to show that S50,- 900 or the bribe was traced to Miller and some to Harry NJ. Daugherty.
 The attorneys for Miller and for Daugherty have spent much time in their summations the last two days showing you these claims were valid. want to tell you right now that the government doesn't care a straw whether these claims were true or false. It would be all the same to us, too, if the claims had been paid in 1914 instead of 1921"
 "The indictment does not charge the claims were invalid. That is a point outside the case, and the only reason so much time was spent on it by the government was that we wanted to show you the claims were so full of holes that even the most Incompetent Of subordinates to these men would never have passed them without consulting their bosses, un- less they had been told before that the bosses wanted those claims passed"
 Before Buekner began the govern ments summation Judge Julian w. Mack informed the jury that it was very unlikely that he would make his charge before tomorrow morning.
 Steuer's Attack
 The attack of Max D. Steuer counsel for Daugherty on A. Mitch ell Palmer, first alien property GUS todian and attorney general in Pres ident Wilson's cabinet, was unjustl- fled and unwarranted, Buckner said. Steuer asserted yesterday that papers which revealed that Palmer had ap- proved a contract for the sale of enemy owned shares of the Ameri- can Metal company for S1,500, ,000 less than they were later sold for by Francis P. Garvan, who succeeded Palmer as alien property custodian, were kept out Of the files of the alien property custodian's office.
 Steuer painted Daugherty as the honest official" who investigated this matter.
 Why should Steuer, who says he is democrat, brand Palmer in every village and hamlet of this
  as a crook, when he has absolutely no proof those papers were not in those files? We cant show you the papers were there, but we can and | do show you that the first man who | went to look for them when this case was first up for investigation found | them just where they were supposed l to be-in the alien property custo- dians files'
 Adverting to assertions by William | Rand, counsel for Miller, that he | (Buckner) had dismissed the indict- ment against Richard Merton, his 1 brother and other German and Swiss , participants in the transactions lead ing up to the release of the claims, | Buckner said there was in that dis missal no admission that the claim was valid or that there was no con- spiracy.
 Daugherty Not Rounded.
 Tom Miller was only American named in that indictment" Buckner said. Harry Daugherty was not named. All this cry of Steuer's about Daugherty being bounded and yeIped at is bunk. Was he being bounded and persecuted when he wasn't even investigated until last summer? And why should he burn records of his brothers bank for October 13, 1921, when it is Mir. Steuer's contention that he was trying 10 shield from curiosity and political enemies facts regarding the disposition of political funds in 1917 and 192O?"
 I'll tell you why l dismissed that other indictment. We couldn't have brought ono of those foreigners over here to testify, and we would have had no case at all. We would have brought into this court poor Tom Miller, who got a lousy one-eighth split and let get away the men who got most of the bribe. Miller got S5O,000. But Daugherty and Jesse Smith got $224,000. We didn't want to get the little fellow. We wanted to get the-big ones. We didn't want to get the man who could only rec ommend the claims. We wanted to get the man who approved them"
 Denies Prosecuting
 T want your jurors to know that l you are not prosecuting anyone. We are fighting for thousands of gov 1 ernment employees, to prove to them that there is something in the law of the land, some justice some- where. Those employees are won l dering what is wrong with the gov ; ernment and the law. It's up to you 1 to show them there is nothing wrong with either the law or the government. "I know Harry Daugherty. that president maker sitting other there, has a cold, that he is an old man and that he looks pitiful but that has nothing to do with the case" The courtroom was filled, and