Evening star., 1927-03-23
SAP|RO ADDRESSES
Jury IN FORD SUIT
Acts as Own Attorney and
Reads From Alleged liz
beIOuS Articles.

| BY the Associated Press.
| DETROIT, March 23.-Aaron Sapiro
| took the floor as an attorney today
! in his 81 .O00,O 900 libel suit against
| Henry Ford
| He was admitted to practice in the
! Federal District Court, in which the
! case is being tried, when 1t opened
| 10 days ago, but 1t was the first time
| he had raised his voice. Previously he
| had confined his courtroom efforts to
whispered conferences with his chief
| of counsel, William Henry Gallagher
| of Detroit
William J. Cameron, editor of the
Ford-owned Dearborn Independent.
in which were printed articles alleged
to have libeled Sapiro. was in the
witness chair for the fourth day when
Sapiro faced him.
There was no immediate clash be-
tween the plaintiff in the suit and the
man who assumed full responsibility
for the printing of the articles.
Reads From Articles.
Instead, Sapiro, speaking In well
modulated voice that held the close
attention of the jurors, read from
back numbers Of the Dearborn lnde-
pendent articles he asserted were IL
belous
Gallagher's voice was worn when he
first addressed the court today after
nearly full day of reading and argu-
ment yesterday.
The six women and six men of the
jury closely looked Sapiro over from
the top of his black haired head to his
black shoes as he faced them for the
first time. He wore a natty gray suit,
having changed from the blue he has
worn previously. He is rather slight
of stature and stretched to his full
height as he read an article mention
ing lotto Kahn, Bernard Baruch,
down to Aaron Sapiro and lesser
Jews"
There was no trace of an accent
as the former California newsboy
read.
The element of added damages may
be submitted to the jury, Judge Fred
NJ. Raymond stated today in explain
ing that although only one line or
paragraph of an article formally had
been declared libelous in Sapiro's dec
laration all of the article would be
permitted as evidence for interpreta
tive purposes.
Calls Reputation Injured.
However, the plaintiff can recover
only upon the parts declared upon"
said the court. The element of added
damages would be based upon malice.
ill will or hatred, he said, and is
known as increased damages, while
the damages claimed in the suit would
be compensatory or injury damages.
Sapiro alleged that the Dearborn
Independent articles naming him in
connection with an alleged 'interna-
tionaI ring of Jews seeking to dominate
American agriculture" and accusing
him of trying TO spread Communism
and of unfair dealing with the farm
ers, had injured his work Of organic
ing farmers cooperative organiZa-
tions.
The courtroom was warmer today
and the windows were closed after
Senator James A. Reed of Missouri
chief of counsel for Mr.. Ford, who sat
overcoat-clad one day, asked a bailiff
to close the windows yesterday, and
Paul Y. Anderson, staff correspondent
for the St Louis Post Dispatch, was
taken to a hospital last night suffer
ing from pneumonia. Andersons seat
had been near one of the three open
windows.
William Henry Gallagher, Sapiro's
attorney. introduced boxed article
which appeared in the Independent
August %, 1924, saying: 1T may only
be a coincidence that the line of
agricultural control in this country
runs from Otto Kahn and Bernard
Baruch down through the lesser Jews.
But here Is an incident which may
throw light on that
Because Aaron Sapiro, when he
ers, thought Erskine X. Myer, prom
inent attorney of Denver, Colo, spelled
his name Meyer, and was Jew, the
enterprising young promoter OF CO.
operative marketing associations en-
ployed Mr.. Myer as attorney for the
Colorado potato growers
Article Is Admitted.
Sapiro read an excerpt regarding
I. w. w. activities In the Northwest
Judge Fred NJ. Raymond ruled the
whole article could be admitted, but
warned the jury that only parts so in:
dicated by the plaintiffs could he con-
sidered as to whether II was libelouS.
"If a man will take map of Idaho
Washington and Oregon and. with
supply Of red and white and blue pins
set down a red pin wherever there
was an outbreak of ]. w. W.-ism
stick in a white pin wherever the jew
ish rm-exploiting association has
founded one of its So-called California
plan cooperative associations, and put
in a blue pin wherever one or more
such associations have failed, he will
find he has n set of three pins at
each point" the article started out.
Sapro read rapidly and clearly,
standing close to the jury. Cameron
remained seated on the witness stand
throughout the reading.
The article continued: wherever
the Jew appears for his Gentle hench-
man, promoting associations for the
benefit of the American farmer In
these States. under whatsoever name
these organizations may be organized
there appears as their henchmen the
radicals, the agents of the /. w. WIS,
even open adherents of communism
and bolshevism as the strong arm men
TO put the work on hesitant farmers. +"
Another part of the article declared
by Sapiro to be libelous said:
THE story Of the loot of the wheat
crop of the States is going to be told,
but first there is an outstanding ex-
ample Of the combination of Jews and
radicalism, a clear exposition of the
hand-in-hand workings of the notori-
Gus Sapiro plan Of marketing and the
principles Of Bolshevism which must
be told"
SapirO DisappOInts Jury.
After he had finished with his read
Ing Sapiro sat down, apparently to
the disappointment of the jury and
the spectators, without interrogating
Cameron.
Gallagher took up the questioning
and Immediately ran into legal
wrangle which resulted in the jury
being sent out of the courtroom
! This question was intended to pave
the way for the submission Of a letter
from an unnamed person concerning
the TudeDendept articles cop,plaiped