Evening star., 1934-04-25
CANNON ACCUSED
OF DUP|NG WOMAN
Prosecutor Brings Bishop
Erect in Seat With Charge
Before Jury.


leader of the Southern Methodist
Church. was accused Of trying to
escape conviction by hiding behind
a woman's skirts" at the conspiracy
trial of the churchman and his sec
retary. Miss Ada L. Burroughs, In Dis
trict Supreme Court today.
The Virginia churchman, who had
been lounging indolently at the trial
table, snapped erect and snorted with
disgust as this charge was hurled at
him by Assistant United States At
torney John J. Wilson.
Bishop Cannon had testified he gave
Miss Burroughs $4,000 in a sealed
envelope to be turned over to one
Of their assistants in the 1928 presi-
Dental campaign against Alfred E.
Smith. Miss Burroughs, however,
said he gave her a check and that
she cashed 1t and put the money in
the envelope herself.
Wilson, who had been trying to
convince the jury that Miss Bur-
roughs knew Bishop Cannon had this
particular money. pointed to the dis
crepancy in the testimony and
shouted:
rs he trying to shield this woman?
1t sounds like chivalry. doesn't it?
But don't attribute 1t to that. He
knew the law in this case is that you
can't convict one without the other.
He was doing nothing in the
world but hiding behind a woman's
skirts, knowing that If he could con-
81 1ar ;r~ A1
be found innocent too"
Wilson told the jury earlier that
Bishop Cannon had spent some of
the 1928 anti-Smith campaign con-
tributions for his personal use"
Wilson made the opening argument
in the trial Of the Southern Methodist
churchman and Miss Burroughs on
a charge Of conspiracy to violate the
Federal corrupt practices act by fail
ing to report all of the $65. 300 con-
tributed by Edwin C. Jameson. New
York insurance executive.
The case probably will 60 to the
jury some time tomorrow.
At a meeting in Richmond, Wilson
said Cannon. the Rev. J. Sidney Peter.
and Frank B. Dunford "concocted a
scheme 10 make Dunford an insulated
conduit for the transmission of money
in Virginia during the campaign
; against Alfred E. Smith.
Wished to Evade Act.
Time and time again." Wilson said,
''it was shown that Cannon wished
to evade the corrupt practices act"
I'VE say" he went on, that the
defendant Burroughs could not re-
port the Jameson contributions be-
cause she couldn't report correspond
ing expenditures. partly because Can
non spent some of the money for his
personal use and because of this
nefarious scheme of these individuals
to keep from disclosing how this
money was spent in Virginia"
Wilson contended it was immaterial
where the Jameson money was spent
If it was contributed to the Head
quarters Committee Of the anti-Smith
Democrats.
The Government does not have
to prove that these defendants sat
down at a table and plotted together. :"
he declared. 1T is enough If we
show you acts and circumstances
from which the conspiracy may be
reasonably inferred. In SO cases out
Of 100 a conspiracy cannot be shown
by direct proof. But it may be
shown by circumstantial evidence so
as to exclude every reasonable pre-
sumption consistent with innocence" +"
The prosecutor declared the Gov
ernment has proved Bishop Cannon
had "an ingrown hatred Of the cor
rupt practices act" He pointed out
churchman early in the campaign
sought ways and means Of spending
money without reporting 1t to the
House Of Representatives as required
by the law
1T was born in him to try to evade
this act" the Government attorney
told the jury
Wilson asserted the Headquarters
Committee was the only organization
of Democrats. opposing Smith in Vir-
ginia in 1928. He emphatically as
serted that the so-called committee Of
Virginia State Democrats, never
existed
This is merely a defense concocted
to meet the overwhelming evidence of
the Government in this case he
declared.
Admits One Mistake.
The prosecutor admitted he made
one mistake in his opening address
to the jury. This, he said, consisted
Of failure to prove that Bishop Can
non had used large sums of the jane
son money in paying his personal obli-
cations
But" he added, I'VE have shown
that he used the money in making
loans to his close personal friends,
and this is to the same effect"
Wilson also declared the Govern
ment had proved Miss Burroughs must
have known of the Jameson money
before February IL. 1929, the date on
which her attorney said she first
heard of it.
Most OF the morning session was
taken up with a discussion of the in
structions to be given the jury by the
court on the questions Of law involved
in the case.
Wilson ridiculed at length the de-
fense contention that there was a
general Anti-Smith Democratic Com
mittee and a Virginia State Com
mittee
THE same name-what a skillful
defense If Cannon hadn't talked too
much in years gone by said the
prosecutor. IF only he hadn't
talked to us In Rover's Office in 1881
and made distinction between these
committees"