Rogue River courier., December 01, 1911, Image 1

-V. I
t
vol. nvu.
GRANTS TASS. JOSEPHINE COUNTY, OREGON. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1W11.
NO. 81
BOTH M'NMIARAS
MAKE CONFESSION
STARTLING ADM1SIOXS COME
FRIDAY IN OPEN COURT.
NO HANGING, IS PROMISE
James Blew up the Times Building
and John the Llewellyn
Iron Works
By United Press Leased Wire.
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1 James B.
McNamara is guilty of the crime of
blowing up the Los Angelea Times
building on the night of October 1,
1910.
After a day of wild rumors and
following the most sensational scene
ever witnessed In a courtroom in
America, the former Cincinnati prin
ter this afternoon withdrew his plea
of not guilty and entered a plea of
guilty. He will be sentenced next
Tuesday morning, and he may either
be ordered hanged or sent to prison
for life, according to which penalty
Judge Bordwell desires to Impose.
John J. rieads Guilty
At the same moment ,hls brother
John J. McNamara, secretary-treasurer
of the International Associa
tion of Bridge and Structural Iron
Workers, withdrew his plea of not
guilty to the Indictment charging
him with having placed dynamite
under the the Llewellyn Iron Works
on December 25, 1910, and entered
a plea of guilty. He will be sen
tenced at the same time as his bro
ther, and th penalty may be one
year or life, as the court decides.
- Harrow Talks " " '"
Clarence Darrow, chief counsel for
the defense, said: .
"I have saved a human life out of
the wreckage, I hope. I do not be
lieve that the Judge will sentence
him to death. . His life is the best
that I can expect.
''For six months I have carried a
terrific burden. We hare sought
every possible loophole and have
tried our best to grope our way out
of the maze, but two week? ago I
discovered from the county authori
ties the evidence which they had. In
addition to their evidence I. had far
ther facts which If they had discov
ered would have only added to the
hoplessness of Jim's plight.
"Jim Is going to tell the press all
of the facts at a later date, although
I do not like to ask him to do so now.
The county had a dead open and shut
case against us. I am very tired and
worn, and can not talk at this time,
as I have been under a terrific
strain for the past few weeks. In
fact, I will never be able to describe
the ordeal through which I have
passed. It was a terrific decision."
Deputy District Attorney Horton
said:
"The chief consideration that app
peals to me Is the economic one.
"By getting p'ens of guilty the
county Is saved a great expense with
out the complication of a controversy
as to whether the big fund .has been
wisely expended.
"Whether we had oanvleted the
two or not, there would have been
several hundred thousand people In
this country who would have said
the men were Innocent.
"If we had convicted them peo
ple would have claimed they were
railroaded. Ubor leaders all over
the country would have called the
trial the 'Crime of the Century.' '
"Here was an opportunity to si
lence everybody snd also to save a
large sum for the county.
"Although the court could sen
tence McNamara to be hanged, It
seems to me that the least we can do
for a man who hs saved us a lot of
money Is to spare his life.
"While It Is an unusual thing for
a man to plead guilty to a crime pun
'ishable by death. In this case that
fact will b considered and will save
J. B. McNamam.H
McMwlKl AUo Men.
Asked about McManlgal, Horton
said:
"He will have to take his medicine j
with the rest. He wont go free. Prob
ably he will plead guilty to the In
dictment charging him with explod
ing dynamiting at the Baker Iron
Works and be sentenced for that"
The scene rwaa Intensely dramatic
as the pleas of the two men were en
tered. , i -
Outside the attorneys in the room
not a single soul but Judge Bordwell
had had any intimation of what was
coming. Men and women sat bolt
upright and a painful pause followed.
Judge Bordwell quickly announced
that he would Impose sentence at 10
o'clock next Tuesday morning, which
curiously enough, Is election day.
The same procedure was then gone
through with John J. McNamara.
Although he was actually In India
na at the time the dynamite was
placed under the Llewellyn Iron
Works, he was an accessory before
the fact and therefore his plea was
entered as that of a principal In be
ing guilty of having actually
placed the dynamite. He, like his
brother, was Impassive. It was
plain that both of them had realized
that the end had come and that they
had made up their minds that they
would accept the developments as
"all In the day's work."
1 There was a slight hesitancy In
the courtroom, and then Judge Bord
well remanded the two, prisoners to
the custody of the sheriff. As they
were led out of the room, District
Attorney Fredericks was hurriedly
surrounded by a group of friends,
none of whom was quite as enthusi
astic as was Mrs. Fredericks, a beau
tiful woman. She congratulated her
husband heartily on the outcome of
the rase which meant so much to
him. Others crowded about to ring
his hand, but the veteran prosecutor
refused to be carried away with his
success.
"I have simply won another mur
der case,' was all he cared to say.
Crowd About Darrow.
Clarence Darrow and his assist
ants were surounded with a crowd
who wanted the real reason. The
chief counsel for the defense had
plainly suffered the hardest blow in
his entire career. ' the deep lines on
his face were accentuated by a pallor
like a man In death agonies. He had
little to say, although he promised
that he would make a formal state
ment later In the day.
Afterth e courtroom Lad been
cleared. Judge Bordwell sent for the
members of the Jury and dismissed
them.
Judge Bordwell was well pleased.
"It la a great load off my mind,"
he said. . "There has been a great
deal that was trying In this entire
case." " '
Is This True?
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1. In his
confession James B. McNamara said:
"I put the dynamite under the
Times, and It must have hit a gas
main because the terrible explosion
which followed seared me more than
it did anyone else. I was the most
surprised man that ever lived as I
had not expected any great damage
would be done."
L03 ANGELES, Dec. 1. To the
mystery already sorroundlng the Mc
Namara trial came a sudden sensa
tion in the courtroom todey. Judge
Bordwell had finished qualifying the
12th venire. when District Attorney
Fredericks arose and said:
"Your honor, an Important devel
opment makes It necessary to ask
for a continuance of this case until
2 o'clock this afternoon. The peo
ple have not before asked for any
time, but right now It Is imperative
that we have It. Public Interest de
mands that we be given until 2
o'clock beforo we go on with the
lawsuit."
Darrow made no objection, and
the continuance was ordered.
When Fredericks was asked what
the adjournment meant, he bristled
angrily and said: "If the matter
was so Important that I would not
confide the reason to the court, you
ran hardly expect that I will let any
one else know."
Rumor Immediately got busy and
a report that more Important arrests
In connection with the Franklin url
bery rase were Imminent were circu
lated. It was very plain from the
serious conferences between counsel
for the defense that they placed a
serious construction cm the develop
ment It t eoartroon, en tfet
GAS PLANT NEARLY
READY TO OPERATE
REPRESENTS INVESTMENT OF
OVER SIXTY THOUSAND
TESTING OUT THE PLANT
Capacity Srfficient to Supply City
Four Times the Present
Population.
In Grants Pass within the next
two weeks gas will be turned on in
the mains of the Oregon Gaa and
Electric company when, it is claimed,
it will cut cost of lighting practically
one half. In an interview Saturday
with Thomas D. Pitch, engineer and
general manager for the company,
that gentleman had this to, say to
The Courier:
"For the size of the plant there Is
nothing on the coast any better; In
fact, I dobut If there Is any as good.
That is not only my opinion, but
it 1b the opinion of several gas men
who have looked the plant over care
fully. If Grants Pass should wake
up some morning and find Itself Just
four times Its present size, It would
not cause us one moment's trouble
or loss of time. We have spared
nothing In making the plant the best
there Is.
"The plant has cost the company
more than $60,000 and Is not practi
cally completed. Originally It was
planned to spend around $50,000,
but we have tried to make It the best
that can be built for Its size and the
cost has run up.
"All we now have to do Is to test
things out and heat tip the generator.
There are over 10,000 flra, bricks n
It. We have two of these, one for
emergency purposes, and It takes
about a week to heat one of them In
starting up. Onr daily capacity will
be 250,000 cubic feet of gas," and we
will be ready to deliver gaa not later
than two weeks from today." '
"We have rented the store build
ing on North Bixth street, formerly
occupied by the Gibson garage, and
la four or five days' will have it tn
shape, and on hand a good supply of
all kinds of gas appliances, such as
ranges, water heaters, and arc lamps.
"We are not In the hardware busi
ness, and do not wish to In any way
interfere with their business, but
W6 handle all these goods at their
absolute cost to us that Is without
a cent profit. We do this because
ve know people have stoves now and
the additional expense' caused by
putting In gai we try to make as
light as possible.
"I might say that our gas plant
here Is practically as large as the
one at Medford, which supplies gas
for both Medford and Ashland. The
plant burns oil exclusively,' as do all
plants on the coast."
OPERA HOUSE WILL
BE SUFFICIENTLY WARMED
Manager Tom Fuson of the Grants
Pass opera house asks the Courier to
state that no more chilly sensations
will be the lot of the patrons of the
house hereafter as a result of In
sufflcteat beating.
During the hours that the "Third
Degree" was under way last Friday
evening those who were to care for
the heating became so much absorbed
In the play that they neglected their
duty. -Mr. Fuson says "I will per
sonally look after the heating here
after, and no one need lear another
cold room."
they were prepared for any eventu
ality. Uter there was a report circu
lated that today's developments
might rerult In one of the sworn
Jurors In the rase being eliminated.
It was Impossible to get any state
ment from anyone In this eonnee
tlon, although some of thoie who cir
culated the rumor had no hesltanry
In earning the individual that they
fboegkt was eoaeereed. f v
CITY REGISTRATION
PASSES THE 8C0 MARK
'When the city ' auditor's office
closed Saturday evening, it meant
that no ojher individual in Grants
Pass could" legally run for office at
the municipal election, December 4,
as petitions must be filed at least
seven days before the election, and
that limit ended at 12 o'clock last
night. Judge Opdycke stated, how
ever, that If any aspiring statesman
come late that he would open the
office and accept his petition, pro
vided it was In before the legal hour
of closing the "entries."
The nominees of the four wards
and the nominees of the mass con
vention all got in In time, and there
Is one extra, M. J. Anderson, filing
a petition as candidate for council
man from the Fourth ward. Mr.
Anderson's entry now makes a tbre
corner fight, with himself and C. D.
Smith and W. E. Everton as the
gladiators. Smith and Everton were
the nominees of the ward caucus,
and Mr. Anderson is out as an In
dependent, so to speak.
The full list of candidates now
reads:
For mayor Robert O. 8mlth, E.
V. Smith, J. C. Smith.
For treasurer James Holman,
George P. Jester.
For councilman from First ward
F. M. South, O. M. Caldwell.
Second ward T. W. Williams,
Angus R. McLean, G. A. Plttinger.
Third ward H. J. Clark, G. W.
Sturgeon.
Fourth ward C. D. Smith, W. E.
Everton, U. J. Anderson.
Registration Passes 800.
When Judge Opdycke closed his
office last Saturday the resignation
of city voters had passed 800, and
with several days yet to come. Judge
Opdycke Informed The Courier that
he would keep open office Tuesday
night until 9 o'clock for the bene
fit of voters not yet registered.
Candidates Busy.
'"Spellbinding" and button-holing
goes on merrily all the day, and
some ' lively politics Is under way.
KIKE MORGAN WILL NOT
HANG FOR YORK MURDER
, In view of the fact that Governor
Oswald West . is quoted as saying
that there will be no more hangings
In Oregon as long as he Is governor
of this state, Mike Morgan will not
hang . for the murder of John E.
York in Grants Pass; that is Morgan
will not hang If Governor West baa
been quoted correctly. . Morgan was
found guilty of murder in the first
degree and sentenced to hang Jan
uary 6 next. . He Is now at Salem
waiting execution.
Governor West recently commuted
to life Imprisonment the murderer
Webb, and Webb Is now In the peni
tentiary "running" a newspaper.
The governor gives as his reason
for not allowing an execution that
such a method Is, in his opinion,
"a relic of barbarous and mediaeval
ages and not In accordance with the
enlightened spirit of the twentieth
century."
GRANTS PASS MUSIC
CLUB ENJOYS PROGRAM
The November meeting of the
Grants Pass Music Club was held In
the Commercial Club rooms Tuesday
evening and was an especially en
joyable event, participated in by
many muslo lovers of the city who
enjoyed the following program:
Selection from Faust Gounod
Commercial Club Orchestra
Bass Solo, "The Mighty Deep
Mr. Talbot
Piano Solo ,'Tolacca Brilliants....
C. Von Weber
Miss Flanagan
Solo, "Under the Still White Stars
Mrs. Uarncs
"Flowsr Song" Rlnglebeo
Orchestra
After the program an hour was
spent socially and In solving the
mysteries of a muslal-term game.
A large number of names were en
rolled ss members of the club.
The next meeting will be held the
fourth Tuesday In December.
JcJfeOt Jet) was at The Oosrler.
GRANTS PASS FIRE
AUTO TO MEDFORD
WAKUS CP THE METROPOLIS
OF JACKSON COUNTY
AND MAKES FINE RECORD
Party Is Welcomed by Mayor Canon
and Dined at the Hotel
Medford.
One of the best advertifinmant.
Granta Pass has enjoyed over Rogue
i.uc; m me towns for S3
miles to the eaatward was Wednes
day when that new American t.
France fire engine recently con
tracted tor by this city was sent on a
test run to Medford. It was the da.
sire of A. G. Long of Portland, Pad-
nc coast agent for the machine, to
pi'ove Its efficiency to the city of.
flclals, hence Mr. Long assumed re
sponsibility for the safety of the en
gine, and with A. Plympton. expert
for Mr. Long, at the wheel, the Port
land gentleman took a party over
rough roads and smooth to the me
tropolis of Jackson county. Med
ford has ordered a similar machine
but It has not yet arrived.
The party was composed of Mayor
J. L. Myers, City Councllmen Striek
er, Phillips and Sauer, Judge M. L.
Opdycke, Fire Chief Proctor and T.
K. Murray, news editor of tho Cour
ier. The run to Medford was made
without effort at speed, the engine
running at an even pace, causing
much Interest as it shot through
Woodvllle, Tolo, Gold Hill,
Central Point and by farm
houses. -At the outskirts of
Medford an asphalt atreet was
encountered, where a sign read:
"Autos slow down to 10 miles
an hour." Driver Plympton glanced
at this sign and then "pulled the
throttle wide open," and at 65 miles
an hour that machine, a red streak
only, waked up the city of Medford.
Mayor Myers had wired the night
before to Mayor Canon, of Medford
to look out for the ' machine and
party, and the Medford mayor, mem
bers of the Medford council, fire de
partment and the populace In gene
ral looked with admiration on the
handsome and powerful machine as
it sped Into the business district.
The party was given a sincere wel
come by everybody, and, Mayor Can
on entertained the Grants Pass gen
tlemen at luncheon at the new Hotel
Medford. After lunch Mayor Canon,
the Medford fire department chief
and his foreman, newspaper men and
others were glvon the ride of their
lives. Out West Msln street onto the
Jacksonville hard road, the ma
chine went 60 miles an hour. A Med
ford newspaperman failed to "hold
onto" his bat, and as a result his
cady went Into the air and when It
hit the ground the engine was a mile
away. Everybody was holding on
for dear life,' water streaming from
the eyes of everyone of them, the
speed being so great that the wind
whistled as a tornado. If you don't
think that is a correct illustration,
Just stand In that red devil five min
utes white It Is going 60 miles an
hour.
The trip td Modford was made by
the Dry Diggings road, and return on
the south side of the river. On the
return trip the party bad an oppor
tunity to test a long mud hole near
Old Baldy mountain. This was what
Mr. Long desired, as he wanted to
prove the marhlne In mud. This mud
stretch has been miring automobiles,
but ivhen the fire auto hit It, It w nt
through as If there was no mud.
Asktd how It could do It, Mayor
Myers remarked: "Why that ma
rhlne didn't stick In the mud be
cause It threw all the mud out,
klrkod up Its heels and sped on."
The machine rolled Into Grants
Pass as fit as a flddlw, every part of
It tn trim, and the tires as smooth as
when It went out.
Medford Taprrs Oompllmratarr
The Medford papers printed high
ly oompllaeeUrr article of the ma
chine and the party from. Granta
Pass. The mii t.ik... ..
Sun both had representatives In the
machine on the tryouta through the
ENGINE FLEW " h.rf
to say: . ' .".""
'If speed haa n v . . ...
fir. -k. w ao With
lire fighting. th nn. r .
wn' .-. m" people
won t have a scorching for aog'.
age.
"The new anarviin. a ...
rs. "-"jprican ia
Prance auto fire engine recently pur,
chased by the n.i,i,K..,.. . .
-v.BBimiim C((y
sen. a 01 Prominent clti-
Z i """Paper representatives
and snort nun . -
iii. , T91 Jackson-
road at the rate of about 3000
miles an hour mors or less
"According to the company agent,
A. Q. Long of Portland, the machine
hit a slxty-mlle-nn-hn... ... ..... .
cording to A. S. BIHon, the represent ;
7 ; MBW lrltnt who lost
nia nat, It was noo4i. .
.. . speea
of Halley's comet.
However that may, be the party
had an excelint tin, . . .. .
. uu me ea-
ford members were enthusiastic over
the machine and Its operation The
visitors were entertained at the Med
ford hotel at luncheon by Mayor
Canon. Cltv ..
. . -.xuiivi nuueri Teiier
ftnd,Counc!lman Wortman Joining la '
6VUU WUIO,
"The automobile purchased by
Ornts Pass cost 15.600. It is seven-
ty-tWn horse nnwar
drive, cushion tiros, rear tires dual
type, carries a chemical engine, 1600
feet water ho nA snn .w .
- w jcin u mimi
cal hose."
WORKING TO ESTABLISH
, MINING TEST STATION
At a recent session of the Ameri
can Mining congress held at Chicago,
the . following resolution
- . " V
adopted: '
Whereas, the development of pro
cesses of ore treatment capable o
handling with profit the vast low
grade deposits and mine (In mm a
our mining districts is at the great
est importance to the mining indus
try and to all related industries. , ;
He It Resolved, That It be the sens
of the American Mining congress
that the congress of the United
8tates be and are hereby memor
laltzed to' provide for the establish
ment, under the direction of the bu
reau of mines, of a metallurgical ex
periment ore testing station or sta
tions for the purpose of devising
methods for the extraction of metal
from low-grade ores, and appropri
ate sufficient funds for such purpose.
Resolved. Furtbsty That the orrt
cera of the American Mining congress
draft a suitable bill providing for the
proper carrying out of this resolution
and that copies of the bill and of this
resolution be forwarded to the presi
dent of the United States, each sena
tor and representative; and that the
officers of the American Mining con
gress use all honorable means to the
end that such a bill may become law.
At the session of the Northwestern
Mining congress held In the city of
Portland last May, a similar resolo
tlon was passfid with reference to the
state of Oregon. Since that time the
Oregon branch of tbe American Min
ing congress has been working for
the establishment of two tost sta
tions, one to be located at Grant
Pass and the other at Dakor. The
American National Mining congress
has taken up tbe matter to have the
government asstxt in tbe mainten
ance of these plants. In order to car
ry out tbe purposes of the resolutions
of these two meetings, it will be nec
essary for the mining people of Ore-,
gon to be thoroughly organlxed,
and make some definite action In se
curing this legislation.
There will also be Introduced la
the corning session of Congress the -tabllnbment
of a government assay
office In Portland. Upon th comple
tion of these three enterprises a long
felt want will be realised by the min
ing people,
Any Information desired roncera
Ing the work that Is to be ranted out,
will be given by a1droMln the secte
tary, U I). Mahone, 409-19 Yeon
building. Portland. Tbe active co
operation of the mining people tn ev
ery district of the stale, Is asked la
order to otake a teeees ef tale work.