Salt Lake Tribune | 1910-02-24 | Page 10 | Defense Has Chance in Timber Cases

DEFENSE M CHANCE 18 TIMBER CHS Witnesses Swear That Those AYI10 Testified for Government Govern-ment Are Not Truthful. Special lo The Tribune. BOISE, Ida., Feb. 23. William F. Kct-tenhnch, Kct-tenhnch, George H. Kcstcr and William Dwyer, charged with conspiracy to defraud de-fraud I lie government out of valuable timber lands, and now on trial here, were this- afternoon given an opportunity to disprove the evidence introduced by the government and establish their innocence. inno-cence. Stops taken late today for this purpose placed a number of witnesses on the stand, who testified that Cortell. Alorrlson. Robnett and other government witnesses bore an unsavory reputation and their truth and veracity could not be depended upon. An early adjournment was forced because be-cause the prosecution did not have its other witness present. The defendants will probably take the stand tomorrow. The court denied the motion to dismiss the case against Ketlenbach. The government rested its case shortly short-ly after court convened this afternoon. It had speit the entire morning session introducing documentary evidence, connecting con-necting the links In the chain of evidence evi-dence it lias been fastening about the defendants de-fendants during the past six days, and which corroborated the confession given bv Clarence W. Robnett. who implicated impli-cated the trio with deliberately plotting to list; "dummy" cntrymen to file on limber lands and inter deed them over through llic Lewlslon National bank to Kcstcr and Ketlenbach. Judge Dietrich ruled (hat t,ho evidence of a deceased person could be Introduced and the government made use of that given bv Norman Jackson, which corroborated cor-roborated Robnctt's confession and was damaging lo the defense The deeds of the dummy cntrymen transferring the timber land lo the defendants de-fendants were Introduced. Airs. William Dwver. wife of one of the defendants, took the stand and testified as to the bad character of Alorrlson. During the entire session wrangling was indulged in by counsel for both sides, forcing the court to administer a severe reprimand.