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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 18, 1919)
THE BEE: OMAHA', THURSDAY. DECEMBER 18, 1919. ATTEMPT TRAP WITH PHOTO IN TRIALOF DAVIS Mayor Smith Identifies Pic- ture as That of Claude Bossie, Who Immedi v 4 ately Denies It. (Continued From rc (Hie.) wanted to see him, that he was "sore at that bunch because of some thing that happened last night," and asked htm to get a continuance of the ease for two days. i ' Mra. Catherine Campbell, sister of George Davis, testified that Overbay called at her home following Davis' arrest and said he wanted to go on Davis' bond. Alibi Witnesses. There will be a little more testi mony this morning and it is expect ed the case will go to the jury late . today. ; The first of the 'alibi" witnesses of the defense were on the witness .stand yesterday morning. The crowded court room held its breath as the witnesses swore that George Davis was at his home from 8:10 o'clock that night, ate dinner there, played cards h the other members of a dinntr party until a late hour. The mayor swore on the witness stand Tuesday, "Positively before God, I am sure George Davis, the defendant in this case, is the man who struck me .after they got me out of the court' house the night of the riot." Sister on Stand. Mary Ellen Davis, pretty and handsomely tailored sister of George Davis, swore on the witness stand yesterday morning: "Before God and every one in this court room I can swear that George never left the house from about 8:15 o'clock that Sunday night until about 6 the next morning, when he went to work." Is it an astounding case of mis taken identity by Mayor Smith? Throughout his evidence the mayor frequently reiterated his absolute certainty that Davis is the man. He declared that he never could forget that " face as it burned into . his memory during the moments while he stood surrounded by an in furiated mob. Is it a case of mistaken identity on the part of John Overbay, who also swore with positiveness that he aaw Davis strike the blow that felled the mayor? Were They Mistaken? I Was Russell Norgard mistaken when he swore on the witness stand Tuesday that he saw George Davis with the crowd following the mayor fter the mayor was dragged out of the court house? These are questions raised by the array of witnesses presented by the defense to prove that George Davis was at home while Mayor Smith was being assaulted at the court house. Miss Mary Ellen Davis, first of these witnesses, said she keeps house for George Davis and another brother at 1512 North Twenty-eighth street She had a dinner party the -. , Fight on Treaty May Be Reopened in Few Weeks . (Continued From Pace One.) clared the time had come to stop academic discussion of who held up the treaty, nd get together in a give-and-take effort for compromise. Action was urged by Senator Nel son of Minnesota, and by Senator Myers of Montana, a democrat, who voted last session for some reser vations and also for unreserved rati fication; Republicans Wait. In . the compromise negotiations preceding private conferences the principal activity seemed to be among the democrats, the republican reservationists indicating that they awaited, some concrete proposal from the other side of the house. Among the democrats there was Much discussion of the possible ef fect of the compromise negotiations n the contest between Senator Hitchcock of Nebraska and Senator Underwood of Alabama for election as democratic leader of the senate. The negotiations started yesterday with the mild reservation republi cans ' were conducted by Senator Underwood's supporters, but he de clared tonight that while he stood for some sort of compromise, he was not in revolt against President Wilson nor leading any sort of op position to the treaty. A Tickl. Is th Beginning-. ' t m throat cold or painful eongh. HAYES' HEALING HONEY Stops the Tickle by Healing the Throat, 15a per bottle. night of September 28, with a num ber of invited guests. Played Cards All Evening. "George came home about 10 min utes after 8," she testified. "Mr. Morrell let him in the back door and George ate his dinner in the kitchen. Later he played the player piano and played cards with ut all evening." Edward Morrell, a son of Adam Morrell, barber in the Woodmen of the World building, one of, the guests at the party, testified to the same movements of George Davis. "Wasn't the riot downtown men tioned at the party that evening?" County Attorney Snotwell asked. "No, sir," said Morrell. "George Davis didn't say anything about it when he came home?" "No, sir." "You noticed the crowd around the court house when you were on your way out to the Davis home?" "Yes." "And you didn't mention it?" "No, sir." Norse is Witness. Miss Margaret Hevelin, a trained nurse, also a guest at the party, tes tified that George Davis was there the entire evening. She now resides at the Davis home but lived at 2102 Chicago street at the time the riot occurred. "Wim't nnvtViinc A at the nartv about the riot?" asked the county attorney. "No. sir." "Georire didn't mention it after he came home?" "Not a word." "Didn't you see anything of it on your way out to the house?" "Well, I heard people on the car say there was a mob gathering around the court house?" "But you didn't say anything about that at the party?" "No sir." Men Look Alike. William N. Tamieson. one of the attorneys for Davis, brought Ed ward rianion trom soutu umana and had him stand beside George Davis before the jury. The two men look much alike. This was done with the idea of showing that the state's witnesses who identified Da vis as the man who struck the mayor might be mistaken. Thomas J. Cronin, 3214 California street, a bookkeeper for Sunderland Brothers, was the first witness for the defense. Cronin. on direct examination dis played an evident desire to clear Davis. Some of his answers such ae "Davis wasn't in the crowd sur rounding the mayor" and "Overbay wasn t there, were ordered stneuen out by Judge Redick. On cross examination by County Attorney Shotwell, Cronin admitted that he is a first cousin of Davis. . "No, I Don't Care." "And you are interested in seeing your blood relative acquitted of these charges of assault with intent to murder and assault with intent to do great bodily injury to Mayor Smith, aren't you?" asked the coun ty attorney. , "No, I don't care," replied cro nin. 5 Cronin -said he saw Russell Nor gard in the mob, but did not see Da vis. Norgard testified for the state yesterday and said he saw Davis. Cronin also said he was certain that the mob, when it emerged from the east door of the court house with the mayor,, came directly across the street to the corner tf Seventeenth and Harney streets. This differed from the testimony of all the witnesses for the state who said the mob hustled the mayor first to the vicinity of Mickey Gib son's place in the Keeline building and that there was where Davis struck the mayor and knocked him unconscious. . Crowd Surged East. Cronin, however, said he did not see the mayor and the crowd around him until after they had emerged from the court house. "I saw a foreign-looking fellow in an army shirt trying to hit the mayor over the head with the butt of a revolver," testified Cronin. "Then the crowd surged east and stopped under a pole. I saw three or four men hit the mayor with their fists. "Someone said, 'let's hang him' and a fellow had a rope about five feet long and they put that around his neck and two men kept see sawing it back and forth, one having hold of each end. Ran to Get Help. "They didn't have no place to hang him there so they moved east and put a rope over a pole and around the mayor's neck. Then I began to yell, 'Don't hang a white man.' And I left to try to get help. When I came back two men were getting the mayor out of the mob. About half a dozen of us helped to get him out to a car in Harney street but he fought against being put in the car and finally the crowd turned the car over In the street. So we hurried him down to Six teenth and Harney streets and there we got him in a car and then came back up Harney street." PLAYER ROLLS NOTHING WOULD BE MORE AP PRECIATED THAN PLAYER ROLLS Here are some that should he in every roll library: HERE ARE 12 SPECIALS: "Ye Old Time Christmas , Music" $1.25 'Around the Xmti Tree" 1.25 "Christmas Songs" ..... .65 "Oh Christmas Tree".. .65 "Christmas Chimes" ... 1.00 ' 'Snowflakes" Also Xmas Chimes 1.00 "I Am Climbing Moun- . tains" ...$1.25 "There Is Something About a Rose'S..... 1.25 "You'd Be Surprised".. 1.25 "Vamp" 1.25 "When the Preacher Makes You Mine"... 1.00 "Coal Man Blues" 1.00 We Sara frem fSO i nm a Piaa. ADD 3c PER ROLL FOR POSTAGE Z MOsricr Co. 1807 Farnam Street, Omaha. . Neb. Wilson's Mind Open On Railroad Question (Ooatlnoed Tree Pate One.) may be worked out for the ultimate disposal of the roads, which would be fair to all interests involved. "Director General Hines and members of the Interstate Commerce commission have shown clearly that the return of the railroads will in volve an increase in freight rates of close to a $1,000,000,000. This in crease in rates, according to the same authorities, will be reflected in an increase cost of living of at least $4,000,000,000 a year, possibly $5,000,- 000,000. The American people can not and should not stand such an increase. "We respectfully request, Mr. President, on behalf of the farmers, the American Federation of Labor and the - railway brotherhoods as well as the general public, that you stop the rumors that you plan to return the railroads to private con trol and that in view of the changed conditions and the prevalent indus trial unrest vou re-establish public confidence by advocating that the period of government operation oe continued for at least two years." Want Public Control. During the day J. R. Howard, rep resenting the Anrerican Farm Bu reau federation, made public a letter which he had sent to senator Cummins transmitting resolutions adopted by the federation at Chi cago last month, demanding "the early return of the railroads to pub lic control under such conditions and regulations as will render ade quate service at just and equitable rates." Mr. Howard said the resolutions had been adopted unanimously. This unanimous approval, he wrote, "was from a body of more than 400 active and actual farmers holding delegate power from 2,000, 000 farmers from 34 states of the union." Ex-Service Men Demand Speedy Aid of Congress (Continued From Pace One.) delegates in developing complaints of inefficiency and illustration of changes of administrative practice requested by the former service men. Franklin D'Olier, grand com mander, assured the government of ficials that the legion had no spe cific complaint against them, bu such must not be interpreted to mean the legion did not recognize failure on the part of the war risk bureau, the public health service and the vocational educational board "to function satisfactorily." Sum Up Their Views. At the conclusion of the discus sion, delegates summed up their views of needs of the former service men, as demonstrated by their study of the situation, as follows: "The Watson and Sweet bills should be passed by congress forth with. "The bureau of war risk insur ance, federal board for vocational education and the public health service especially the sections of the two latter agencies dealing with ex-service men should be combined under a single head, and one repre sentative of the unified agency should be placed in each state. "The following modifications re garding insurance should be adopted: "Premiums should be payable through the local postofnees. Re strictions based on relationship of beneficiaries should be removed. The amount of the insurance under both term and converted, policies should be payable at the option of the applicant in a lump sum or oth erwise and if the applicant has ex ercised no option then at the option of the beneficiary. A partial disabil ity benefit should be paid under all policies. Should Remit Pay. "That all disabled persons having war risk insurance while in the hos pitals or while receiving benefits under the war risk insurance act or while receiving training, should have the payment of all insurance premiums remitted during the con tinuance of their disability and train ing. That all forms used shall be simplified so as to be made as short and simple as possible. "All men . receiving ' vocational training should have their mainte nance pay in full and a vocational training official should be permanent ly stationed at every hospital where disabled ex-service persons are be ing cared for to give personal and individual information. Immediate and adequate steps should be taken to reach all persons at present en titled to vocational training and not receiving it and to acquaint them House Committee Calls on Publishers To Use Less Paper Washington, Dec. 17. Every newspaper in the country was called on today by the house postoffice committee to reduce its consumption of news print paper by 10 per cent for a period of six months in an ef fort to relieve the present serious shortage which the committee hai been told threatened the destructioi of a number of small papers. fully with their rights and to give trWning to all who are entitled to it, recreational features should be added to the vocational training pro gram. "Substantial increases in all the present rates should be granted. Im mediate, liberal and effective action should be taken on all claims. "Persons suffering from tuber culosis should be considered as 'totally disabled during the con tinuance of the disease and to be compensated accordingly. "Hospital facilities at present pro vided are inadequate and congress should make a far more liberal pro vision for same." THOMPSON-BELDEN COMPANY There Will Be No "Open Evenings" At This Store We can and will give better service by maintaining our regular shopping hours: 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. Every Day A few persons may be ac commodated by the addi tional evening hours... but it is done at the expense of the many who are sufficiently busy...as it is...without being asked to serve longer. Early Shopping Is Best 22 nurdHirMm 1913 -1919 ad vxg ad ato daccanycr Three types: Regular Safety and Self-Filling with a point and size, of holder to fit perfectly any particular handwriting preference. The Worlds Standard ' - Quality, Efficiency and Durability .Atbest dealers everywhere La E. Waterman Company rolXn SameJPeR Same Price Same Service $2.50 and Up l9LBroadwayNcw York Chicago Son FrancxAco THOMPSON-BELDEN & COMPANY Come As Early As You Can! so that we may serve you to the best of our ability The Thompson-Belden Store is filled with thousands of Gift Things... But there is no trash. There is value as well as Christ mas spirit in the gift from this store. Gifts for everybody.. The things they have wanted for the past eleven months. Why not make them happy on the twelfth, one? A Good Gift Is Better When It Is Well Boxed In this particular we have plan ned to assist you by providing suitable boxes to accomodate the gift articles you choose here. And the Quality of Everything You See In this Store... is quite dependable... Known to be so by the entire community. SLiop Eadiy