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Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Was any money expended by any of the people to whom you intrusted the money for use in the campaign in the interest of Senator Stephenson for the purpose of bribing or corruptly influencing voters, to your knowledge?

Mr. WAYLAND. Not to my knowledge.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Did any information ever reach you, in connection with the campaign, that any money had been so expended? Mr. WAYLAND. No, sir.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. That had been disbursed by you or by others under your instruction?

Mr. WAYLAND. No, sir.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. That is all.

Senator POMERENE. Did you furnish money to others to distribute? Mr. WAYLAND. No, sir.

Senator POMERENE. In other words, you gave it to the ultimate consumer, yourself?

Mr. WAYLAND. I did; and, furthermore, I did not pay these men, a great many of them, until after the primary, so that I felt there would be no money in anyone's hands. I was very careful through my campaign.

Senator PоMERENE. That is all.

(The witness was thereupon excused.)

TESTIMONY OF WILLIAM L. ESSMANN, RECALLED.

The CHAIRMAN. Are you prepared, Mr. Essmann, to give the committee a list of the papers in your possession?

Mr. ESSMANN. No, sir; I have all the contents of the box sorted

out.

The CHAIRMAN. But you have not arranged the matter as yet?
Mr. ESSMANN. No, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. I would suggest before you come on the stand that, in the interest of orderly procedure, you secure the assistance of one of the clerks of the committee and arrange these documents systematically.

You say there are still other documents at Madison, you think? Mr. ESSMANN. No, sir; I do not think there are any more at Madison.

The CHAIRMAN. You think they are all here in your possession-all the exhibits that were before the committee?

Mr. ESSMANN. No, sir; I think there are more somewhere, but I do not know where.

The CHAIRMAN. You do not know where?

Mr. ESSMANN. No, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. These are all of which you have knowledge?
Mr. ESSMANN. Yes; that is all that are in my possession.

The CHAIRMAN. If you will, then, arrange them in consecutive order and classify them we will call you.

The usual time for adjournment has now arrived.

(Whereupon, at 4.30 o'clock p. m., the subcommittee adjourned until to-morrow, Thursday, October 12, 1911, at 10 o'clock a. m.)

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12, 1911.

FEDERAL BUILDING, Milwaukee, Wis.

The subcommittee met at 10 o'clock a. m.

Present: Senators Heyburn (chairman), Sutherland, and Pomerene. Present also: Mr. C. E. Littlefield, Mr. W. E. Black, and Mr. H. H. J. Upham, counsel for Senator Isaac Stephenson.

The CHAIRMAN. The Secretary will call the names of the witnesses subpoenaed for to-day.

Mr. Riordan will be excused from the stand and Mr. Gordon will be called. Mr. Riordan will remain in attendance.

Mr. Gordon, you have not been sworn?

Mr. GORDON. No.

The CHAIRMAN. The following witnesses summoned to appear this morning will come forward as their names are called: Adolph Rosenheim, D. J. O'Connor, N. L. James, George Beyers.

Mr. Rosenheim and Mr. James responded to their names, and the oath was administered to them by the chairman.

TESTIMONY OF GEORGE H. GORDON.

GEORGE H. GORDON, having been duly sworn, testified as follows: The CHAIRMAN. Your name is George H. Gordon?

Mr. GORDON. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. What position, if any, do you hold?

Mr. GORDON. United States attorney for the western district of Wisconsin.

The CHAIRMAN. Where do you reside?

Mr. GORDON. La Crosse.

The CHAIRMAN. How long have you been United States attorney for that district?

Mr. GORDON. About two years; a little over.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you take part in the senatorial contest during the direct primary election of 1908 ?

Mr. GORDON. I did.

The CHAIRMAN. Whom did you support?

Mr. GORDON. Senator Stephenson.

The CHAIRMAN. It has appeared in the testimony already taken that certain sums of money were paid by you and disbursed by you in connection with that campaign. How much money did you receive?

Mr. GORDON. $1,800.

The CHAIRMAN. Who paid it to you?

Mr. GORDON. Mr. Edmonds, I think.

The CHAIRMAN. When was it paid to you?

Mr. GORDON. At different times during the month of July.

The CHAIRMAN. Can you state when you received it?

Mr. GORDON. I can not state the exact day when I received it. The CHAIRMAN. The testimony that has been given indicates that on August 4 you received $1,300. Did you receive that sum at that time?

Mr. GORDON. I could not tell the time when I received it or the amount I received at any given time. I received $1,800 in the aggregate.

The CHAIRMAN. On August 21 did you receive $200!
Mr. GORDON. I can not tell you the date, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. On August 27 did you receive $300?

Mr. GORDON. I can not give you any dates.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you make any memorandum of the money received at the time?

Mr. GORDON. None whatever, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. What did you do with the money?

Mr. GORDON. I expended it in the campaign for Mr. Stephenson. The CHAIRMAN. For what did you expend it?

Mr. GORDON. For general campaign expenses.

The CHAIRMAN. Designate, more particularly, what you mean by general campaign expenses. State what you mean by "spending" it. Mr. GORDON. Did I say "spending" it?

The CHAIRMAN. Whether you did or not, state what you mean by

that term.

Mr. GORDON. I mean spending it by employing men to advance the candidacy of Mr. Stephenson.

The CHAIRMAN. Name some man whom you employed for that

purpose.

Mr. GORDON. C. S. Van Auken.

The CHAIRMAN. How much did you pay him?

Mr. GORDON. I can not give you the amount.

The CHAIRMAN. What did you direct him to do?

Mr. GORDON. I employed him to look after his district.

The CHAIRMAN. What do you mean by looking after his district? Mr. GORDON. To get men to talk for Mr. Stephenson and represent him at the primary on primary day.

The CHAIRMAN. Represent him in what manner?

Mr. GORDON. Oh, for the purpose of bringing out voters at the polls to the primary.

The CHAIRMAN. Did he expend it for that purpose?

Mr. GORDON. I think he did.

The CHAIRMAN. Did he account to you?

Mr. GORDON. He did not.

The CHAIRMAN. Did he tell you he had expended it for that purpose?

Mr. GORDON. He did not.

The CHAIRMAN. How do you know he spent it for that purpose? Mr. GORDON. I know he is a man of character and would not do anything that was not on the square.

no,

The CHAIRMAN. You are not speaking from your own information? Mr. GORDON. Not from personal knowledge of what he told me; sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you see him expend any of it or pay it out? Mr. GORDON. I did not.

The CHAIRMAN. Just a moment. Do not commence to answer a question until it is fully asked. There is plenty of time.

Mr. GORDON. I will try to obey your instructions, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Did you make, at any time, a statement of the manner of the expenditure of this money?

Mr. GORDON. I did not.

The CHAIRMAN. With whom did you make the arrangement for the receipt and expenditure of this money?

Mr. GORDON. I think it was with Mr. Edmonds.

The CHAIRMAN. Where did you make the arrangement?

Mr. GORDON. I think he made the arrangement with me over the long-distance telephone.

The CHAIRMAN. How did you receive the money?

Mr. GORDON. By draft, I think.

The CHAIRMAN. On each of the three occasions when you received it? Mr. GORDON. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you, at any time, have a personal interview with Mr. Edmonds in regard to expending this money?

Mr. GORDON. I did not. My recollection is that I did not. The CHAIRMAN. Did you see Mr. Edmonds during the campaign? Mr. GORDON. I did not-excuse me. I saw Mr. Edmonds. I first met Mr. Edmonds in Milwaukee, before he made an arrangement with me to handle any money; and that, I think, was in the early part of July or the latter part of June.

The CHAIRMAN. "What arrangement did he make with you in regard to handling this money?

Mr. GORDON. At the time he was introduced to me, none. Over the long-distance phone he asked if I would take some money and use it in the interests of Mr. Stephenson in my territory.

The CHAIRMAN. At that time were you engaged in the general practice of law?

Mr. GORDON. I was, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Were you the attorney for any special class of clients-railroads, for instance?

Mr. GORDON. I engaged in the general practice. I was retained to represent the Chicago & Northwestern locally at La Crosse for many

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The CHAIRMAN. Did you have any instructions as to the manner in which you were to expend this money?

Mr. GORDON. Not that I recall.

The CHAIRMAN. Did Mr. Edmonds place any limitations upon you in regard to the use to make of the money?

Mr. GORDON. I can not recall what he did say about that. I think he may have said something about how it was to be expended. I can not recall at the present time.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you have any instructions from Mr. Tracy in regard to receiving or spending this money?

Mr. GORDON. I never met Mr. Tracy.

The CHAIRMAN. Edward L. Tracy testified before the joint committee of investigation in the legislature

He

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. To what page do you refer, Mr. Chairman ? The CHAIRMAN. You will find the commencement of his testimony on page 3395. I shall have to turn back further to get the date. was the first witness on that day. It must be March 30, 1909, on page 3361, unless I have overlooked a date between that and the point where Mr. Tracy's testimony seems to be given.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Page 3361 ?

The CHAIRMAN. Yes, sir.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Yes; that is right. At least that date appears there-March 30, 1909.

To what page are you referring for the testimony, Mr. Chairman? What we are trying to do is to make certain as to the day when he testified.

The CHAIRMAN. Page 3395; that is where Mr. Tracy is sworn. Now, on page 3406 is the testimony to which I was referring.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Yes; I have it, thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. I am inclined to think that the indexer of this testimony has mistaken the word Grogan for Gordon. I find the testimony that would evidently apply, but it is relative to instructions given Mr. Grogan, and it is indexed as referring to Mr. Gordon. Mr. LITTLEFIELD. I think the chairman is right about that.

The CHAIRMAN. So I will let that question stand, with that explanation, without answer.

Mr. LITTLEFIELD. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you meet Mr. Puelicher at any time during the campaign?

Mr. GORDON. Yes; I met him twice, I think.

The CHAIRMAN. Did you talk to him with reference to Mr. Stephenson's campaign?

Mr. GORDON. I met him the time I was introduced, the same day that I was introduced to Mr. Edmonds in Milwaukee, and I met him again at La Crosse several days before the primary, and he was then with Senator Stephenson. I guess we discussed the candidacy at that time, perhaps.

The CHAIRMAN. The three of you together discussed that at that time?

Mr. GORDON. No, sir; not necessarily. There was quite a number of other gentlemen in Mr. Stephenson's party. I think he was making a tour of the State, and there were several gentlemen with him.

The CHAIRMAN. I will now read from your testimony in part as to the manner of the distribution of money. I read from page 1881, beginning at the bottom of page 1880:

Q. Mr. Gordon, will you tell us what was done with that money?-A. Why, it was distributed among workers, men that devoted time in the interests of the candidacy of Mr. Stephenson, or distributing literature, putting up lithographs of Mr. Stephenson, circulating and distributing buttons, livery hire, automobiles, and newspaper circulation and advertising generally, that is what it was used for.

Q. Did you pay the bills, or was some of this money turned over to other people?— A. The system that we adopted, if it may be called a system-this was a new experience to me, the distribution of moneys in La Crosse; others had heretofore been selected for that purpose, and I called in some of the boys that had had previous experience and who were acquainted with the men who had the influence, and they would send those fellows to me; some of them I knew and some of them I didn't know; they would say, "Well, now, such men as Charley Van Auken and Frank P. Hixon and Eugene Perkins and Charley Smith, and a number of other men that had previous experience," they would say, "Why, I know of a good fellow down in a certain place; I will send him up.' And I would get his funds, what he thought was right, and he went on his way rejoicing, and if he wanted any more he came back and got them, as long as they lasted.

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Did you so testify at that time?

Mr. GORDON. Substantially.

The CHAIRMAN. That is true?

Mr. GORDON. That is true.

The CHAIRMAN. You mention Mr. Van Auken. Can you tell me how much money was turned over to him?

Mr. GORDON. I can not.

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