The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 22, 1902, Page 3

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, FRIDAY, AUGUST 22, 1902. WARDEN AGUIRRE HAS HIS OWN PRNATE CARPENTER SHOP IN THE PRISON Material Has" Been F urnitfi "Make Free With the F Continued From Page 2, Column 6. WHERE FURNITURE OF ALL DESGRIPTIONG Swallowed in Prison. —_— 1 A re for Asking of a Piece. ‘theg Property of State. | URNITURE IS MADE BY | WHOLESALE IN PRISON -1 R4 > R Q—Not veneersd? Q.—That dresser a by whom it g to show by whom sir. he couches that be ou made in{ ct from an me knowledge; any upholstered ke the frames for the Well, the wood- work was done ering was done where? EMEMBERS THAT | WARDEN PAID, BUT FORGETS AMOUNT HE head carpenter admitted that the /" i\ 2l 'wo on the order of Jo- Aguirre one for George Mc- 1l. These were upholstered in the He had made three or four chif- i (& of them for Aguirre. A bed-| _ General Overseer Aguirre | d the witness took it to the Warden, of it to John Caley ss had also made 2 pald them? A.—Mr. Gilardin said there was $42 50 due White Bros. for half the mahogany that was bought for those bedsteads. Q.—Then for $42 50 you had this bedstead made? A.—Yes, si Q.—You turned it aid you? A.— ver to the Warden, then, Warden. 1 told the War- le for McDougall Of | den he could have that bedstead. ation proceeded as fol-| g _wen? A.—He took it and paid me the money bed that you say that you rden for payment to you of was that 2 mahogany bed? | Q.—How much did he pay you? A.—Some way in the neighborhood of $42—$43—maybe more. Q.—Well, was 1t more or less? A.—Well, it was under $50. Q.—What makes ‘Well, because I ki A—Well, it was— was there? A.—There t it wasn't what I call vou say it was under $507 ow it wasn't over $50. | Ta. t makes you know that it wasn't ; the carv- | over $50_ when can’t_tell the exact A’—Yes, sir. | amount, A.—Wwell, I couldn't that mahog- | say positively; it was around $42 or $43, some- it. | where in that neighborhood. It may be pos- — A.—Com- | sibly $40. issary? A.—TYes, sir. | w where he got it? I think. now of your own I got a receipt for | that was used puty comm! 1 t A MUCH FURNITURE MANUFACTURED IN ? A.—I think about a ¥ | kn Wh T g ARPENTER EMSLIE was recalled ‘ : in the afterncon. In answer to | questions, he named twenty pris- oners who worked for him in his shop and in the “Warden's shop.” Asked We picture to-day one of the newest things in shirtdom; in fact, it's now the prevailing style in New York. It’s a golf shirt with a plaited bosom with piped edgings on each plait; the shirts are made of splendid quality chambray and madras in light blue and ox-blood; your choice of piping—red, black or white. These are swell shirts, made up in a first-class manner. A dollar and fifty cents is generally the price for a new style like this; ~ $1.00 Out-of-town-orders filled—write us. 00D 718 Market Street. a O‘ A to narrate all the pleces of furniture made in the shop since he took charge, he testified as follows: Mr. Campbell: Q.—Start with bedsteads first. A.—Well, there Is three bedsteads, two, bookcases, three or four chiffoniers, two dress- ers, a dozen dining-room chairs, seven or eight frames for Turkish chairs, center table, there was three bookcases. 1 sald two. There was three bookcases, seftee. I cannot remember anything else. ’ Q.—Couches. A.—Yes, sir, couches; there was three or four couches made—maybe five; possibly five. .—Three made for Mr. Agulrre, was there not? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—One of which was sent to Mrs. Gage? A.—I don’t know where it was sent to. Q.—Yes. Tables? How many tables? You £aid center table—but how many other tables? A.—Oh, yes. I made two inlaid tables. Q.—Two inlaid tables? A.—Yes, sir. .—How many ordinary tebles, not inlatd? A.—One center table, and one—ohe—two—two extension tables, : Q.—Now, there were four bedsteads instead of three, were there not, Mr Emslle? A.— Yes, sir, there were four bedsteads altogether. %? A.—That is, there was—I hal nade and I saw another one being made. You mean that one upstairs? A.—Yes, sir, Q.—You had four made, didn’t you? A.—No, | str. Q.—There was one made for—one made for Mrs.—what is her name—a German name? A.— Praetzel. Q.—One made for her? A.—Mr. Praetzel, Q—Two made for Mr, Aguirre? A.—One was made for Mr. Aguirre, and one for Mr. McDougall. Q.—But there was two made for Mr, Mc- Dougall, wasn't there—I mean two made for Mr. Aguirre? A.—No, sir, Q—Now, Mrs Practzel got hers? A—Yes, sir, Q.—Mr. Aguirre got one, Mr. McDougall got one, and then the one that was made for you that the Warden got? A.—No, sir. Q.—Well, how is that? A.—The one that was made for Mr. Aguirre—I took that one. Q.—Yes? A.—Then I let the Warden have that one. Q.—Didn’'t you testify this morning that you made two for Mr. Aguirre? A.—If I did I made & mistake, Q.—Mr. J. A. Agulrre? only one was made for him. Q.—One was made for him? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—And that is the one that you got? - A.— The one that 1 got—yes, sir. Q.—Then_there wasn't two made for him then. A.—No, ‘sir. Q.—Then, all that you know of is you now testify to was the onme that went to Mrs. Praetzel—the one that went to Mr. McDougall —the one that went to the Warden? A.—I don’'t know where they went to. Q.—That was the—that is, who they were made for, or—the Warden finally got his? A. —Yes, si Q.—Now, .1 understand you to say that you paid for the makogany? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—$42 50?7 A.—Somewhere—something like A.—No, st that Q.—And you turned it over to the Warden for about the same amount that he paid you? A.—Yes, the work, of course, —No, sir. A.—No, sir, Q.—Who paid for the hardware? A.—Well, there was only—there was no hardware, only a set of casters. Q.—There was hardware at_the end of the sideboard, wasn't there? A.—Yes, sir. Q—There was hardware in the footboard? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Then there was hardware—and there were casters? A.—Yes, sir; casters, yes. Q.—Who paid for them? A.—I got the set of casters from George McDougall, Q.—Yes? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Did McDougall furnish you the hardware and the casters for the other beds? A.—No, sir. Q.—Who furnished them? A.—I really can't tell where that—I guess they came out of the shop. &1 motice here on your book on March 29, 1902—first, now 1 understand you to gay that so far as you remember, all of the beds that were manufactured there under your supervision, Without saying anything that was manufactured above what is called—you called that the Warden's shop, did you not? A.— No, sir, 1 don’t think I did. .—Didn't you call that the Warden's shop? A.—No, I don’t think so, ‘What wi the Warden's you did not o pay for? A. .—No? I don’t know Whether it is or not. Q—Is this in your handwriting (showing requisition book)? = A.—No, sir. ~ Q—Sir? _A.—No, sir. Q.—In whose handwriting 1s 1t? A.—I cogla not tell you. . Q—Requisition book. The words where he TWO WITNESSES WHO HELPED PROVE CHARGES MADE BY THE CALL. says he does not know in whose handwriting it 1s are ‘““Warden's shop.” A. Vell, it is not my handwritinz, : ,Q—That Is not your handwriting? A.—No, sir. Q—That 1s your book, is it not? A.—That 1s my bbok, yes, sir. Q.—Has somebody else been writing In your book? A.—It looks that way. Q.—Will you kindly point out gomething in that requisition that is in your handwriting? A.—I have got a man that I get to make out requisitions for me. Q.—Now, I want you to take this book and look at it ‘as closely as you can and state to the court whether or not all of the lumber and materfa] that you made requisitions for are contained in that book? A.—That would be a pretty hard thing for me to do, to say that I received all this lumber. “Q. , no; whether you ordered it. And the materials that you would order would be in that book, wouldn’t they? A.—Supposed to e E Q.—Well, you made orders for {t? A.—I am supposed to make the orders for it. LR E ety HARDWOODS FILL CARPENTER SHOP OF STATE PRISON HE witness professed ignorance of what was being don€ in the “War- den’s shop” in the loft. He sald the Warden had ordered him to make the G bedstead for McDougall. The testimony continued: Q.—Did you make any furniture thers for Mr. McClure? A.—TYes, sir. Q.—What did you make for Mr. McClure? A. —hA bookcase, a couple of chairs—five or six chalrs. Q.—What is the character of the chairs— what kind of chairs? A.—A couple of carved chairs, mahogany carved chairs, a mahogany bookcase, and I belleve an oak bookcase, and some oak chairs and an oak settee, if I am not mistaken. Q.—Who is Mr. McClure? A.—A turnkey. Q.—Now, then, did_you make any furniture there for Mr. Byrne, superintendent of the jute mill? A.—Yes, sir, .—What did_you make for him? A.—A bookcase and table; I can’t remember anything more. Q—Dldn’t you make two tables? A.—Two tables, yes, sir; an extension table and a center- table. Q.—Now, let us see, then, you manufactured furniture there for Mr. McClure, and manufac- tured furniture there for Mr. Jogeph Aguirre, and you manufactured furniture there for Mr. McDougall, and you manufactured furniture there for Mr. Byrne, and you manufactured fur- niture there for Mr. Practzel and the Warden, Now, is there any one else? Yes, didn't you manufacture some furniture there for a man |. named Estudillo? A.—I made a writing desk for his room. Q.—Well, what else? A.—That is all that I Know of, Q.—Dldn’'t you manufacture some furniture there for a man by the name of Figaro? A.—I me rough tables, redwood tables. —Where did they go to? Who is Mr. Fi- garo? A.—He lives®at San Quentin. 'Q.—1In San Quentin or outside? A.—Well, he lives in the town of San Quentin or village. Q.—Oh. he lives in the town; well, what is his business? A.—He has a saloon there. Q.—Were these tables manufactured for the saloon? A.—I made a couple of—made eight or ten, or maybe a dozen, rough redwood tables. G.—Yes, for the saloon, was it? A.—I don't know what it was for. @ —Have. you ever been in his saloon? A.— Occasionally. Q.—Did you ever recognize your handiwork there? A.—No, sir, not in the saloon. .—8ir? A.—Not in the saloon. Q.—Well, any place clse in Mr, Figaro's place of business did you recognize the tables that Were made there? A.—I belleve they were out in @ ot on the other side of the street. Mr. Whiting—Of course, If the court please, this is all subject to my general objection that it inust be connected or shown to be relevant. The court—Do you expect to connect this ex- amination with anything else? Mr. Whiting—I am going to make a further objection. I understand that all this testi- mony of this witness is subject to the general objection that it must be connected in some way with Governor Gage, or show that he has some beneficial interest in the things. I make the additional objection, if the court please, that this Is shown to be the act of the Wwit- ness and the material goes into a third party’s hands. Mr. Campbell—Oh, yes; Mr. Di trict Attorney, your objection is well taken. We will not raise any quarrel about that. But, of course, if your Honer please, this testimony we expect to follow a certain por- tion of this furniture into the fam- ily of the Governor and relatives— into the hands of the family and relatives of Mr. Gage—and we pro- pose to show the general knowl- edge of Mr. Gage of these transac- tions; and also, I beg to say to your Honor, that with this = general knowledge, he declared that there was nothing wrong at all at San Guentin; and we have a right to in- fer from that that with the means of knowledge nt his hands, all he would have to have done—and even assuming that he did not do it—all he would have to have done would have been to open his eyes and ask n question and he would have found ont what was going on; and yet he claims to find out that nothing was going wrong and that the law was not being violated and that the funds were not being misappropri- ated. And we shall ask your Honor to draw such inferences from that line of conduct as are worthy of being drawn. Mr. Whiting—I understand that this is all subject to the objection. The court—That is all subject to the objec- tion of the District Attorney and subject to the motion to strike out. I hope counsel will not go into a general investigation of affairs at San Quentin and not connect them in some way with the present suit. We are not here for that purpose. Mr. Campbell—We have no intention of do- ing that, 1f your Honor please. .—Now, then, what material is there up- stalrs in this lumber place where you keep your lumber—what amount of it is there to- day? A.—Oh, there may be two or three thou- zand feet. Q.~Is there any mahogany? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Is there any rosewdod? A.—Not to my knowledge; no, sir. Q.—Is there any ebony? A.—Not that I w of. 2 G s there any maple? A.—TYes, sir. A.—T couldn't exactly tell edge, no. @.-—Any basswood? A.—There may be some cre. Q—Cedar—white cedar? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—But _altogether there are two or thrce thousand feet, you think? A.—There may be more. ‘Q.——Well, about how much more? A.—Well, eay about 3000 feet. Q—3000 feet? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Now, do you know anything about the amount of lumber that was on hand on July, 1899, when Warden Aguirre took poesession? A.—No, sir. Q.—Do you know anything about the amount of lumber that was on hand when you yourself assumed charge of the carpenter shop? A.— I haven’t any idea. Q.—Then you have no means of knowing the amount of lumber that has been used in your shop and the shop above—what we call the Warden’s shop—from the time you took the possession, up to the pre: ent-time, have you? Not nece sarily, no sir; I don't—— Q.—You don’t know, do you?! A. —I don’t know positively. Q.—All you know about any casters is that which you got from Mr. McDougall—is that {t? A.—That is all. Q.—I notice in this requisition book that there has becn a requisition made, and I turned it* down—my assoclate has turned down the » corner there—of €0 set§ of casters. A.—SIXty sets? Q.—Yes, sir—12. 12, 6—12_ 12, 6. A.—Oh, casters, that has been ordered here in this re- quisition book? Q—Yes. A.—Oh well, that may be. Q.—What do you use them for? A.—We use them all over the place, in different places; some of them different departments. Q.—What do you call a drawer-pull? A.— There is a drawer-pull right there (indicating desk). Q.—One of those (pointing)? A.—TYes, sir. Q—And how much of that work did you do? A.—Oh, quite a lot of it. ‘Q.—About how many drawer-pulls would bs put on the chiffonier?, A.—Half a dozen— eight. Q.—And about how many—well, you have already stated that. Now, it appears that you have ordered about sixty dozen of drawer- pulls, Do you understand anything about those? that? A.—Well, I couldn’t say whether there was sixty dozen. bedfasts there. A.—Ome thousand bedfasts? Q.—Yes, at one whack, A.—I remember now, Q.—Where did you get were ordered by requisition. A.—For the beds, bunks for the prisoners, For the bunks for the prisoners? A.— Mr. Campbell—I think I am through with the witness unless there something suggested portunity to look at them, so that I would like to have you come back to-morrow morning. ’ WARDEN'S BROTHER Q.—-But ] owever that may be. I see 1000 1000; that is right. A.—They Q.—What for? Yes, sir. ~ by the books. Of course I have had no op- L o Continued From Page 2, Column 7. BEEN MADE FOR RIS FRIEND OSEPH AGUIRRE, brother of the San Quentin Prison Warden, is a man with a memory of remarkable elasticity. When previously on the witness-stand his memory played him a most lamentable trick. He asserted that he knew little or nothing of the work being done in the apartment or story above the carpenter- shop. It was developed yesterday through another witness that this apartment was known as the Warden’s private carpenter-shop. Aguirre knew little or noth= ing of what was going on in the “upper” story; he had so much to do looking after the other departments of the prison. He knew, he said, that there were one or two convicts doing some kind of work upstairs. - Yesterday he admitted that he knew work was being done there, not only for the Warden, but for himself and other employes. He suddenly acquired a great familiarity with the place, its surroundings and the work being done. He knew that there was a rosewood bedstead being made up there for his brother; also some tables, but he could not recall having seen any carving of the letter “G.” Looting the Lumber Pile Without Stint. Tell Queer Stories on Witness Stand. Warden Has Private Workshop in the Yard. ruls will have to be relaxed against that ob- Jection or not. The Court—The rules will have to be relaxed in a case like this because thers Is no doubt that this witness is = hostile witness to the defendants; and there i3 no dcubt that leading questions there can be aliowed and you might say by mecns of cross-examining the witness. Mr._ Whiting—I have, of course, assumed that | position. There has been a great deal of this cross-examination, and how far it should go I don’t know. M-, Campbell—I rccognize that fact, and T | recognize the fact also that the District Attor- ney must be awarc that we have to go imme- | diately into the hostile camp of the ecnemy 1o get these witnesses. . Now. will you kindly answer my ques- tion. A.—Well as I said befo: 1 saw in The | Call that it wasn't there; and I can't recall now that anybody ever told me that it wasn't there. Q—By Mr. Campbell: Didn’t you know it without any ono ever telling you that it was not there? A.—I don’t know if the bed was ever shipped, or that the bed was there, of my own personal knowledge. | Q.—How often have you been up in the that | loft? A.—I couldn’t tell you how many t! I Lave been there several times. | © @—You knew that the table that you said Mr. Leake said was thers—if it was there he would eat it—you knew that was there? A.— No, sir. Q.—Didn’t you so stats yesterday? A.—Ne, . Q—What did you state yesterday, as you on to that table? . The table which you refer to is a table which was made under | the previous administration, which is in the di- rectors’ house. That is the table which Mr. | Leake, so it came to us—I have got the im- | preesion somewhere—that is the table that Mr. | Leake said was not there. That is the table | st that I referred to—the large table. Q.—Whom did Mr. Leake tell that to? A.— I don't know whom he told it to. Q.—How did you get it? A.—I heard It from somebody- Q.—Who was the man? ber. Q.—Well, you remember exactly what the man told you, but you don’t remember who the man was? Is that the fact? A.—I remember that. He might have sa!d something else. —Well, don’t you know that he said some- | thing else? A.— 1 don't remember. Q.—Can you remember what you said on yes- | terday? In other words, didn’t you say that | Mr. Leake said that if ‘that table was there | he would eat it, and that —Yes. Q.—Now, then, who told you that? A.—I don’t know who told me. 1 got an impression that somebody told m: ADMITS PASSING ON REQUISITIONS FOR HARDWOOD TTORNEY CAMPBELL started a | line of inquiry to find who keeps | the books at San Quentin. Mr. Aguirre said the clerk of the Board of Directors kept them for the cashier. Mr. Campbell continued: 1 | Q—The clerk of the board. Have you any other bookkeepets there except the clerk of the board? A.—Oh, & good many. Q.—Will_you kindly tell the court who they are and what books they keep? A.—Do you mean in any particular department? Q—1I am asking you to state the depart- ments, please? A.—Well, there are bookkeep- ers in'the jute department. Q.—Whg are they? A.—That is in the main office. There is the accountant, and then there are bookksepers in the different departments. Q.—Just answer my question; who is in the jute department, and what is his name? A.— His name is Mr. O'Brien; he is the accountant; he keeps the books. Q.—Well, is he an employe? A.—Yes, sir. Q Well, now, what other departments ex- cept_the jute department? A.—Then there are bookkeepers in the commissary department. Q.—Who _are they? = A.—There are several employed there. Mr. Foley is the commissary. Q.—Is he a bookkeeper? A.—And his assist- A.—I don’t remem- “Who Is his assistant? A.—Mr. Gilardin, Is he a bookkeeper? A.—I think so. And bave they any Sebmpes Wiy A.—Yes, A.—They ars comvicts. Q. A.—A man by the name of Webber; he is in for life; and Becker and another man there by the name of McKenna; and thep there Is_another convict there by the name of Van Horn. Q—Van Horn? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—There are Webber, Becker, Van Horn and who else? At—Webber, Becker, Van Horn, and McKenna i3 now. Q.—McKenna? A.—Yes, sir; he has been there a short while. Q.—Now, what set of books is it that you call the segregation books? A.—I don't keep any such books. Q.—Is there ome kept in the prison? A.—I have so understood. Q.—And by whom fs it kept, If you don't mmissary. —Well, you have charge of the commis- sary, have 7 A.—In a way. a pretty big institution. 8 Ia sir, if you have charge of it? It seems to be a very big institution, because it takes a great Well, X a day; that is they ever turned out before, present administration it shows that it is quite & manufacturing institution. Q.—And besides that, the furniture that you manufactured—. A.—For our own use only, I would like to have that understood. Q.—Well, we will not advertise our institu- tion, Mr, Aguirre. Just Jet us answer ths questions. I want to get at the Now, Mr. Webber is one. Mr. Mr. Van Horm.is three, Mr. Mc] and who else? A.—Van Horn. Q.—Well. I have mentioned him. A.—Waell, I Rave you—. many questions to rs. ker is two, enna is four, victs up there carving a rosewood set of fur- niture for the Warden? A.—Yes, sir, Q.—DId you know that there were convicts there that had carved a letter “G" for a bedstead which was made for Mr. McDougall? A—I know that there was a bed made up there, but I don't remember of ever seeing a carving with a letter “G" on it. Q.—Well, do you know what became of that bedstead made for Mr. McDougall? Did he take it away? A.—I don't know whether he dtd. Q.—Ts it there now? A.—Possibly, I don't know, Q.—Don’t You know that it is not there, sir? Kindly answer that question. A. 1 understood that It was not there, from hear- say. You ara fishing for hearsay all the time, 50 I will give it to you. I have heard that t is not there. That is hearsay evidence, if that is what you are fishing for. The Court—You don’t know of your own per- sonal knowledge whether it is there or not? A.—No, sir. Q.—You have not been up there? A.—That don't seem to satisfy Mr. Campbell. Mr. Campbell—Just answer the question, Mr. Agulire. You will have plenty to do If you will answer the questions. A.—Well, give them to me straight. Q—Well, yes, I will give it to you straight. Who told you it was not there? A.—I read it in The Call, Q.—Now, is that the only way you have of knowing that it is not there, sir? Mr. Whiting—Well, if the court please—I haven't made the objection befors, but this of course is cross-examination of the defense’s own witness, and I don’t know whether the Isn't there a bookkeeper thers named | Carsor or Causeland? A.—Hs used to be; he | is not_thers now. | Q—Where is he? A.—He \s In the jute mill. | Q—He has been removed from being a book- keeper, has he? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Working in the jute mill, ts he? A.— Yes, sir. Q—Now, you heard a resolution read this morning in_ relation to your dutles, did you not? A.—No, sir, I was not here. Q—And do you know what your dutles are as general overseer? Do you know what they are as defined by the Board of Prison Direc- tors of San Quentin Prison? A.—Yes, some of my rules are defined. Q—Don’t the resolution appointing you de- fine your duties? A:—No, not all as I stand them. A.—No; mot all as I understand Q—Sir? them, Q.—They do define one duty, and that is to examine critically and_thoroughly all requisi- tions, don’t they? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—Do you do that? A.—Yes, sir. Q.—And you have done that ever since your appointment? A.—Some of them; them my brother passes on. made during your incumbency in office? Probably I have. They use some lumber in the mill. Q.—I am not asking you about the use. An- swer my question. [ave you examined those requisitions—yes or no? A.—I say possibly I have; I don’t remember. You know there are Oonunudmrnp!,eo&unk