The Evening World

EXPOSES HUGE BRIBE COMBINE.

Murrell's Confession Leads to Warrants for Members of House of Delegates.

(Special to The Evening World.)

ST. LOUIS, Sept. 8.—Warrants were issued to-day by Circuit Attorney Folk against eighteen former and present members of the House of Delegates of this city.

All eighteen are charged with bribery in connection with the Suburban and other bills, and fifteen of the eighteen are charged with perjury because of testimony given by them before the Grand Jury.

These warrants are issued on the confession of J. K. Murrell, who is now in St. Louis in the custody of the Circuit Attorney. Murrell was brought from Mexico to St. Louis by the Post-Dispatch.

It is charged that the men for whom warrants are out composed a "combine" in the House of Delegates at the time the Suburban Railway and other boodle bills were passed.

The men for whom warrants are issued are Ed E. Murrell, John H. Schnettler, Charles F. Kelly, T. E. Albright, George F. Robertson, Louis Decker, John Helms, Charles A. Gutke, Adolph Madera, H. A. Faulkner, Julius Lehmann, Edmund Bersch, Otto Schumacher, John A. Sheridan, Charles J. Denny, William Tamlyn, J. J. Hannigan and Emile Hartman.

Murrell, who negotiated with the Suburban Railway representatives for the $75,000 that was to be paid to members of the House combine for their votes, has made a full confession to Circuit Attorney Folk.

That confession names the men who composed the house committee. It states that the combine was an association of house members formed for the purpose of getting money for votes in favor of measures presented to the assembly.

It sets forth that the meetings of the combine were often held in a room off the house chamber, and details business proceedings of the combine.

The confession is startling in its revelation of the thorough business organization of this association formed to rob.

When a measure of magnitude was presented to the assembly, the combine would hold a meeting and decide by ballot the amount of money to be demanded for its passage.