100 years ago today: Grandma Green brushes off warning in Codd murder trial

Julia “Grandma” Green, 82, was warned by a private detective: “Be careful what you tell in the Codd murder trial or you may send Maurice Codd to the penitentiary.”

Nellie Fryett had been hired as a detective by Codd’s attorneys prior to his murder trial. In the end, Grandma Green would ignore requests to testify favorably for Codd, because she said she didn’t witness the fatal fight and had no idea what had happened.

Others, however, did testify on Codd’s behalf, which led to subornation of perjury charges against Fryett and 14 others.

From the legislative beat: Reba Hurn, newly elected state senator from Spokane, had been assigned to a number of influential committees, including the Appropriations Committee and the Judiciary Committee.

In all, she was assigned to a total of seven committees, which was “considered an exceptional honor for a new senator,” said the Spokane Daily Chronicle.

From the irrigation beat: Gen. George W. Goethals testified to a U.S, House committee that the Columbia Basin irrigation proposal “was in the same class as the Panama Canal and the Alaskan railroad.”

Goethals ought to have known. He oversaw the construction of the Panama Canal.

He recommended that the House appropriate $100,000 to study it further. He also recommended construction of the project “in its entirety.”

Also on this day

(From onthisday.com)

1862: President Abraham Lincoln orders the hanging of 39 Santee Sioux Native Americans.