The promises made to me were these, first that Mr. Moore will use his influence to get Martini and myself out of prison, and second that Witner would go to New York and confess to his part of the perjury which would show my innocence automatically. Third, that we would receive $5,000 apiece before Martini takes the stand, $5,000 apiece after he goes off the stand; fourth, that Martini will get a good lawyer who will instruct him while Martini is on the stand testifying, this lawyer will instruct him to refuse to answer questions on the grounds of incriminating and degrading himself, that will create an impression with the judge that he did not want to commit himself, but it is true that he is the one and not Sacco who committed the holdup in Bridgewater, and he believes on these grounds Sacco and Vanzetti will get a new trial. Later on Martini will be able to defend himself by telling the truth and showing that really while this murder and attempted murder was committed Martini was in New York.
When Hurwitz asked Luban what Moore wanted Martini-Silva to do, Luban replied: “He wanted Martini to confess that he together with another man named Joe Napp and Jas Meade committed the attempted robbery at Bridgewater. He said these two men were willing to take the blame for it, and was also willing to testify that Martini was along with them, providing Martini will consent to it, not otherwise.”
Witner, according to Luban, said that he was working as an investigator for Moore and being paid fifty dollars a week and expenses by the Amalgamated Garment Workers’ Union. He suggested that Silva also should admit that he and two other convicts now dead committed the Braintree murders. Later it would be easy to prove that he was in New York on both days.
He also stated they had two witnesses [Luban continued], one by the name of Louis Pelser has already been fixed up to change his testimony so it will be in favor of the defendants.
He said they had another witness by the name of Roy Gould who previously did not testify, but will testify now and will identify Martini, but should they want to prosecute Martini for murder Gould will retract his original testimony against Martini.
One of the man’s witnesses, a certain woman whose name I don’t remember, has already changed her testimony. From Mr. Moore’s statement to me I first understood she first testified in favor of the prosecution, and now she is ready to testify for the defense, that the prosecuting attorney had coached her and induced her when she identified Sacco, but she will switch over to Martini if necessary, because they look so much alike, and Witner told me in Jewish that it cost a good many thousand dollars to get the woman to change her testimony, and they are ready to spend a good many thousand more.
Luban gave a complicated account of Witner’s going to Moore’s office and seeing a picture he recognized as Silva’s only to have Moore tell him it was Sacco’s.
Then Moore thought for a minute that maybe Martini is the one who committed the crime in Bridgewater and Braintree and they mistook Sacco for Martini. Witner in his heart knew that Martini had nothing to do with it, because Martini was with Witner together in New York at the time these robberies and murders were committed.
Luban’s rambling affidavit was of course as suspect as his character. Sacco was never accused of participating in the Bridgewater attempt, although Luban seems to have got it into his head that he was the leader. Nor did Sacco in the least resemble Silva. Luban called Sacco and Vanzetti good union men, but the two had never belonged to a trade-union and as anarchists were opposed to them. Nor, of course, was there ever any indication that Massachusetts officials were interested in finding a way to free Sacco and Vanzetti.
Witner, safe behind the shield of language, undoubtedly told Luban some story about Silva in Yiddish, and it is apparent from Luban’s confused accounts of Pelser, Gould, and Lola Andrews that he had heard something about the witnesses. Moore made no further attempts to get in touch with Luban.