Representative Langley

Tried in the state which he has represented in Congress for 17 years, John Wesley Langley, Congressman from Kentucky, was convicted of conspiracy to violate the prohibition laws and sentenced to two years in prison. The first public intimation that he was involved in such a case came when a Grand Jury in Chicago, in returning indictments for alleged Veterans' Bureau frauds, mentioned, as a sort of aside, that the cases of two Congressmen ought to be looked into (TIME March 10, 17). Mr. Langley and four others were indicted for a supposed conspiracy formed in 1921 to remove illegally 1,400 cases of whiskey from a Kentucky distillery. Two of the defendants turned state's evidence and accused Langley. The Congressman stoutly maintained his innocence throughout, sticking to the statement he had made when he was first charged with conspiracy: "I have served this Government in an official capacity for more than 30 years nearly 18 of which have been as a member of this great body (congress). My life has been an open book. This is the first time any aspersions have been cast upon my personal or official integrity." Following his conviction and sentence last week, Mr. Langley set in motion an effort for a new trial. Meanwhile he started for Washington at large under $5,000 bail. He had agreed not to take part in the proceedings of congress until his case was settled. Hardly had he arrived in the Capital, however, when he was taken seriously ill. His condition was variously described as "nervous collapse," "cerebral hemorrhage," "cerebral paralysis."