00:00Felder exonerates Beavers, but says Lanford is corrupt. Atlanta Journal, Wednesday, June 4,
00:051913. Witnesses summoned in dictograph controversy, although Foreman says Vice Probe is not complete,
00:12Beavers, and Felder asks investigation. Felder's charges against Lanford to be heard with dictograph
00:17case. Felder says the records are forged. Four witnesses were called Wednesday morning by the
00:22Fulton County Grand Jury to testify in regard to the existence of Vice in Atlanta. They were
00:27Colonel Thomas B. Felder, who was on the stand but a few minutes Tuesday, A.J. Young, a real estate
00:33man,
00:34J.E. Skaggs, agent of the Southern Express Company, and Police Chief James L. Beavers. Neither of these
00:40witnesses would indicate along what lines he was questioned by the Grand Jury. It is understood,
00:44however, that Colonel Felder submitted a supplementary list to the list of alleged disorderly
00:49houses furnished Tuesday by Attorney Carl Hutchison, and that he also turned over to the Grand Jury a
00:55number of affidavits relative to houses which are operating in the city without police interference.
01:00Colonel Felder is said to have supplied evidence attacking the official integrity and moral character
01:05of Detective Chief Newport A. Lanford. Chief Beavers, it is understood, was questioned at length
01:10concerning his vice crusades and the general moral condition of the city as he observes it.
01:15He was also asked, it is said, about Attorney Hutchison's charge that he had failed to make raids
01:20upon disorderly houses which had been reported to him. Upon leaving the Grand Jury room, Chief
01:25Beavers stated that he could not discuss what had transpired there as he had been requested not to
01:30do so, but he admitted that he had been asked whether he thought his recent crusade against Vice had
01:36bettered conditions in the city, and that he had replied that it was his opinion that conditions were
01:41much better today than they had ever been before. The Chief says he admitted that it was probable that
01:47some disorderly houses were operating surreptitiously, and that he assured the Grand Jury that he was
01:53diligently endeavoring to obtain evidence against such places, and that as fast as he got them
01:59evidence he made cases against the proprietors and inmates. Messrs Young and Skaggs are reported to
02:05have been interrogated relative to disorderly houses which may have come under their observation,
02:10or which they may have information about. A number of persons alleged in Attorney Hutchison's testimony
02:17to be proprietors, managers, and frequenters of disorderly houses were summoned by the Grand Jury
02:22Wednesday, but were not called. At 1.45 p.m., the Grand Jury adjourned and excused all witnesses until
02:2910 o'clock Thursday morning to probe dictograph episode. It is expected that on Thursday or Friday the Grand
02:35Jury will begin a probe into the alleged dictograph conversations, in which Colonel Felder, Mayor Woodward,
02:42C.C. Jones, E.O. Miles, G.C. February, and as Collier figure, subpenas have been issued for a number
02:49of
02:50witnesses to testify in such an investigation. The Grand Jury has, it is said, yielded to the demands of
02:55Colonel Felder and Chief Beavers to make a thorough investigation of the dictograph episode. Colonel Felder
03:02charges that the dictograph records were forged and promises to make sensational disclosures when
03:07the investigation is begun. He says that attorneys and court officials agree with him that even if the
03:12records were true, he had violated no law and would not be subject to indictment on any count.
03:18The city detectives expect the dictograph records to prove that Colonel Felder sought to bribe G.C.
03:24February, a clerk in the detective department, to furnish him with affidavits and other papers
03:29relating to the Fagan murder case. Foreman Lewis H. Beck states that the vice probe will hardly be
03:34completed before Thursday afternoon, and for this reason he said he did not anticipate that the
03:39investigation of the dictograph incident could be started on Thursday. This would indicate that the
03:45latter investigation will be begun Friday morning. We've started a general housecleaning, says Felder.
03:51Well, if we've done nothing else, we have caused a general housecleaning in Atlanta, remarked Colonel
03:55Thomas B. Felder when he walked into the anteroom of the grand jury chamber Wednesday morning.
04:00Six places closed up last night and now claim to be as white as snow. A general exodus seems to
04:05have
04:05begun. Turning to City Detective John Black, Colonel Felder said, I had men out with your men all of last
04:12night and the indications are that a mighty hurried cleanup is in progress. You didn't have any men with
04:17me, replied Detective Black, for I was home in bed. I had them out with the city detectives all right,
04:23responded Colonel Felder. Police Chief James L. Beavers and Detective N. A. Lanford were walking
04:28from the anteroom when Colonel Felder arrived, they having been excused until noon by Foreman
04:33Lewis H. Beck of the grand jury. Colonel Felder called to Chief Beavers and began a conversation
04:38with him in the presence of a number of newspapermen and courthouse attachés.
04:42You can publish what I say if you wish, announced Colonel Felder.
04:46You are the man doing the publishing, I am not, answered Chief Beavers. Then spoke Colonel
04:51Felder. Chief, I have never made any statement attacking your personal character or your official
04:56integrity. I am not responsible for that so-called dictograph record. At a later date, I will show
05:02you that I am not.
05:03Beavers. Does that mean that you've never charged me with being corrupt?
05:06Never charged corruption.
05:08Felder.
05:09No, sir, I certainly have not.
05:10Beavers.
05:11Has anybody else in your presence charged me with being corrupt?
05:14Felder. Yes, someone else has, and I will tell you about it sometime. I don't want to go into
05:18that now.
05:19Beavers. Well, I would like to know who it was.
05:22Felder. It will come out at the proper time.
05:24Beavers. Well, I want to say whoever did make such a charge told a malicious falsehood.
05:29Felder. Some time ago, I had a long conference with Mr. Marion Jackson of the Men in Religion
05:34Forward movement, and I told him that I had not charged you with any official corruption,
05:38and also that I had not attacked your moral character. I did charge it to the chief of the
05:42other department, presumably referring to Detective Chief N.A. Lanford, and I will furnish good
05:48and abundant proof to establish that charge.
05:51This closed the conversation, and a moment later Chief Beavers left the room.
05:55Colonel Felder announced to those about him that sometime later he would prove that Chief
05:58Lanford is corrupt.
06:00I will also show that those alleged dictograph records were forged, he said. I am not going
06:05to allow Lanford to hide behind the skirts of February and Collier.
06:09Colonel Felder referred to stenographer George M. Gentry's affidavit, attesting the accuracy of
06:13the dictograph records, and intimated that he had obtained an affidavit from Gentry,
06:18which contained startling disclosures. Colonel Felder declares that attorneys and court
06:23officials have assured him that, even if everything contained in the alleged dictographed
06:27records was true and proven, he has violated no law and would not be subject to indictment
06:32on any count. Detective Chief Lanford made a statement Wednesday afternoon replying to
06:36Colonel Felder's charge that his department was corruptly administered. He declared that
06:40if there was anything wrong in his department he wanted it shown up, concerning Colonel Felder's
06:45intimation that as Collier had sold out Chief Lanford declared he didn't know anything about
06:50it, that he was not involved and not interested in whether Collier sold out or not. While before
06:55the grand jury Tuesday, Colonel Felder says he urged the grand jury to investigate the alleged
07:01dictograph episode, and Wednesday morning he stated that he would continue to urge such
07:06an investigation. He intimated that if such an inquiry was instituted he would make sensational
07:11allegations against the Chief of Detectives and possibly several others. Solicitor General
07:16Hugh M. Dorsey was before the grand jury for about an hour Wednesday morning, during which
07:22it is understood he discussed the vice investigation with the members and also the advisability of a probe
07:28into the alleged dictograph incident. Felder first witness. Colonel Felder, who was before the grand
07:35jury for about 15 minutes Tuesday, was the first witness called Wednesday morning. He was sent for
07:41immediately following the conference with the solicitor. The central figure of the vice crusade,
07:46Police Chief James L. Beavers, was among the several witnesses who were about the courthouse when the
07:51session opened. Chief Beavers, who, since the Board of Police Commissioners again has given him full
07:57authority, has put his famous vice squad of 22 plainclothes men back in harness, declared that
08:03he could not understand the attitude of some of the witnesses who have appeared before the probers.
08:08Some of those men who now tell of the terrible vice conditions in Atlanta, the police official said,
08:15were the very people who raised the loudest voices against me when my men were particularly active in
08:20their fight against vice. My position, continued the chief, has never changed. I will make arrests
08:27whenever I can secure sufficient evidence to warrant a raid. Chief Beavers declared that he is now
08:32particularly anxious to get attorney Carl Hutchison's promised list of 30 houses with evidence against
08:37the owners. Mr. Hutchison stated on leaving the grand jury room Tuesday that he had furnished the
08:44probers with the names of about 30 places, hotels, and small houses where vice flourishes, he says,
08:49and that in many instances he gave the grand jury sufficient evidence to warrant indictments.
08:55What will jury do? There is much speculation over the probable action of the grand jury in the matter.
09:01The question is, will the grand jury return indictments on the testimony given before it,
09:06or will the grand jury simply formulate a report on vice conditions to be embodied in his presentments
09:12to the Superior Court when it is discharged during the first week in July, owing to a remark made to
09:18reporters by foreman Lewis H. Beck, soon after the vice probe was inaugurated, it is inferred that the
09:24latter course is probable. Mr. Beck stated that the jury was making a general, not specific investigation
09:30into vice conditions in Atlanta, and in making this probe, he declared that the jury was sitting like
09:36a committee of the whole. The jury especially was charged by Judge W.D. Ellis to make an investigation of
09:41vice conditions, and this adds weight to the theory that the jury will render simply a report of its
09:46findings to the court and then leave the matter in the hands of the authorities.
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