The age-herald., 1897-09-12
BEN WILLIAMS IN TROUBLE Alleged to Have Stolen Toilet
 Articles and Cigars FROM THE SL0SS PHARMACY Employed Clever Ruse to Get the Night Clerk Out of the Store and Then Helped
 Himself to Various Articles.

Ben. w. Williams son of Alder man Williams, is under bond charged with grand larceny. His case will come up in the inferior criminal court Tues day morning. The maximum penalty for grand larceny is ten years and the minimum one year.
 He Is charged with stealing toilet ar- ticles, soap and cigars from the Sloss pharmacy, Twentieth street, between Second and Third avenues.
 A few minutes after 1 o'clock Friday morning Lundie sloss left the store in charge of Eugene whaley, the night clerk. MT. Williams was sitting in the doorway. Yesterday afternoon MT. whaley told the story of the affair as given below.
 Shortly after MT. Sloss departure, MT. Williams told the night clerk that a friend desired to see him at the rear door. Rush Bowden, well known white man, was in the store, and Mr Williams told him to go out to the mouth of the alley and watch Whaley. MT. Bowden went out, but he watched MT. Williams instead.
 No one was in the store except Mir Williams. He went to a large glass case and opened it. MT. Bowden again came in and Williams shut the case, saying he was looking at something. This aroused Bowdens suspicious. He said he would go across the street to the "Delmonico" restaurant for lunch. He went across and stationed Officers Baker, Kirkley and Rollo in the alley to watch Williams. He then went into the restaurant, where he found Mr. Whaley, and they both watched the man in the drug store
 Williams went again to the show case and took out some Of the costly toilet water. He went to an other case on the counter and removed some fine soap. The cigar case next attracted his at tention, and he purloined some of the finest Havanas. He was still at the cigar case when the officers walked into not have a pistol in his pocket. Will Hams replied that he did not.
 Tt is only this" he said as he drew out a large bottle of the toilet water
 Where did you get that, Ben?" asked the officer.
 At my fathers drug store," was his reply.
 The officers had seen him take it from the show case in the Sloss Pharmacy a few minutes before Williams was told that he was under arrest for stealing the articles which were found on1his per- son. He immediately wanted to leave by the rear door under the pretense of seeing the night clerk. The officers would not have it that way. They called MT Whatley in the store. Will Hams still denied his guilt, and said the articles came from d1is fathers etore. He was arrested, but succeeded in mak- ing bond for his appearance Tuesday morning. The articles are at police headquarters.
 Ben W. Williams is the son of Dr. M. M Williams, the alderman from the Fifth ward. He has been in Birming- ham a number of years, during which time 1le has been in the drug business. Ben was for a number of years treas urer of O'Brien's opera house when the present sheriff was manager. He mar red Miss Moss Manuel, of Chattanooga, about eight years ago. They did not live happily together and a separation fol- lowed. It is said Mrs. Williams secured a divorce several years ago. She is now living with her fathsr George Manuel, the master mechanic of the Mobile &, Ohio railroad in Jackson, Tenn.
 Mr. Williams is a brother to Dr. Archie Williams, and John Williams. Another brother shot and killed a Hebrew in a store on Twetieth street near Second avenue some years ago. He was tried for the crime and adjaudgsd guilty of murder, but insane at the time of its commission.
 Dr. Williams was extremely reIticent in talking about the matter. He claims his son got the goods somewhere else and not at the Slcss Pharmacy. and will be able to prove his innocence. This will be the defence made at the trial
 Shortly after 10 o'clock last night pr. M. M Williams went to the Sloss phar- macy. Lundie Sloss, the proprietor of the store said that Dr. Williams asked permission to go into the rear of the store. This was readily granted, and he went back to the prescription de- partment. In short time he returned and walked out. Again he returned and told Night Clerk Whaley that his son Ben told him that he had left a bottle of perfumery in the rear. He asked the clerk to go back with him and look for 1t. Both men went back. and found the bottle on the counter in the prescrip- tion room. MT. Sloss said that the bot tie was found in a place where there are bottles moved a dozen times day. - - --------------------