The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-09-02
STUDYING THE EVIDENCE.
Fire Commission VIII Not Reach a
Decision Before Monday.


The fire commission is now engaged in
carefully going over the testimony sub
mitted before it in the fire chief investlga-
ton. All the evidence has not yet been
turned over to the commission. That
heard up to the last two meetings, how
ever, has been typewriter for the commits
sioners' examination, and it is this that is
now being gone over. AS soon as the
| stenographer has prepared the testimony
Oh the last two meetings, it also will be
gone over, every point for and against
Chief Mcguire being carefully weighed.
This viii be on next Monday afternoon,
the stenographer having tod the comm's-
sioners that it would be impossible for him
to get it up earlier for them. The COM
mission has been very anxious to conclude
the hearing as speedily as possible, and,
for this reason, insisted on obtaining the
evidence as quickly as it could be prepared.
There will be no further testimony adduc-
ed at the next meeting of the commission.
The time will he devoted entirely to the
consideration of the merits of the case. 1t
is not known whether the commission will
arrive at a decision at this meeting. If
accord and settled upon one side or the
other 1t is very probable that they will
make no delay in announcing the result
or the investigation. In the event the
commissioners find, on the other hand,
that they are not together they will nee
essarily stand two for one thing and one
for another. The result will be that they
VIII then all have TO get together in their
opinion in order for a decision to be reach
ed Ihls may be a process that will take
considerable time. Until they decide that
they have agreed, the commissioners will.
withhold the status of the case, only an
nouncing the fate of the fire chief after
an unanimous verdict has been reached
There has, of course, been considerable
speculation going on about the result of
the investigation, but everybody is guess
ing In the dark. The commissioners are
the only persons who can know how the
matter Will terminate, and it is almost
useless to state that they are not talking
III they know what the outcome is to be-
they are not telling, and the probability
Is that they do not know how they will
decide.
Soon after the commission has concluded
the fire chief investigation they will turn
to that of Assistant Foreman Herman and
Fireman Henderson on charges preferred
against them by the chief. The men are
now under suspension on these charges,
and have been so for about two months
The time of the commission has been so
fully taken up in the Investigation of the
charges against the chief, Chairman Gray
son states, that there has been no oppor-
tunity for it to consider those against
these men. The commission has consid-
cred the fire chief investigation as of
paramount Importance and have been anx-
ious to conclude it before entering into
other matters
Herman, who was acting as electrician
in the absence of Electrician Claiborne,
who was on his vacation, was suspended
by the chief because of his failure to get
the latters permission to leave his work
when he answered summons to appear
before the investigating committee of
council. Herman claimed that he had no
tilted the acting foreman of truck No l
of his intended absence, this being the
custom pursued by Mr.. Claiborne.
Henderson had a letter wMeh the chief
wanted. Henderson considered the letter
his private property and declined to give
it up. For this he was suspended by the
chief.
The unusual length of these suspensions
on what are apparently trivial charges has
caused a great deal of unfavorable criti-
cism upon the commission by the friends
of Herman and Henderson, who regard
the failure of the commission to hear the
charges against Herman and Henderson
as merely means of Furnishing them for
daring to testify against the chief