The Savannah morning news., 1903-02-05
over CARTER CASE
MARION ERWIN AND CAPT. GIL
LETTE HELD LONG CONFERENCE.
TO TAKE TESTIMONY FEB. %.
U. S. ATTORNEY SAYS JUDGE sPEER
WILL BE NAMED.

Important Meeting of the Two Gov
eminent ORciaIs Lasted Almost
All Day-Ground Was Gone over
With View to Preparing Inter-
rOgatories to he Taken Here Be
fore Commissioner - Funds Have
All Been Traced - Lawyers Got
100000 There Will be Nearly
$4,000 Pages of Testimony.
United States District Attorney Ma
rion Erwin spent yesterday in Sa-
vannah. The purport of his visit was
TO arrange for the taking of testimony
in the civil case of the government
against Oberlin NJ. Carter, which will
be tried in a short while. He remained
in consultation with Capt. Gillette
throughout the entire day. and as a
result of the interview is in posses
sion of information which will enable
him to prepare the necessary inter-
rogatories.
The testimony will be taken before
William r. Hewlett, commissioner in
admiralty, on Feb. %. The ground
was carefully gone over, with view
to adducing testimony which will show
that the funds invested by the former
engineer, who is now confined in
Leavenworth prison, did not expend
his own funds in the purchase of the
property or in making other negotia-
tions in Savannah.
When the testimony is taken, ques-
tons relative to Carriers habits, his
sources of revenue, the parties who
loaned money, the transactions for the
purchase of stock in the Propeller
Tow-B Company the Savannah
Brewery, the Electric Railway Com
pany, and other corporations, and 9TH
er questions of a kindred kind. will be
asked with a view to securing testi-
mony which will enable the govern
ment to prove that Carter had no
right to the funds which he invested.
Lawyers Got 100000.
I'VE have traced the investment and
reinvestment of the embezzled funds,
and expect to recover the governments
~
500, coo which Carter expended in law
yer's fees. OF course We won't get
that. We have traced nearly S45O,OO0
of the embezzled moneys of the gov
eminent. | have been engaged recent
~ in getting testimony TO prove that
the funds renvested by Carter were
the funds of the government.
My interview with Capt. Gillette to-
day about rounded up matters, and
Ill
mony the governments case will be
prepared. The other side is about
ready, and think the matter will come
up in a short while now in Chicago.
cannot say at the next term of court.
$4,000 Pages of Testimony.
Besides the testimony which have
taken to prove this feature of the case.
there are 10000 pages of testimony.
type written, to be introduced at the
trial. This is the testimony in the
Grecne-Gaynor removal case and in
the Carter court martial, which both
sides have agreed to have introduced.
The additional testimony is not quite
that large, but it is itself Voluminous.
1t would be impossible to say just now
how much the case will cost the gov
eminent.
The opposition practically admitted
in the trial in New York that the gov
eminent proved the division of the en-
bezzled funds between Carter and
Greene and Gaynor. 1t is the work of
tracing the funds from the point where,
in the removal case, the government
claimed that Carter invested his share
Of the funds, to the reinvestment in
the properties which the governAlent
has now tied up. Carter denies that
the securities which he held in New
York were bought with the proceeds of
the contract money. Counsel for Greene
and Gaynor tacitly admitted on the
hearing of the case in New York that
we had demonstrated this"
Judge Spcer Will be Named.
do you think that Judge Speer will
be appointed to the Circuit Court?"
Mr. Erwin was asked by the represen-
tative of the Morning News.
Yes" he answered, IF Judge Nc
Cornick resigns. / think that the
President appreciates Judge Speer's
services to the country. He is not
only an able jurist of generally rec
ognized ability, whose opinions are re-
spected by every court in the land, but
he has done much by his public eX-
pressions to bring the different Sec
tons of the country together. His
thorough knowledge of the underlying
principles of political economy, his
ability as a 1uriSt ana his services to
the whole country stamp him as immi-
nently fitted for the place"
Mr.. Erwin had nothing further to
say relative to the opening of certain
communications addressed to Mr..
Charlton, attorney for Greene and
Gaynor. No one, he said had accused
the Department of Justice with having
anything to do with the matter. All
he had to say he said had been print
ed in the Atlanta papers several days
ago.
Anent Greene and Gaynor.
DO you think that the government
will succeed in getting Greene and Gay
nor back?" he was pointedly asked.
81 am not engaged on that case now
he answered.
But do you think they win sue.
ceed?"
The Carter case has. taken up much
of my time, am not engaged with the
Greene-Gaynor case now"
Then the government has given III
trying to get them?"
mo. You may just say that the case
rs being attended to by the officials
The government is not asleep. Thai
matter is being attended to-"