The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-12-23
He IS ANNOYED.
Commissions Williams Objects
to Outside InsinuatiOns.
Says He Has Nothing to Do
With Police.
MAYOR is SATISFIED.
Says That Williams Is Not
Interfering.
Spends Much of His Time at the
Station.
MAYOR is SATISFIED

T. s. williams, election commissioner,
processes to be very much annoyed by
the report that he is playing king to c.
V. VOLTS ace in the police department
political game now in progress. Mr..
Williams insists that he isn't even a
tray-spot.
At the same time it is announced that
/ GRAFT Roach, a brOther-in-law of John
Alexander, Williams office assistant, is
to be appointed member of the police
foI ce, and Williams admits that he is
the man who got Roach the job.
L don't have anything to do with the
| police force,'' said Mr.. Williams today.
! I have not been up in Chief McCol-
lums office but once, except on his spe-
cial invitation. People think 1 am try
! ing to get in on this police business, but
I'm not. If I was running this police
department l would make it my first
business to surround myself with police
men whom 1 could trust. That seems
to be McCOllum'S plan. don't go so
much on politics as 1 used to. l would
try TO pick out absolutely reliable men.
There have been a good many changes
in the force, but 1 expect there Will be
others after the first of the year. have
been a personal friend of Chief McCol-
lum for long time, and 1 want to do
all l can to help him along. But am
not trying to run things
Down at the police station they say
that Williams spends a good share OF
his time around headquarters, and he is
also reported to be holding frequent
conferences with c. " Wolf, who is
chief animal-stirrer in the police de-
partment. Wolf, Williams and McCol-
lum seem to be the trinity which is
running things, according to outsiders
comment.
Mayor Bergundthal does not think
williams is taking an undue interest in
the police business. He said today;
IT don't know of any way to prevent
Mr.. Williams staying around police
station if he sees fit. I suppose he has
a right to stay there if he feels like it.
But this talk about his running the po-
lice department is all bosh. Williams
hasn't any thing to do with it
Mayor Bergundthal admitted that
Grant Roach had been 'mentloned TOT 81
place on the police force, and that T.
s. Williams brought Roach around ana
introduced him. Roach is carpenter,
and has never done any police duty. He
has lived in Oklahoma for some years,
but recently returned to Topeka he
lives in the Sixth ward. His sister is
John AleXander'S wife.
One story is that Alexander himself is
sharing in the responsibilities OF run,
ming the police force, and is associated
with Williams and Wolf in the work.
This is not very likely, however, be-
cause Alexander was not Bergundthal
man. He favored Hughes for mayor,
and was rather sore because Hughes
was obliged to retire. Consequently,
| Alexander is not in the highest favor at
the present time. Williams, however,
was an original Bergundthal man, and
while of late he has been inclined to
/ cool off in his enthusiasm, he has had
his interest renewed perhaps by share
| of the police department "fuence."
PUNISH GRILEY'S FRIENDS.
It is a bad thing for any policeman
/ to acknowledge more than speaking
! acquaintance with Councilman Joseph
] Csriley Griley's attitude of uncOmpro-
missing hostility to Chief McCollum has
brought him into conflict with the
! chief, and each is now doing his best
! to injure the other. McCollum is firing
! everybody who is now or has in times
past been under obligations to Griley.
| Griley is hard at work digging up evil
dence which he hopes sometime to use
to rasD the chief.
The dismissal of D. H. Morgan and
| Frank Summers from the police force
is said to be due to the fact that they
were too friendly with Griley. There
| and Chief McCollum recommended both
men very highly for other form of en-
ployment. But they had to get ~off the
| force.
This morning Councilman Griley was
at work in the city clerks office col
lecting data from the police judges re-
not prepared according to law, and
that d good many hundred dollars in
| fines assessed were not accounted for
Section 113 of the city charter act says
! 1.-THE judge of the police court shall with