The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-10-26
A FLOOD OF PAPERS
Old Nick Williams Case
Proceeds Slowly.
identifying Reports and Returns Filed
in Collector Harkins' Office.
The Examination of Deputy
Collector Chandler
Especial to News and ObserverD

Especial to News and Observer)
Greensboro, n. c., Oct. 25.-The
whole of the morninp session of the
Federal court was consumed in the
continuation of the examination of
Deputy Collector Chandler, Identify
ing the reports and returns filed in
the office of Collector Harllins. At
eleven o'clock the introduction and
Identification of these papers were
completed and the witness was cross
examined by Judge Bynum for the de-
PENDANTS. The witness admitted that
omissions in the blank snaces of some
of the forms sent in by defendants
prior to 1904 were because this infor
nation was not at that time required
by the rules and regulations of the
Commissioner of Internal Revenue.
The examination of Deputy Collec-
| tor Chandler. custodian of records in
the collectors office. for the purpose
of identifying reports made by defend
ants of Whiskey operations in the
| trial of the Nick Williams Distilling
| Co, was concluded at noon.
| y SalOon-keeper from OpeIika, Ala.
was examined out of time on account
OF sickness. He testified to buying
| considerable whiskey from defendants,
paying $1.30 per gallon. A druggist
| from Concord was examined out of
order for sickness showing large pur-
| chases at little advance on cost of
| government tax.
Then came the express and railroad
agent at Clemmons the shipping point
| of the distilling company, who, with
| the letter press copy book of bills of
| lading in his lap began a detailed
| enumeration of every barrel, package
and box of goods shipped by the COM
pany for a period of fifteen months
prior to the bringing of the indict-
ment with names and addresses of
| consignees.
| He had completed only two months
| recital when court adjourned and the
district attorney says he will be on
1 the stand probably two more days.
| The permitting of this witness to look
at the books as he verified dates and
| nature and amount OF shipments
| caused strenuous objections from
| counsel of defendants and numerous
exceptions to Judge Boyd's rulings.
| The witness had testified that the
| office copy of records had been stolen
| from the office one night last April
| and the book he had was a letter
| press copy from the auditors office
at Washington. The defendants
claimed that the Witness had no right
| to look at book cQntemporaneously
with his answer to questions, and there
| WAS a long ana STUBBORN e11Oft TO nave
evidence declared Incompetent, but
Judge Boyd overruled every objection,
ruling that the witness could refresh
his recollection by testifying to those
| shipments made out in his own hand
| writing. The prosecution claims that
| q comparison of these shipments dur
| ing the fifteen months with the re-
| turns in the collectors office intro
| duced and identified by the first wit
| ness. Custodian Chandler will show an
excess of fifty thousand gallons Of
whIs'tey on which no tax was paid and
which were not reported.
At one point of the evidence, when
the defendants objected to records be-
| ing used by railroad agent because he
| said he was not sure the Whiskey came
| from the old Nick distilery as he only
| knew wagons by hearsay the district
attorney called out from the audience
| five StrapplnS negro men and had
| them stand up in II row, and the wit
ness said they were drivers of teams,
| bringing whiskey to the station and
| carrying back III return grain balcd to
| to the company.