The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-09-04
Ills Was in Charge of the Labor
 Day Celebration
SECOND ACT OF THE KIND
Labor People of Meridian Were Bun- coed In the Same Way Last Year. Fugitive Said to Be
 Rough Rider.

special committee of the local trades council in charge of the Labor Day cele- bration, had skipped for parts unknown,
 taking with him all the funds in hand for the payment of such indebtedness as was incurred by the council in carrying out the splendid Labor Day programme.
 The amount of shortage will not exceed 800 it is thought, but this can not be told until all the matter has been gone over by those left in charge.
 Vigorous efforts are being made by the police to locate Morrell. It is supposed he left here for Memphis. Morrell came here from Tucson, Arizona, and claims to have been one of Roosevelt's rough riders in the Spanish-American war. He also says he saw service in the Philip pines He is above 30 years old, clean shaved, weighs about 140 is a neat dress CT and is of pleasing appearance.
 On the occasion of the last Labor Day celebration the man in charge disappeared without making a settlement with the committee of which he was the head ~o-~-~4~-~0 hall to help quiet him; he said further that he had never cursed patients and had never used such language as had been charged in some former testimony Witness said further that he had neyere consulted the patient Brothers a phy- sician, but heard another nurse had done so that Brothers thought that he knew everything about medicine, but that he Cwitness) and Brothers got along well to- gether: that he had never thrown glass of milk in a patients face because he wouldn't take that from him. but that he would from Brothers. He also said that patients were put in the cross hall not to punish them, but simply to keep them quiet. He described fully the method employed in getting patient to the cross hall, but said that he had never seen one hurt or bruised in the process; that he himself had been knocked down by patients but not bruised; that he had never seen a patient caught by the throat. nor one dragged by the leg; that he had never ducked patient even in fun; that he had never whipped a patient nor had he even kept a whip, nor had he ever seen a whip hanging on a wall in pa tients room.
 In answer to other questions regarding Harton, he stated that he had never strip ped the latter to bathe him; that the trouble vas that Harton, wanted to battle all of the time: that he was very partie- uar about being rubbed very dry and that witness had often rubbed him: that he had never seen any patient put into cold water in cold weather, but that warm water was always used for bathing; that he had no reason to want to punish Har- ton; that he had never heard of him un- til he came to the hospital as a patient.
 Foster on the Stand.
 Hon. J. M. Foster of this place was next called to Ahe stand MT. Poster tes- tifed that he was solicitor of the Tus- caloosa county court at the time that the Nurse Winters was convicted; that he was not at all convinced at the time that Winters was guilty of the death of Griggs: that there was evidence of an- other cause of his death and that for this reason he recommended his pardon, which was granted by the governor. MT. Foster also testified that the management was excellent as far as he could ascer tain.
 Nurse Holman, about whom much has ben said heretofore. was then called. He testified that he was not cruel to the patients, that he had never kicked or abused them, that he had himself been attacked by patients a number of times. that he did once throw a cup of water in a patients face and struck him on the head with the cup. He denied also each one of the charges that have here tofore been made against him. He stated that he was present when Hines died, that Hines was violent; that he had a SLruSSI6 WILL Oilc ol lllt iluiScS diu uO- ing this fell against a bench; that he had fallen when he reached him; thai after the struggle Hines was able to walk to his room and there unlaced and took off his shoes and helped undress him self: that he then began to vomit blood and they called in one of the physicians; that he died soon after but that the ex- animation showed only the wound on the stomach.
 e-t,f fol hn lxnnu rlaf Do H. and that he knew of his death and this occurred from natural causes altogether.
 Witness says he was discharged for carving a patient upstairs too roughly.
 An effidavit was then introduced from Mrs. Annie C. Due, wife of Dr. Due. who died in the hospital, and who, it has been charged, died from i'll treatment. The affidavit stated that Mrs. Due knew that her husband was a nervous wreck when he went to the hospital; that she several times visited 1t and that his treatment was in every way satisfactory: that she herself. hired private nurses to attend him; that the charges of his mis- treatment were absolutely unfounded and that she was hurt to hear of them; that his death was natural one.
 MT. Thomas Called.
 Mr. Thomas, the supervisor of the coun- ty poor house here was next called and testified that he was formerly a nurse at the hospital. The one occasion he re- membered about four years ago when the patients were working in the field patient named Berger ran away; that he was overtaken by Nurses Crook and Par sons, that when they brought him back they made him do double work in the hot sun as punishment for running away; that this patient died after this. The record of Berger showed that he had died at the time and that the cause was sunstroke from running long distance in the sun.
 Dr. Taylor, a former physician at the hospital was next called. Dr. Taylor stated that he made a post-mortem ex- animation of the patient Hines: that he found only the one bruise in the stomach of the body; that death was caused from this; that after receiving this blow he could have walked and help undress him self as testified to by Holman
 J. E. McKenney was next called and stated that he had formerly been nurse at the hospital. that he had never wit messed any acts of cruelty, that when patients were very violent there was no violence or roughness exer- cised ,r controlling them or carrying them to the cross haEs.
 The commission then adjourned and will meet again to morrow at the hospital where the testimony for the hospital will