Los Angeles herald., 1908-01-30
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.FAkN WON1
FACES COURT
J. c. BULLOCK TELLS STORY OF
STOLEN MONEY BAGS
WEAK VOICES A FEATURE OF
PRELIMINARY TRIAL
Cashier and Manager of Big Depart
ment Store Take Stand in First
Day of the Police Court
Hearing

Elmer R. Farnsworth, who is alleged
to have taken several thousand dollars
from the safe in Bullocks department
store, was brought before Police JUS
tice Austin yesterday for his prelim-
mary examination.
The first witness placed on the stand
was Miss Katie Rodgers, cashier OF
the establishment. She gave her testi-
money in tone of voice scarcely loud
er than whisper, and was frequently
asked by the court to speak so that
the attorneys could hear her.
| Miss Rodgers testified that she placed
the amounts received from the sub
cashiers in the safe, locked the safe
door and left the office between $50
and 6:45 p. m.
When asked how much money was
placed in the safe she said she did not
know exactly, but thought there was
about $4,000 or $4,000
She said she was sent for at about 2
o'clock in the morning and on arriving
at the store counted up the sub-cash-
iers' tags and added up the amounts,
and gave the total of what had been in
the safe to Detectives Murray and Nc
Namara. She did not remember the
| figures.
When she later returned to work she
| looked in the safe, she said, and saw
that not all of the money was there.
When asked how much remained in
the safe she said she did not know, but
estimated the amount to be between
$4,000 and $4,000
Much time was taken up during her
recital because o. Miss Rodgers failure
to speak audibly enough for the law
yers to understand her, making it nee
essary for the court stenographer to
repeat the answers frequently.
Bullock on the Stand
J. G. Bullock was called to the stand.
He stated that he was 81 years old,
was manager of the store and lived at
1850 West Ninth street.
He said he left the store at about
| GAS o'clock the night of December A..
He was called to the telephone by one
of the night porters and told that a
man was in the store. He rang up the
police station and notified them, and
then dressed and caught a car and
went to the store, arriving there about
midnight. He said the cashiers office
was on the seventh floor. He went to
| the safe and opened 1t.
When asked If the safe doors were
| closed he said they were, but were not
| locked After opening the safe, Bull
lock said he saw there was money
missing and there were but five sacks
| of money where there should have been
about fifteen. He said he left the store
| to find Miss Rodgers and the book
keeper.
When asked as to the length of time
he remained at the store, Bullock said
he stayed between two and half and
| three hours.
After leaving the store he went tn
| the Angelus hotel and saw Mr.. Pink
| erton.
"Saw whom?" asked Attorney Rog-
ers.
"Mr. Pinkerton."
"Are you sure it was Mr.. Pinkerton?' '
eyes. sir"
"The real Mr.. Pinkerton?"
Eyes, sir"
Everybody smiled when Bullock first
mentioned the name of Pinkerton, and
when he said it was 1.-THE real Mr..
Pinkerton" they all laughed.
Tells of Robbery
Witness said he arrived at the store
at o'clock in the morning. He saw
Superintendent Bailey of the Pinkerton
agency and placed the case in Bailey s
charge.
After numerous statements regarding
the condition of the safe, It's dimensions
and the number of compartments, Bull
lock WAS dShtu u tel Gil nc hhSW
regarding the robbery.
He said that on December 30 he went
to the office of the Pinkerton agency
in the Wilcox building and upon ar
irving there saw Farnsworth and AS
sistant Superintendent Meinbress. He
said Farnsworth admitted taking the
money and at o'clock that evening
he went to Farnsworth's house and
that Farnsworth took $3.50 in gold
from a washstand or cupboard.
The same night he went to Park s
house and got some currency and then
went to a barn where the father-in-law
of Park kept horse. Here more money
was secured.
Bullock said the money was turned
over to the police. When asked how
much money he got from Park, Bull
lock said he did not know. He said
the police had $500 of the money.
Bullock also hal to be asked to speak
louder.
On the night of December A. 1907,
the safe at Bullocks was opened and
$4250 is said to have been taken. The
doors of the safe were intact and no
force had been used to gain access to it.
In view of this fact detectives who
were engaged by the management con-
cluded that the robbery was not COM
mitted by an outsider. but by someone
employed by Bullock. 1t was what
they called an inside job"