The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-08-09
TO FIND THE GUILTY
PROBE WILL STILL CONTINUE IN
 THE FRAUDS.
superintendeat Gunneln Says he Puts No Faith in the Confessfon
 of the Negro
 Walker,

"I am candid to confess that put but small faith fin the confession of
 the negro Walker that he himself opened the package and extracted the questions Prom an interview with Hon. Harry c. Gunnels, State Super intendent of Education.
 The complete somersault of James L. Walker, the negro express driver of Selma, who has been in series of
 "sweats" in connection with the in-
 frauds. has upset the calculations of the Department of Education.
 It is not known what another appli- cation of the S3rd degree to Walker would bring forth. The last confess sion he has made, the recitai of which was told in yesterdays Advertiser. danans him worse than all previous speeches from his mouth. Changing his original "saueaT which made him.' self only an accessory and a white employe of the Southern Express Conn pany the principal in the theft of the questions the negrp babbler broke loose Friday in Selma with another 'babbie !" This time he widowed in the mire sure enough and with non- chaIant grin astonished the States side l of the case against young man May | field by acknowledging that he him self procured the questions from the | express package on the night of June | f7---uuesfions that have caused more | mischief than the Department has had | to contend with in many year. l Superintendent Gunnels said yester- day that the Department had not got Hts bearings again fully but that there I would be no relaxing of the efforts to l run down the guilty parties. Hun Il dreds of bona fde arrests have been made of negro school teachers to prove ! the extent of the frauds. but. unless | the negro Walkers last statement is l accepted as conclusive, the perpefra.
 tor of the original leak is still ~ large.
 There are many interested in the un- earthing of this business who refuse to believe that 1t was entirely a eonspir- acy of negroes. the shrewd plan 10 intercept the papers en route to the County Superintendent of Education, tc deftly reseal the package and deceive the consignee completely. to hurriedly mimeograph the questions and procure | correct answers. and to then arrange for their extensive barter throughout the State.
 skepfieaI of Negro.
 Men familiar with the negro and his display of knowledge are slow to attribute to him such really wonder | ful perspicacify and business dispatch. . They believe they see the handiwork ci I a perverse Caucasian in the deal, soFnc | man who had been more constantly in | touch with the business of express and | therefore more advised of the exact I coming of the coveted packages. l "I am glad of course. that Mr. May | field was able to convince the Solicitor l of his innocenee," said Superintendent Gunneis 'T should regret to believe | that any white man in a trusted place | would commit so great a crime against I the negro children of the State.
 'Mr. Mayfield was not arrested on l the basis of any direct evidence cb-
 tained by the Department of Education. | but rather on the advice of officials | of the Southern Express Company who i had been at work on the case for sev- l eral days. And by the way. the ex- l press company has been unusually kind l in assisting in the general effort to | find the party who first opened the
 package.
 'The negro Walker who first impli-
 cated Mir. Mayheid by stating that he
 was in the room with Mayfeid when i the questions were opened, now says that he opened the package himself, and extracted the questions. I am | candid to confess that I put but small I faith in this last confession.
 sThe Department of Education. how I ever. is determined. if there is a pos- 1 sible way. to find where the leakage was, and punish the guilty party"