The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-12-03

Immediately after the special investi-
eating committee had made its report
to the council last night Alderman
Simon Klotz made the following state
ment:
MI President and Gentlemen Of the
Council
/ rise to a question of personal privi-
lege.
The Birmingham News has demanded
my expulsion from the City Council of
| Birmingham and has raised the hue and
cry against me.
II it was merely a question of hold
ing the office of alderman. and il it
were shown that my usefulness in this
board was at an end, I would not hest
tate single moment in the matter. But
the Birmingham News, and some other
malignants, have raised different
issue In the face of the attack upon
me, a resignation at this time would
be a confession of dishonor.
The Birmingham News has charged
that L had taken bride; that | had
accepted money which did not belong
to me but which did belong to the
city, one of whose trustees | am. 1t
is charged that I accepted this money
for my personal use contrary to the
statute of labama and the moral law.
1t has furthermore charged that l con-
fessed to these infamous offenses, and
that they would have scarcely believed
it if the words had not come from my
own lips.
These charges are, each and all, col
lectively and severally, false. They are
false in letter and they are false in
spirit. They are not only proven to
be false by the testimony of every
unprejudiced witness who was exam
ined before the investigating commit
tee but they are proven to be false
by the news items as they appeared in
the columns of the News itself ON Sat
urday afternoon, November 81, and on
Monday the 23d.
The editor of the News need not have
gone to the official record for positive
contradiction of his statements, ne
need not to have gone to the solemn
testimony of all the witnesses. both
for the prosecution and the defense,
stenographcally reported, to nave
found the refutation of his assertion,
he need only to have consulted the
news columns of his own paper and
there he would have found the con-
tradiction of every assertion he made
in the editorial.
More than this on the 2Sd of this
month / made a formal demand upon
him for a retraction of these state
ments in as public a place and man
ner as was the original charge, and
stated to him that this editorial was
false, libelous and defamatory of me,
and yet. although more than five days
have elapsed since this formal demand
was made, and although abundant evil
dence was. and is, at hand to prove
the falsity of these charges, the Biz
mingham News has refused to make,
and still refuses to make, correction
of the same, but continues to reiterate
them. Under the circumstances there
is no course open to me but to bring
the Birmingham News and its editor
before the bar of justice and compel
them to adduce proof of their asser-
lions, or to make reparation for the
injury they have done to me and my
character in this community. 1 will
appeal to the courts of justice for
vindication of my good name.
Although the facts have again and
again been published I am going once
more to repeat them in brief, but l am
and will be able to prove them amply.
Some months before the crematory
lot was purchased / mentioned to Mr..
A. l.. Fulenwider, the president of the
Birmin CHAM Realty company, that the
city was In the market for a lot for
that purpose. Mr.. Fulenwider at first
declared that the company had no
property which 1T cared to sell for that
purpose. but he afterward did offer the
lot on Avenue d, which the city pur-
chased Although / was at that time
in the real estate business, | had been
so for only a few months and I was
not aware of the rule or custom on
the part of the company to pay a COM
mission to real estate agents who
closed trades, or brought purchasers, to
them, | spoke to Mr.. Fulenwider
simply because his company was the
largest owner of real estate in the
city. and it was the natural and obvious
thing to do The committee which had
the matter In hand examined not only
this lot but several 9th ers BY unani-
nous vote of the committee of which
was only one, and of which Mayor
Ward was the acting chairman. we
recommended the purchase of the Ave-
nue. d lot. | had nothing more to do
with the matter than any other MEM
Der. When the question came up in the
council / voted favorably upon the re-
port just as did every other member of
the council present including the
Mayor / had no interest in IL what
ever, concealed or otherwise. l had
neither a promise or agreement, nor
did / expect the slightest compensa-
ton for what / had done. L was acting
solely for the interest OF the city of
Birmingham | believed then, and /
believe yet, that the city made a good
trade and that they accepted the best
proposition made them.
Days after the transaction was finally
closed Mr. Fulenwider sent me a check
for 800, which was equal TO a commits
sion of 2is per cent on the purchase price
of this lot l had not expected to receive
the check and did not know what II was
for, and | went to the office of the Realty
company to inquire. Mr.. Fulenwider told
me that it was their custom to pay a
commission of pa per cent to real estate
agents who made sales OF suggested pur-
chasers to them. and that as l was an
agent and had brought the matter TO their