Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-04-10
STRIKE NAMES
FROM REGISTER
SUIT FILED IN THE SUPERIOR
COURT
MANY CHARGES OF FRAUD ARE
MADE
Former Superintendent of Construc-
ton for Kinney Company swears
to Deposition Alleging Coll
onization Scheme

Victor F. Watkins. attorney for w. r.
Mcconnell of Ocean Park who few
days ago filed suit in the superior court
asking that a large number of names
be taken from the great register IF the
county and the register of the Ocean
Park voting precinct, on the ground
that the persons named had been sent
to Venice for the purpose of carrying
the election of persons whose victory is
alleged to be desired by the Abbot Kin
ney company, has associated with him
Attorney w. II. Anderson of Los Ange-
les, and yesterday a deposition by
Russell Fl. Gray, formerly superintend-
ent of construction for the Kinney COM
pany, was taken in Anderson's office.
which, it is expected, will be used when
! the case comes up in court.
Three other persons who are named
as defendants in the suit filed by Nc
Council refused to allow their deposit
tons to be taken, on the ground that
they were improperly brought into the
action. These men are DIR. j. M. White.
w. H. Fair and George l.. Anderson,
all said to be connected with the Kin
ney company.
Gray in his deposition says he met
Fair, White and Anderson on the ST.
| Marks plaza in Venice on March II,
after he had completed an examination
of his polling books showing how mat.
| ters stood in regard to votes. White, he
said, made the remark that to make
things sure Shouldn't we get some
men down here to work on the bath
house ?"
Il told him he would have to go to
headquarters about that said Gray,
but that L believed the battle was
practically won."
Called on Kinney
| At his suggestion, said Gray, White
called on Kinney and later told Russell
that it was "all right it is all fixed"
and Russell understood him to mean
that the men would be taken % Venice
and that the responsibility was off his
shoulders.
The same evening" said Gray, Ander-
son and Fair told him they had forty or
| fifty men who had been sent to work on
the bath house.
What did you say?" asked Attorney
4 Anderson.
II said,' replied Gray, Mr.. Fair
| there is a shrewd game or a big fool
game being played, and some OF us
! little fellows are going to catch 1t, and
| L WANT pretty well
who is at the head of this. | want to
| give positive instructions that you or
| any other man shall not talk politics
| and shall have nothing to do with regis
tering them Although it had not been
said, it was understood in my mind
that they were brought down there to
register continued Gray.
Had instructions
| Fair. according to Gray, said he got
| the money and Instructions from DR..
White, and his instructions were to
procure the men.
| Gray said he met White the following
morning as the latter was boarding
car for Los Angeles II told DIR. White
| that he had trouble enough in Venice
and ought not to leave" continued
Gray; that he had loaded bomb and
lighted the fuse, and that he had better
| find chance to throw it"
what did he say?" asked anderson.
He said, TT is all fixed, Gray" was
the reply. Then he waved his hand
to Frank Lawton, who was standing in
Nettleton's cigar store, and pointed to
the crowd of men Fair was with and
| said Frank we got you skinned a
mile or something like that"
Lawton is a member of the present
board of trustees of Ocean Park.
Gray also said he warned Fai. to have
nothing to do with the registration of
the men and not to talk politics to
them. A week ago, he said, he talked
with Abbot Kinney in the Stimson
building in this city.
Kinney, he said, denied knowledge of
the alleged colonization. Il accused
Mr. Hanna of knowing about it," said
Gray, but he never would accept my
accusations. At that time Mr.. Kinney
called Hanna in and Hanna said he did
know, and that they had right to do
| this work"
Gray said he had been discharged by
Kinney. The reason, he said he did
not know, but expressed the belief that
it was getting too hot for him in Venice
and that it was best for him to get out.