The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-07-30
MAYOR O'BR|EN SAYS THE RUMORS
 UTTERLY FALSE Denies That the $500 Had Unearthed "GambIing"
 GrafterS CONSULTATION BRINGS
 OUT RUMORS' ORIGIN Sergeant Shirley Said "somethlnq Would Drop"-o'Bryant Says shir- ley Mentioned Three Alder
 men and Police Official.

There is absolutely not one scintilla of truth in the rumor that the $500 fund appropriated by the City Council to be used as I saw fit in the prosecution of vioators of the prohibition law has been diverted toward the securing of evidence against grafters and gamblers" said Mayor Frank P. O'Brien yesterday aft ernoon. Neither do I believe that graft Is existing among the city officials.
 Furthermore, I desire to deny emphat- ically the statements credited to me to- day to the effect that there is absolutely no gambling going on in Birmingham. Contrary to this report I will say that practically every locker club in Birming- ham Is shield to a gambling hell, and that it Is almost an impossibility to catch them. This is known to the police com missioners and we have tried in every way possible to secure evidence to con vict.
 Chief BodelSer and his men have been active in this respect. Following out the instructions of the commission every sus- pected club room and gambling place has been visited every hour by the patrol men on the respective beats, while the captains. sergeants and plainclothesmen have dropped in at short intervals.
 Dens With the Clubs.
 There is doorkeeper at each locker club and the advent of an officer or suspected officer means the giving of a signal in some manner to the gambling room in the rear of the club or on the floor above. By the time the officers reach the gambling place the roulette and dice tables have been transformed into something else. and everyone about the place is either calmly smoking. talking or playing pool. If we knew where the secret spring Is located that causes the tables to change from g. gambling outfit to peaceful pool table there might be some chance for us to raid them and confiscate, but 1t Is something known only to a very few.
 ''The locker club has caused bad state of affairs to arise so far as gam bling is concerned. There may not be many big games going on but there are great number of gambling establish ments with a large number of patrons. W0 udNo tIlcu every way III Ine WOrlO to catch them, and have caught few but very few In comparison with the number that exists. In those, however, that We have succeeded in catching Chief Bodeker has produced. evidence which would convict. The officers have worked hard to catch them, but under the locker club system 1t is really only by luck on our part that we have succeeded in mak- ing these arrests"
 Conference With Aldermen.
 This was the manner In which the mayor spoke yesterday afternoon after a con- ference in his office of number of aldermen in regard to the rumors which have been. going the rounds for the past two weeks relative to graft existing among city officials in connection with gambling going on in the city.
 The rumors were of the kind that spread rapidly and of which 1t has appeared i'm possible to locate the instigator. It reached The Age-Herald nearly two weeks ago and reporters have endeavored to find some one who knew something be- sides what he had heard" or what someone had told him." Despite the fact that no one could apparently prove his statements or tell who his informant was the rumor has spread like wldfire.
 It finally brought on the conference yesterday afternoon in the mayors of fee.
 Present at the meeting were Alder men Burnett, Gambill. Moore, Morgan and Heidt, while G, H. Estes. who re- signed his aldermanic- job last week. was also present for a few moments. Mayor OBrien and Chief Bodeker wero also present. Sergeant Tom Shirley was sent for as was Policeman M. M. OBryant and his brother William T. O'Bryant, who operates a hsh market on South Twentieth street.
 The session was held behind closed doors. but the information given to a reporter by Mayor O'Brien and others present was that the three men had bean sent for relative to statements made by Sergeant Shirley in reference to graft existing among the city of 1cials.
 o'Bryant and Shirley.
 Policeman U bTyduI iiAo SPohch OA the rumors and when asked for his informant mentioned his brother and w. IT OBryant named Sergeant Shfr- lev. His account was that Shirley had told him that something would prob ably drop in tn enext few days" and noantioned three well known aldermen and a police official as the graft re- c,nients. Shirley admitted that he had made the statement relative to having beard that "something was to drop, hut denied having mentioned the names of anyone. O'Bryant insisted that he had mentioned the names and Shirley stated that he was mistaken
 Matters rested with this. The gath ering was not legal body so that the investigation was nothing more than a. little family chat affair.
 serecAnt Shirley when questioned bv A. reporter last night denied em- phatically that he had mentioned any ones name in connection with the graft, and said his only reason for speaking to OBryant In the matter was that he had known O'Bryant near ly all of his life and regarded him as A close friend. He stated that he had heard the rumor, but did not divulge the name of his informant.