The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1912-07-16
Detective Tells Alleged
Scheme TO Secure Pardon

| graphed stun Satnereo Dy ouIhs
men has come out.
The committee held short execu-
| tive session tonight, in the Albion ho-
TEL and adjourned to meet at the call
of the chairman. A list of witnesses
| in South Carolina to testify before
the committee was furnished by Col.
Fielder.
Detective W. J. Burns left here this
afternoon for other parts of the coun-
try, where he is engaged On other sit
uations, but he said on the stand yes
terday that his idea was that most of
the photographed testimony gathered
on the South Carolina situation should
be laid before the grand juries in this
State, in order that the guilty might
| be brought to justice. He also stated
that he expected to follow the investi-
CATION in South Carolina to the end.
E. F. Reed, Burns man, left here to-
night for Atlanta, as did Col. Fielder
and his attorneys.
Mayor Grace of Charleston, was
present today, as witness, and W..
F. Stevenson, Esq, was here to look
after the interests of the Murray COM
mission. All of the Investigating COM
mittee left tonight for their homes.
Tells of Alleged Conference.
Probably the most startling testi-
mony by Mr.. Reed was as to his al
legged employment of Attorney Sam
uel ]. Nichols, of Spartanburg, in an
effort to get the governor to pardon
the notorious yeggman, Gus Deford,
who is serving ten-year sentence in
the State penitentiary for blowing
open the safe of the Enoree Manufac-
turing company, of Spartanburg coun-
ty, in 1902, and stealing over $4,000,
and described as the worst criminal
in the South Carolina penitentiary.,
Reed, posing as a lawyer from Chi
cago named Henry N. Porter" and
seeking the pardon of Deford in order
that he might come into a certain es-
tate which Porter" was settling,
stated that he held several conference
es in Spartanburg, Washington and
Baltimore, making terms with Nichols
to get the governor to pardon Deford
and the upshot was, he further test1-
fed, that they made an agreement
whereby Porter was to pay Nichols
$4,000 for the pardon of Deford, s5,-
900 to go to the governor.
The trap was all laid, said Porter
and in accordance with his instruc-
tions, Nichols departed from Spartan
burg two days ago to seek Governor
Blease and get the pardon. Col. Eel
der kept in touch with Nichols move
ments and said he was Informed that
Nichols caught the governor at Barn
well yesterday and was closeted with
him for several hours and then return
ed to Spartanburg.
Porter" was to receive wire at
Chicago, as soon as the pardon was
granted, that everything was 20. K"
and the Chicago Office was to send it
here to Reed, testified Fielder. This
had not been done up to late this af-
ternoon, but every other part of the
trap, Fielder said, went through with
out hitch.
It was stated that the alleged con-
ferences between Porter" and Mich
OILS, in Spartanburg, Washington and
Baltimore, were all faithfully record
ed by the dictagraph and the
reading of these alleged conversations
between the two furnished the sensa-
tional testimony this afternoon.
Reed spent several weeks in South
Carolina, passing as III. N. Porter" a
Chicago lawyer, while getting this
dictagraph evidence and was operat-
ing in that part of the State between
Columbia and the Georgia line. In
the other section of the State was
another of Burns men named Bailey,
the men who photographed" the Char
lesion testimony, Bailey posing as the
"dashing Mr.. Wilson, professional
gambler and crook" and spending
several months in Charleston, as was
told in the News and Courier this
morning.
While it was not stated on the
stand, it is thought that possibly other
detectives employed by Burns operat-
ed in South Carolina, gathering evi-