Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-11-14
Z SCOTT LETTERS
TOLEN, SAYS
CUMMING
Georgia Road Counsel Declares
Unions Obtained Correspond
ence Through Fraud.

Major Joseph 3 Cumming. of Au-
tusta, representing Joseph b. Cumming
and. Bryan Cumming, general counsel of
the Georgia railroad. declared at the
arbitration hearing today that the let
ters in the Memory damage case had
been taken "surrepttiously, fraudulent
" and as a theft from my Office"
The Memory case concerned a suit
for $500 for damages to w. r. Memory,
a Greensboro negro whom 1t was al
eyed had been struck on the head with
billie by Conductor PaschaL
Il took the position with MIR. Scott"
declared Major Cumming, that it
would be a mistake for Paschal to be
dismissed from the service of the road
on the evidence brought forth before
the jury in the Memory case. He ac-
coded TO this but later letter told that
Paschal had been discharged for an
other cause There was no thought or
mention of the pending case now be-
fore the board except for the latter, just
referred to-
Major Cumming read correspondence
Leading UP to the letters which the
unions sprang yesterday. having been
requested to do so by Judge Chambers.
Conductor Ceary on Stand.
Taking position radically different
from that of previous conductor wit
nesses, Conductor w. C. Cleary de-
clared that he didn't consider 81 min
utes time enough to run a freight train
four miles between Harlem and Berze-
la, and then put his train away on the
sidetrack. Several other witnesses had
testified that the freight trains of the
road proceeded at the rate of 25 miles
an hour, which would be ten minutes
between the points named Cleary
thought it would require sixteen min
utes to make the run and over five
minutes to put up his train, so he
stopped at his home, Harlem. for an
eight-hour rest instead Of proceeding
to Berzelia.
Cleary's testimony brought Mr.. Bur-
CESS and Mr.. Murdoch, on the one hand,
and Mr.. Brand and Mr.. Wickersham, on
the other, into a sharp clash as prose-
NhAVlS anu deASiAutASy respectively.
DO you hold Mr.. Brands notes for IL
considerable amount or money!
aueried Mr.. Murdoch sharply.
No. sir said the witness.
Isn't he indebted to you?"
NO, sir
Mr. Brand brought out the same an
swers.
Here MIR. Burgess grilled the witness
oy asking:
What method did you use to deter
mine that 1t would take YOU sixteen
minutes to run four miles at the rate
Of rs miles an hour?"
An unsatisfactory answer caused
Judge Chambers to declare: Now. Mr..
Cleary it looks to us like you are try
ing to avoid replying to questions"
No . interposed Arbiter Wicker.
sham, y think the witness has been
confused by the figures"
Cieary Once Suspended
Are you prepared to say on oath"
asked Mr.. Murdoch. of the roads wit
aess, that you didn't have II under
stood with the crew Of your train that
I eight hours or rest was to be taken
on that trip 1t would be taken at Har.
emf"
NO, sir, answered Conductor Cleary,
there was no such understanding"
The union leaders continued TO assail
he road on its tactics. Mr. Murdoch
declaring that it was a part of the
system" for Mr. Brand to take down
statements Of employees at the time Of
accidents and later present the state
ments in court in garbled form.
Cieary had been suspended for a
head-on collision, but was later taken
back when he acknowledged that he
mad made mistake in reading orders
This point was brought out to show
that the road would have taken Com