The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-02-27
Testimony Rec ng Bogus
Checks Develop
me, 10 Vie Lacy Trial
MICRO WHO CHECKED
GRIP TAKES STAND
Says as Far as He Knows Satchcl
Has Never Been Taken From the
Depot-Day Is Replete
With Sensations
by l.. $. BETTY


Montgomery. February o6.-t speciaD
Birmingham bnn.s representatives ta-
ds,s testified that they had turned down
checks of the state convict department
agGregating S11T.02s.I7. signed by
James q. oakley. president of the state
board Of convict inspectors, on the day
following the disappearance of Theo-
dorr Lacy, on trial In the city court
of Montgomery on an Indictment
charging the cmbezxIement Of $4,000
"s state funds.
The checks in question were given
TO Dan @. Trawick. clerk of the con-
vict department. on March II. last. tie
day of Lacys disappearance. Testi-
mony TO this effect was adduced by the
state lats this afternoon and furnished
the greatest development of the Lacy
trial
According to the testimony Of
Thomas Hopkins. cashier of the First
National bank of birmingham. that
financial lnstitution refused to honor
a check OF ~ eoneict department. for
seS. IS on cay following Laey's
disai sanse TIE fAg5mony ofeJ. II
tzRf4 Js auaitor oil the Afnsflcan
Trust and Saplnes hank. resrra}sst1. the
fact that4a check Of nhe cooyict dfs
ns,rtment for $4S.51s was turned do,gp
by that bank on the same day
Delivered by Lacy ~
These two checks according to pafi
G. Irawick. chief clerk of the con&ict
department We're delivered TO him Ny
Lac, on the day of his disa ppearanSe,
and were turned over to him, Accord
ing to the witness, to cover departf
mcnt funds received during the quar-
ter.
" w,a,slsk loatifssa sEet Lacy had.
delivered these checks to him 1T Bar-
rison's saloon on March L.. He fur
ther testified that he had expressed
surprise to Lacy that the convict de-
partment had so much money on de-
posit in Birmingham. but said he was
assured that the drafts were good.
The two checks were indorsed by
John Purifoy. state treasurer, who sent
them TO Birmingham for collection.
The testimony concerning the two
bogus checks on Birmingham banks
furnished the most startling develop
ment of the third day of Lacy's trial.
Another Sensation
Another sensation of the day was
the test mony of w. A. Connolly of
Montgomery. who was so far as has
been learned. the last person who was
with Lacy on the day of his disappear
ance. Mr. Connolly testified that he
Met Lacy in Harrisons saloon on that
particular day; that he had several
drinks with him. and that finally Lacy
informed him that he was full" This
witness declared that Lacy had ordered
one half pint of whisky just before he
left him.
The testimony of the negro porter,
Gardner, who checked Lacy's grip at
the Union station on the day of his
disappearance, was heard with breath
less interest. Gardner said that so far
as he knew the grip has never been
taken from the depot.
other important witnesses of the
day were: W. A. Downing, secretary
of the Montgomery Savings bank,
Frank V. Evans of Birmingham, formeh
examiner of public accounts; II. H,s
Stewart, manager of the cotton mill at
Speigner 7. s. Page of Birmingham,
clerk in the convict departments Of
flee in that city; Sheriff Horace Hood
of Montgomery. and s. A. Nelms of
Blocton, warden at Lucille prison.
w. j. Osborne of the Fourth National
bank of Montgomery was the first wit
ness placed on the stand by the state
when court convened shortly after $3.50
o'clock this morning on the third day
of the trial of Theodore Lacy. Witness
formerly was connected with the Mont
gomery Bank and Trust company. and
counted out the $4,000 which Lack is
alleged to have obtained at that bank.
The box in which the money was
placed, according to witness, was about
20 inches long and IL inches deep
On cross examination witness cor
roborated his previous testimony stat
ing that in the $4,000 which he
counted out for Lacy there was $4,000
in $500 packages. $4,000 in $50
packages and $4,000 in gold. The
feature of witness testimony on cross
examintion WAS his statement that he
was told on the following morning that
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