The weekly soliphone. (Paragould, Greene County, Ark.) 1907-1918, 1915-06-25

McAmiS, an emplOye OIL the state
auditors office, says the Arkansas
Gazette Saturday Mr.. McAmis ten
dered his resignation to Auditor
Dickinson yesterday
The affidavit directly charges
that State Auditor NJ. F. Dickinson
agreed to cash the warrants Of 1.
F. Thomas, an accountant employ
ed by the investigating committee,
on condition that Thomas make
favorable report concerning the
auditors office during the incumb-
ency of DR.. Dickinson.
Thomas recently was discharged
by the committee members, who an
because they had learned that
Thomas warrants had been cashed
by Auditor Dickinson and William
Stoddard, deputy auditor. Soon
after Thomas issued a sworn affi-
davit, in which he said he had re-
signed because members of the
committee wanted him to make a
report on the secretary of states
office that would reflect upon the
incumbent, Earle w Hodges. He
said the committee members told
him this was the desire of Cover
nor Hays. Secretary Hodges
promptly announced that Thomas
affidavit had convinced him that
the investigation was a frame
up' and that he would not permit
his office to be investigated.
SECRETARY HODGES ACCUSED.
The committee charges that Sec
rotary Hodges knew of the arrange
ment by which Thomas warrants
were to be cashed by DR.. Dickinson
and Stoddard and that Secretary
Hodges knew that Thomas was to
make the affidavit after he had
been discharged by the committee.
In conclusion the report says,
<'This committee has known no
friends or enemies since it began
it's work and we feel that this fact
= alone is responsible for all 1nJunc-
ton proceedings and other obsta-
cles that have been employed to
stop our work. The public can
Judge and we are sure it will
dirty deal was caused by the com
mittee playing petty politics or
whether it was the result of the
committee discovering the crooked
deal before it was pulled off. We
ask the public if it believes Mr..
Hodges statement that we are
character assassins.'
ALWAYS TALKS TOO MUCH"
There is a touch of real humor
in Mr.. McAmis' affidavits as he
describes the statements of Mr..
Stoddard, who has been holding
minor state offices for many years.
If one 81 to believe Mr.. McAmis, it
would seem that Mr.. Stoddard be-
lieved he had done some exceeding
clever work and readily admitted
that he had.
The humorous feature reaches a
climax in the following statement
in Mr.. McAmis' second affidavit:
"Stoddard came to me and stat
ed that the committee had fired
Thomas; that the committee had
gotten on to the fact that they had
furnished Thomas the money on his
unpaid vouchers; that he did not
know how they had gotten the in
formation unless Earle Hodges had
told it. as he always talked too
much"
THE REPORT
The committees report follows:
"Since our committee dispensed
Of
ant, Thomas, for the reasons set
forth in our report to the governor
that Thomas had received money on
his unpaid vouchers through Off
Gals of the auditors office, Thorn
as, in order to justify his action,
has made an affidavit falsely charg-
ing at least one member of this
committee in connection with the
governor, in attempting to force
Thomas to promise an unfavorable
report on the office of the secre-
tary of state Based on this affi-
davit Secretary of State Hodges
has seen fit to refuse to allow our
committee to audit his books.
"If this committee had had no
knowledge of any of the details of
this transaction other than the fact
that the money was actually adj
vanced on Thomas unpaid vouch-
ers, it would not have hesitated in
taking the action that it did, for
this alone on it's face appears to
the committee as an illegitimate
transaction; but at that time this
committee had in it's possession an
affidavit signed by A. j. McAmis,
a man of unquestioned integrity,
and an employee of the state audi
tors office, an affidavit that the
committee did not at that time
deem advisable to make public.
4 FIRST AFFIDAVIT
''The affidavit follows:
" State of Arkansas, County of
Pulaski.
"T, A. j. McAmis, do hereby GER
tify that 7 have been an employe