Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-12-18
ARMY Of CON- MEN
OPERATED IN CITY.
WOODS WHITE SAYS

Revelations given by w. Woods
White, wealthy Atlanta philanthro-
pist, concerning the alleged presence
in the city of a swarm of bunco
men, and testimony by Chief of Po-
of the investigation of the local po-
lice department by the board Of po-
lice commissioners Thursday.
Police Chief Beavers was the first
witness when the special investigat-
ing committee resumed it's probe
Thursday morning. He told the cow
mittee taht he was convinced there
various elements of citizens to dis
credit the police force.
Ever since l have been on the
force. this kind of talk has been go
ing on, and it is the same thing in
other cities, with. which am &C,
method, but a poor one, because it
cannot usually be supported by the
introduction of facts. Furthermore,
any man who ISLANDERS another, man.
whether he be a policeman or not,
without producing the actual evil
dence of dishonesty, is worse than
bootlegger and causes more trouble
in the community"
Attorney Chambers asked Chief
Beavers what he thought of the boot
leggers employing an attorney to
"get certain policemen with instruc-
tions to render the bill when the
officers had been fixed" Chief Beav-
ers replied that this was pretty good
evidence that an organized attack Is
now going on.
Conference with White
Chief Beavers then testified con-
corning a conversation he had with
w. Woods White, a prominent At
lantian, about breaking UP gambling
and crookedness in Atlanta.
A few days after Solicitor Boy.
kin's first gambling raids. said Chief
come to his office, and when ne got
there said he wanted two trustworthy
men to work on an important case.
"Mr. White asked me about my
best men, and / wrote down -FOUR or
five names. He ran pencil through
two of them, saying they wouldn't
do" said Chief Beavers.
Asked about these names, Chief
Beavers said they were Detective Gill
lespie and Detective o. r. Jones:
"Mr. White said to me that 1t had
come to him that lot of officers
were mixed up in crooked. work go o.
they had been grating. and he re-
ferred particularly to the detective
He mentioned the names
of Shaw and Waggoner, and he SAID
Chief Poole had knowledge Of 1t. put
hadn't taken any money. He asked
me how long l had known SHAW,
and Poole.
Gave Names Of Men
st told him I had known Shaw and
since they had been on
the force, and Chief Poole since he
was a country boy. He asked me
what kind of man Poole was, and
"a ho1ioxyn hin, q nninkIv as
I would you He told me l was sur
rounded by the wrong kind of men.
Then he said he wanted two men
and preferred that nobody IN the de-
.ectiYe department would know ABOUT
It. I told him that would be difficult
He asked about uniformed men. 1
told him I could let him have two,
out the men in the detective depart
nent had had more experience.
when he called for the names Of
uniformed men, / told him had
rather look over the roll, so l went
back to the station house and got
the names of four uniformed men
and four detectives and returned to
1is office In thirty minutes. He SAID
he would select the two names ne
would want and would telephone me
when he needed the men, but he
never did call for them. The only
lays later when he telephoned about
the gambling investigation and told
me to get my records ready, that
they would have me before the grand
iury, and that he did not want to
see me 'miXed!up.' He did call me
four or five days ago to tell me. the
same thing about this investigations,
Thought He Had Clue
Chief Beavers said he asked Mr..
White right at the first for the
names of the men who gave him in
formation against the detectives, but
Mr.. White refused to give them.
Later, he said Mr.. White told him
he was helping a lot of ex-convicts
in the federal prison to make their
way in the world.
"What was your opinion--that he
really wanted to get two officers, or
that he was reflecting on the police
asked Alderman Dave
AT first I thought he had a clue"
Chief Beavers, but later,
when. he didn't. call for the men.
wasn't so sure"
Chief Beavers said that Mr.. White
told him the crooks were In town
trying to pay Holley to leave the
state so he wouldn't appear against
Abe Powers. Mr.. White told him the
gamblers had been operating here
long time, said Chief Beavers. The
chief said he wished Mr.. White had
told him that before.
"Mr. White told me the ex-con-
victs he was helping had given him
a pledge that they wouldn't allow
the crooks to commit crimes in At
lanta," continued Chief Beavers.
Active Against Locker Clubs
Declaring Mr.. White always had