The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-09-12
DURKEE ADMITS CONVECTION WITH KHAN ON STAND
Organizer Of Macon Unit Identifies Letter Addressed
 To TX. K. K"

MACON, Ga, Sept. 11.-Admission of his connection with the Ku Klux Klan was made late today by J. P. Durkee. organizer for the organiza- tion in Macon, on the stand here Marlborough. in connection with the flogging of B. F. Mills in January last year. Durkee was yesterday arrested on a rioting charge.
 Durkee said he came to Macon first in June, 1922, and had office space with Dr. Marlborough and said he ob- tained letter from him. He iden- tified two letters, one addressed to the TX. k. K" and the other to Dr. Marlborough. He declared he showed these letters to M. o. Cunning, chief of staff of the klan in Georgia, and then turned them over to the sheriff.
 Defense objected to the question if there were a large pile of letters, the solicitor saying he sought to show many letters were burned by pr. Marlborough after the flogging in quiry begun, but withdrew the ques- tion.
 When you received these letters, what did you do with them ?" the wit ness was asked.
 "I read many of them or scanned them and turned them over to Dr. Marlborough"
 Durkee followed Mills who testi- fled that Marlborough was a member of the gang which flogged him. At one point in his testimony he said he went to see a postal clerk named Mid dlebrooks, regarding who mailed the letter to the Ku Klux Klan in At lanta. He testified that Durlxee had represented himself to be a. detec- tive, after he (Mills) had written letter to the governor in Atlanta fol lowing his flogging. This letter, the state contends, never reached Cover nor Hardwick.
 H. R. Perryman. a Ku Klux Klan detective, testified his business in Macon was investigation of whip pings. He came here three weeks ago and said he saw pr. Marlborough on the day after he arrived, and Dr. ! Marlborough told him he knew noth- ing about the whippings. The second time he saw Dr. Marlborough was on August 30 last. when the dentist came to his room. He said Dr. Marlborough asked what headway had been made, and that he '(Perryman) told him :it looks pretty bad for some Of the boys"
 He then asked me if it wasn't pos sble for me to find some reasona ble excuse to drop the investigation and leave town. l told him I couldn't do | that"
 Evidence tending to show that Dr. C. A. Yarbrough. on trial in city court here on the charge of rioting in connection with the whipping of R. r. Mills, a chiropodist, has knowl- edge of letters written by persons seeking to have ether persons pun ished for various offenses featured today's session of the trial. l In one instance a state witness, an employe in pr. Yarbroughs of- flee, told of reading a letter in which mother a day or two before her son was flogged expressed a wish that something could be done to her son.
 Employees of the Ku Klux Kan also testified regarding letters and other matters designed to connect pr. Tar 1 brough, who has been called the whipping boss" of Macon, with the series of floggings that have been going on in Macon and Blob county l for approximately two years and which for several weeks had the city and county in a turmoil
 Five witnesses testified today The l state announced the names of 54 witnesses at the opening of the case this morning. including the names of former Governor Thomas w. Hard wick, while the defense announced l the names of more than 100. Indi- cations were that this case, the first of seven charges against Dr. Tar brough, would last three or four days at least,