Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-08-09
QUARRY SALE STORM CENTER
OF HIGHWAY BOARD INQUIRY
Witnesses Testify Grassland
Made $4,000 in Deal
Wherein State Bought
Property

lORNt ~
The Gilbert county quarry, owned
and operated by the state highway
department, provided the battle
ground for the Monday night session
OF the joint legislative committee in
vestigating the highway commission,
and the testimony given just before
midnight by H. T.. Wigs, of Ell
berton, concerning details of the
quarry purchase, was the striking,
phase, of the four-hour session.
Mr.. Wigs, who conducted nego-
tiations with the highway commits
sion which led up to purchase or the
quarry, defended w. A. Grassland,
federal highway engineer, from Rep
resentative Z. III. McMichaels charge
that the engineer had made $l5,00O
out of the quarry sale, and he also
took occasion to refute the alleged
statement that the quarry just be-
fore it's sale to the state had gone
under the hammer for $4,000"
THE quarry was sold for $4,000,
Mr.. Wigs stated, but it was bio
in for the account of Atlanta under
writer's who paid $74,SO0 for the:
property"
CrOssIand's $4,000
Mr.. Giggs testified that Engineer
Grassland had received $4,000 to re-
lease an option which the Granite
Products company, in which Mr..
Grassland was interested, held on the
quarry property, then owned by the
Ebert Blue Granite company.
Another feature of the Monday
night session was a plea from Stan
ley Bennett, highway commission
err, that the committee investigate
the commission thoroughly and then
give it's full cooperation in the
building of highways.
Former Representative Zach Ar
mold, of Clay county, representing
Mr.. Grassland, offered Mr.. Wigs
testimony to offset the declaration
by ]. w. Hawkins, formerly en-
ployed by the state highway depart
ment, that the federal engineer had
told him he had made SIS, 600 out or
the quarry sale.
Had Expected $4,000
Mr.. Hawkins testified that about
80 or 60 days before the deal was
contaminated, Mr.. Grassland had
told him that he expected to make
100000 and he asserted that after
the sale, the federal engineer had
declared he had made $4,000 out
of the transaction. Mrs. Lillian
Weekly, a stenographer in the bu-
reau of roads, also testified Mr..
Grassland had made $4,000 out of
the quarry sale.
On cross examination of these
and other witnesses, Mr.. Arnold
brought out that Engineer Cross
land had resigned before the quarry
sale to enter the granite business,
and his interrogations also develop
ed the statements that Mr.. Cross
land was not employed by the state
highway department, but by the
federal government, and that he did
not act as p counsellor for the
commission.
Commissioners Bennett and Nicely
testified they had voted to pur-
chase the quarry upon the recon-
mendation Of DR.. c. NJ. Strahan,
then chairman of the highway
board.
More than a dozen witnesses testi-
fled at the Monday night session,
which was marked by good attend
ance. The investigation was ira
Wersing much of the same ground
as the highway probe two summers
ago when SenatOrf Landlord inter
rupted with the demand that Repre-
sentative McMichael produce testi-
mony relating to his charge that
Engineer Grassland had made $15,-
900 out of the quarry sale.
Senator Landlord moved that the
| 1928 probe committee not investi-
gate things passed upon by the pre-
Vious committee, but that they con.
fine themselves to the new charges.
Representative Elders, of TAFT
nall, objected to shutting off, the
| investigation, declaring the house
and senate had voted for an investi"
cation. and asserting that the pres
| ent committee should not be bound
| by the action Of others.
81 opposed the resolution" he de-
clared, but it would be a Serious
| mistake not to carry it through to
| the end. 1t would be an outrage
and an injustice to the highway de-
| partment not to carry the inVesuga-
ton through to the finish and [ do
not want to shut it off"
Mr.. McMichael announced that he
would introduce evidence relating to
his $4,000 graft" charge in i few
minutes, and Senator Landlord did
not press his motion. MI. Hawkins
was placed on the stand shortly
| afterwards to testify concerning Mr..
! Crossland's alleged statement con-
corning the $4,000 said to have been
derived from the quarry sale.
Mr.. Hawkins statement that 1t
was Common knowledge" that Mr..
| I,o6 81 non bV the
quarry sale was ruled out by Chalr-
man Stephen Pace, upon objection
of Sam J.. Olive, representing the
highway commission, that such
statement was unfair to the commits
sion, and ranked as hearsay evil
dence. The committee is acting I'M
der superior court procedure.
} J. r. MARSHALL, a federal highway
engineer, was called by Attorney Ar
mold to testify that Mr.. Grassland
had resigned from his federal post
previous to the quarry transaction,
! and that he had come to Atlanta to
relieve Mr.. Grassland.
Commissioner Bennett, in his
statement. declared that he had OBJ
served politics creeping into the
highway board five or six months
after Chairman Holders appoint
ment and that, in q heart-to-heart
talk with the chairman, he had urged
Mr.. Holder Ito get the virus Of poll
tics out of his system" Since that
talk. Mr.. Bennett stated, everything
in the department has been harmo-
NOUS, and Mr.. Holders one ambl-
ton, he said, was to build the best
system of roads in the union.
Highway Engineer Neal and sew
eral other witnesses testified that
the quarry product was of the high-
est type for road building, and that
the site was such that the crushed
stone could be transported to the
railroad by gravity at a low cost. In
this connection, Chairman Pace
showed newspaper men a, letter from
i tlan E,lhcr-t1arn Rnt CllIh aSk1nC 2