The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-10-27
TAYLOR CASE. DECISION WILL COME MONDAY
pr. Bell Makes Charge In Commission Meeting Friday That Comptroller Asked Him For Deposit Interest
 CITY OFFICIAL DENIES BANK HEADS /sS\sT TEMENT Detailed Accos svS$Jf Dealings Of Two gsosSomes Out In Public 4ring Lasting Near < ire Day

NOOt G tu DoJ
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 q am structed to announce the board will not have reached a de- cision before Monday" Secretary L. E. Gray of the city commission an- nounced as dusk fell over the city hall Friday evening, and the throng that had sat through nearly full | day of discussion of the charges brought by pr. A. w Bell, president of the Woodlawn Savings bank, against City Comptroller H.. Marvin Taylor, broke up into groups amid buzz of talk, fingered in the hall out side the council chamber few min utes, then slowly melted away. The commission met at 10 o'clock Friday morning, and after some pre- liminary talk about whether the charges should be in writing or not, pr. Bell was called.
 He said he was not there as prosecutor, but simply as a witness, l and was ready to reiterate in public the statements he had made to the individual commissioners and to the l board as whole. In effect, Dr. Bell | said:
 MT. Taylor appeared in my office | March 16 of this year and asked me to give him one-half of one per cent on a municipal deposit in the Wood l lawn Savings bank. I told him it was a new idea to me and l didn't | think we could do it. MT. Taylor told me his salary had been cut S1,000 | year and he could not live on it. I | told him would let him hear from me at a later date. MT. Taylor then l asked me to renew his note, which 1 was done.
 MT. Taylor came back to see me July 19 and asked what I had decided 1 to do about his proposition. 1 told 1 him I believed it to be a violation of l the law and the bank would not care l to do it. He said he did not know it i was a violation of the law. He asked me to renew his rote again and 4 did so.
 I theriSdecided. eontinuad Dr.. Bell. l to make the matter known to the | governing body of the city. l first | told Mrs. Echols, then President Me- 1 Lendon, and at intervals of several ! days repeated the matter to Commits l sioners Cloe. Harrison and Dickson. | Just after July IS the city had on deposit in our bank $3o.000, which | had been there since November ', l 1922. Immediately after this, or July 23. checks on the account began com l ing in every few days. and in 1 5 days ] the bulk of the city's account had | been withdrawn. I reported this to | the city commission, but heard noth- l ing in reply. A short time after this Mir. Taylor appeared at the bank win | ( newspaper, pass books and checks were in it. and he told me to go over l them. I said that was unnecessary. | as the accounts of the city were pulp | lie property and subject to inspec- ! tion Mir Taylor said to me: You are trying to get my job and if you do I'll hold you personally responsi- | ble." I answered: If that's the way you feel, bully. crack your whip" I said that if that was the way he felt would call up the newspapers and tell them all about it. MT. Taylor said that we were friends; that he | had made a statement to the com mission and was ready to put back the city deposit in our bank. I said "To hell with your deposit" and | joined me at the desk and said he | had made serious mistake and wanted me to help him. I told MT Taylor that If he was making threats l l was as ready to go to the grave | yard as 1 ever would be.
 I asked Mir Taylor if MT. McLen- don was not his friend and if the commission was willing to shoulder l the responsibility I would shut my mouth, but told my board of direc- l tors that If I was called to the city again l would make the same state ment
 | Tells Of Alleged Visit. l.. Mir. Taylor came to see me again and said 1t was all fixed up, and I Tor ,came to see me again later with l a deposit of S30,000 and said he thought all fixed right.
 On October 16, Dr. Bell continued President McLendon again called me before the commission. I repeated my former statement.
 Now, gentlemen continued Dr. Bell, that Is the history of the case I'm not here to prosecute or perse- cute. I'm not trying to hurt Mir l tided in the newspapers statements about the interest. MT. Taylor never | said anything about 3.36 to me. He asked me for one-half of one per cent. I have no desire to follow this l up or make anyone any trouble. | Dr. Bell said he had made the mat | ter known to the directors of his bank.
 Questioned by Attorney F. D. Mo
 Arthur, who was spokesman for MT. Taylor. Dr. Bell said the Woodlawn Savings bank paid the city per cent question Dr. Bell said he believed the county got a higher rate of in terest than the city, .0336 per cent, he believed.
 Was that ever discussed with you, Dr. Bell. by MT. Taylor?" the at
 
 rot. Was anyone else present when you discussed these matters with MT. Taylor?" was the next question. Dr. Bell said no one else was.
 About that note" said Dr. Bell, "Mr. Taylor never said anything to me about cancelling 1t, he wanted it renewed"
 MT. McArthur asked: "Dr. Bell you did not talk with MT. Taylor again until July 19? Had you made any report from March to July 19, and your conception of the proposi- | ton was that 1t was unmoral?" Yes pr. Bell answered. | But said MT. McArthur. you had | not reported it?"
 Tt was in September think, that | MT. Taylor appeared at the window | with the bundle. September or Octo- | Der, the sixth day of October, to be exact MT. Taylor had then paid s75 of his y150 note and renewed the rest. That is correct, l believe" Dr. Bell l said.
 | MT. McArthur asked: Had you, pr. Bell. between July 19 and october l,