Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-11-30
Both Judge and Counsel Co.
s.
operate to Expedite En-
bezzIement Hearing.
DEFENDANTS TO GRILL
ACCOUNTING EXPERTS
Prosecution Backbone Is Interpre-
tation to Jury Of Documentary
Evidence-Ex-Emplo Called.

With the foundations of the Gov.
ernment's case laid, the trial of three
former officers of the F. H. Smith Co.
on conspiracy charges will 20 into its
second week tomorrow In District SUI
preme Court.
The prosecution is asking for the
conviction Of @. Bryan Pitts, John H.
Edwards, jr., and G. Ebert Anadale.
all formerly Smith Co. officers, under
an indictment charging them with q
conspiracy to embezzle $4,000, 900 of the
company's funds and to destroy al
legedly discriminating records.
Judge and Counsel Expedite Case.
Justice William Hitz and counsel ON
both sides have been making every eff
fort to expedite the case. Nugent
Dodds, special assistant to the Attor-
ney General, and Assistant United
States Attorney Neil Burkinshaw have
held their direct examinations to the
minimum, and croSs-questioning has
been correSpondingly brief. One Of the
unusual aspects of the trial so far has
been the efficiency with which Justice
Hitz disposes of objections by counsel
He rules promptly. permitting the
~
Approximately 20 of the Govern
ment's 100 odd witnesses have testi-
fed in the day and a half since the
jury was impanelled. A great deal Of
this time, however, has been con-
sumed In Identification of the great
mass OF documentary evidence to be
produced.
The defendants are represented by
Wilton j. Lambert, Frank G. Raichle,
Ntwaew l. ~
Toland. A considerable number of the
defense moves, however, are directed
by Pitts, who follows every detail of the
procedure and evinces no hesitancy In
telling his counsel what questions to
ask and when to ask them.
will Quiz Experts Closely.
The defendants have indicated they
will call in their own behalf less than
ment expects to use, but it is expected
they will devote considerable time to
cross examining the Governments ac-
counting experts, whose testimony viii
form the backbone Of the prosecutions
case.
The Government has called o number
Of former Smith employees for the pur-
pose Of showing what they describe as
the preliminary steps to the acts con-
has been given to the effect that GER
tain records, for the most part un-
identified, were removed from the Smith
company Offices on Fifteenth street, and
that money derived from checks made
out to cash" was turned over to some
OF the defendants. The prosecution has
also introduced testimony that one en-
ploye, acting under instructions, de-
posted money to Pitts account with
the Southern Maryland Trust Co.
Records Kept from Crissinger.
It was brought out by the Govern
ment just before court adjourned yes
terday that records which might have
disclosed the alleged criminal acts were
kept from Daniel r. Crissinger by the
defendants while he was chairman Of
the Smith company Executive Com
mittee. The prosecutors refused to
divulge their purpose in introducing
this testimony. CriSsinger, formerly
controller of the currency, was indicted
last December with the present de-
PENDANTS on a mail fraud charge, but
he has no connection with the case now
on trial.
The jury, which is being locked up In
the Metropolitan Hotel for the duration
Of the trial, was taken for a long auto
mobile ride yesterday afternoon.