The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-03-09
Atty. Crawford Pushes Inquiry Into Practices Followed In Handling Financial Affairs
Payable Sheets Stressed in Early Evidence Effort
 to Show Witness Helped Set Up System Vogue in Years With Regard to Payments, Signing of Warrants.

Attorney Crawford resumed his cross-examination of MT. Purcell this morning. The more important testimony follows. (Referring to payments on war rants payable sheets).
 Q. call your attention to the fact that these payments ranging from January 1 to January l5- when to the bes tof your recollection and belief-were these entries actu- ally made on these sheets
 A. Oh, possibly towards the end of January. They were
 @. Well, they were made on these sheets toward the end of January2 (Alcorn objected to interruption). Question repeated.
 A. To the best of my knowledge, sometime towards the end of Jan- uary, 1880.
 Q. Now, MT. Purcell, 1t is true, isn't it, that from-will you count the number of sheets up to the point that we are talking about from the beginning of the year? tr,
 A. Seven.
 o. Now, and those vouchers run from 1 to BIO, don't they?
 A. That is correct. t @. Now, on none of the papers containing those BIO entries-I1l call your attention to it-is a single one of the sheets signed on the back, either by the controller or by a member of the board of finance. It is true, isn't it? Sheets Not Signed A. Those sheets are not signed no. And no date on the back in the place provided for the date and the signature of the controller. It is true, isn't it? A. No date.
 o. Now, MT. Purcell, we were try ing to locate some sheets yester- day afternoon, early in the year of 1930 that you signed for the con- troller. Did you locate those after the court?
 A. Yes; I located them.
 Q. Will you be good enough to locate them again for me?
 A. The first is No. IS.
 e. What is the date of that, MT. Purcell?
 A. February 3, 1880.
 Q. By the way, let me ask you this question. I noticed frequently on these sheets, at the extreme up- per right hand corner of the sheet is a date. Now that date-is 1t irl- tended to be the date of the meeting of the board of finance at which that certain item is expected to be presented?
 Date of Preparation
 A. That is the date that the book keeper prepared the sheet and it may or may not be the meeting on that date.
 O. But the sheet is made up or the theory that it will be before the board of finance on the date indi- cated. What is the date indicated on the sheet you are looking at?
 A. Just the month, is indicated o. On the back Is 1t indicated?
 A. February 20.
 o. The signature on the back of this sheet we are talking about-in the space provided for the control ler's signature is your own? A. Yes.
 @. I am looking at the words James P. Purcell" and in front of controller Is written flor me-" A. That's right.
 e. And the date February 20 1880, is also in your handwriting?
 A. Yes. 0. Now the next one you also signed and the next sheet is No. 19 The same way. A. Yes.
 o. All were signed the same way inclusive to No. 26.
 A. Yes.
 Q. The items are duplicated aren't they?
 A. Yes.
 o. The entire sheet is a copy o1 another?
 A. Yes. rr
 o. The amounts would be the same and the items are the same
 A. Not entirely the same. The payroll might be exactly the same
 No Date
 @. Now, we come to sheet 28. call your attention to the fact that this sheet 28 = there is nc date over your signature for the controller. There is no date and no amounts in the approval of the Board of Finance. Can you explain why that was so?
 A. That wasn't the practice tc complete the entire form.
 e. That never was the practice9
 A. No. @
 @. We already started on the sys- tenn that you helped to setoup. This is part of 1t?
 A. Yes.
 e. On that system it was g prac- tice to put in the total amounts of the sheet on the back of it?
 A. It wasn't. For long time the paper was prepared and all the totals of each sheet would be pre-. scented to the Board of Finance.
 @. That is what was coming to You have testified that on one oc- casion. in the eight years you were in the controllers office, you were present at the Board of Finance meeting.
 A. That's right.
 e. Is this the occasion?
 A. Yes.
 e. Now, I want the jury to gel the significance of what you have just testified. First you told me - and I want to be sure that ] understood correctly - first you told me that the sheets we are talk. ing about were part of the system you helped to set up.
 A. That is correct.
 Totals Not On Back