T
Weather
Partly Cloudy With Scattered
Thunderstorms ‘ /
' A\
Foil Day and Night Sar*toi^|5f
FOUNDED A. D. 1867.—VOL. CXL—No. 166.
100 per Genic American
WILMINGTON, N. C., FRIDAY MORNING, AUGUST 17, 1923.
OLDEST DAILY IN THE STATE.
i&m
-
ssa;ft
Detectivei Work Two Years
On Savannah Booze Raid
Greatest in “Dry” History
STATE OFFICIALS KEEP
SILENT CONCERNING
THE ARREST OF COOPF'
Grocery Clerk With Million In
come Leader of Bootlegger
“Big Four” V
OWNED NUMBER OF CRAFT
UNDER BRITISH REGISTER
Operated in Cuba, Bahamas,
England, France and Canada,
Burns Says
■WASHINGTON, Aug. _ i6.—Depart
in'-'nt of justice officials declared today
that the leaders in the largest and
mr'Ft powerful “bootleg” ring in the
railed tSates have been taken into
custody in the wholesale arrests made
at Savannah. Ga., undef direction of
federal agents. Additional arrests are
a «'cipated and it was stated that
the ease might lead to some state and
federal officers.
William Haar, a- pne-time grocery
clerk, is described as the principal
leader in a ring wljlc.h officials here
claim operated a flotilla of craft, had
its own cement-lined storehouse in the
swamps along the Georgia and Florida
Heading forces of less wealth and
strength, according to Justice officers,
were C. Graham Ba.ughn, Richard
Fai'ey and Sam Goldbefg. These men
are referred to as the "big four” and
it was said they were so known in
bootleg circles throughout the country.
Fleet of Craft Employed
Haar is alleged to own a numher
of craft of British ^registry which
were used to import intoxicants from
Cuba, the Bahamas and othe points in
the West Indies. But the ring, 'the
story goes, .reached put even to Great
Br'tain, France and Canada for its sup
plies The craft bringing stocks from
nearbv ports would anchor outside the
three-mile limit, the claim is, and fast
motor boats would make the transfers
to storehouses ashore. Distribution
then would Be made by automobiles
and trains.
Operations of the ring are said to
have extended along the east coast' of
Florida and the Georgia coast, whicn,
because of their numerous bayous and
inlets isolated by large swamps, made
^Derations comparatively free-fro'iih'de-'
tection frcfnT shore. Finally efforts
were made to $N>ak up the smuggling
from the seacgjbut with hundreds of
miles of coasfSSine on which to oper
ate, the run*miners usually were suc
cessful in evading capture. '
Probe Began Two Tears Ago
It was two years ago thaj informa
tion came to the department of justice
that Savannah was the port - for the
receipt and distribution of much of the
liquor reaching the southern, and east
ern markets.' Mrs. Mabel Walker
Willebrandt, an assistant to the at
torney general who is charged with
the enforcement of the prohibition law,
ordered prohibition enforcements to
that city, in an effort to break up the
illicit trade.
By this time, however, the ring from
a beginning on a small scale had be
come. according to officials, a large
and powerful organization with an ef
ficient intelligence department. The
result was that agents sent in were
uncovered making it necessary replace
them by others. W
The task of collecting evidence upon
which to undertake prosecutions proved
so unsuccessful that Mrs. Willebrandt
went at the job-from another angle.
Tax Return* First Clue
Fhe sent for the tax returns of a
number of suspected "bootleggers” and
azain the intelligence unit of the In
ternal revenue bureau began an in
vestigation. Bank accounts of the men
in Savannah were examined and the
trail of checks and drafts in large
amounts alleged to have been in pay
ment for liquors were found through
banks in several cities, including New
-York. :
Meantime, the evidence thus dis
closed, convinced officials here that
they were on the trail of the largest
"bootleg” fraternity in the country, at
least from a standpoint of -the size of
operations, and William J. Burns, of
the bureau of investigation of the de
partment of justice, was asked to take
up the case. This was last May and
Mr. Burns sent several agents to Sa
vannah who worked in co-opergtion
with the internal revenue' bureau of
Bootlegger Income Over Million
Later the federal grand jury re
turned indictments against the Qig
fou^” ?.nd four ot five others, charging
a violation of the revenue ac^ through
failure to make proper retlir^s' •*
wap charged, that Haar had failed to
make a return on income in excess of
SI.non.000. These cases are set for
trial August 20 before Judge William
J Orubb, of Birmingham,' Ala., who
is holding the current term of federal
court at Savannah because Federal
Judge Barrett is in ill-health.
A week ago those in charge or
"bootleg’* investigations decided
fierce was sufficient on which tp.
action. Accordingly indictments were
drawn in the department of justice at
a conference participated la by Mrs.
V,'"illebrandt. White Miller, of Chatta
nooga. Tenn., a special ass’etant to
Uv- attorney general, delegated to Pfns'
ecute the case; Harold Allen, of coun
sel for *he internal revenue bureau,
and Oliver Pagan, indictment expert of
thf- department. With the staged thus
set for what has proved to be the larg
est roundup made by, the government
und^r the national prohibition law, 40
additional warrants of; the bureau of.
j'o e^tigation were dlspatched/to< Sa
vanna h. •. <; / : -7!
Ranker’s Arrest a Mystery
The arrest of John .J- Powers, a? lead
er' hanker of Savannah, cajne as a sur
Pr:?* to officials here, who. said they
h’-i rot yet been advised as t<? what
connection with the -ring he was al-'
b-cc-f] to have had. •••• ■^f*~*y**f:-***'~'i*:f
Others were also taken in the round-'
whose alleged connection, ha* not
made clear. ' , ^ - w
One of the leaders escaped “arrest.
^Continued on Page Two.) .^ ^
fr—.- : ■ ■- _
Gat and Rabbit Jinx
. Double on Dunn Man
---V < \ ,j'
(Special to The Star)
L Dunn, Aug. 16.—The superstition
ot E. J. Nobles, of Dunn, tnat if
a rabbit or a cat crosses the road
drectly in front of one when traif- I
eling at night, bad lpck is sure to
follow, was strengthened somewhat
last night. While he' Was returning
front White Lake to <Dunn both a
ra'bbft and cat took advantage of
him and passed in front of his au
| tomobile, And, as might have been
expected, the bad luck turned up
before the trip was completed.
While speeding along on th»
highway between Dunn and Payette:
ville he pame upon a Ford car thar
had gone “dead” in the middle oi
the road, He couldn't stop befoie
i reaching the stalled-* car and the
only chance for passing K was I
blocked by a woman standing by I
the roadside. Rather than drive bu |
car against the woman he strucU
the p'ord and knocked a wheel off j
This part of the ill luck was 'at.
tributed to the rabbit, and here Is
where the cat came m. Nobles drove
| to Dunn to get a wheel to replace
the one he had destroyed. The wheel
j was carried to the scene of the ac
I cident, and then It was found that n
1 wouldn’t fit. This made a second
-trip to Dunn necessary, and he
thinks the cat was back of the
mis-flt. »
CLOUDBURST FLOir
ON WAY TO DENVER
IN SWOLLEN PLATTE
Every Available Policeman
Rushed to Lowlands to
Sound Warning
i-i-"* Ll *. ->'•
detcver, Colo., Aug... ia<—]fu«>a
wiaters are sweeping down tbA Thatte
Canyon toward Denver, following a
| terrific cloud burst early tonight, ac
' cording to information receiver at the
Denver police department. shortly af
ter 8 o’clock. • '
At 8:80 o’clock the evening ajl tele
phone connections with Littleton were
•reported to have gone down.
{ Every available pblicelrtan has’ been
rushed to the lowlands, bordering the
I Platte river outside - of Denver, and
| residents are being warned. The flood
| waters are expected to reach here In
| a half hour.
Water Is spreading over the lowlands ~
at Littleton, 10 miles from here and
near EnleWood, a suburb. Telephone
operators at summer rdSorts in the
Platte canyon where the water Is ris- j
ing, notified the Denver police depart
ment.
No loss of life has been reported
thus far.
44-HOUR WEEK FIGHT PERMANENT
ATLANTA, Ga„ Aug. 16.—(By Asso
ciated Press).—By unanimous vote,
the 68,lh annual convention of the
International Typographical union
adopted A resolution “strongly urging
the executive to resist any attempt to
call oft the fighf for the 44-hour week,’’
and recommended that all strike bene
fits be continued until all members j
still on strike are back at work.
Lieut. Governor . and
Are Prominent in/
'• Politics / . ■/
PARTY LEADERS MAY
REQUEST RESIGNATION
Morning Stnr Bureau
' 312 Tucker Building
BY BROCK BARKLEY
..RALEIGH, Aug. 16.—State official
dom was silent today on the Institu
tion of criminal proceedings against
Lieutenant Governor W. B. Cooper but>
the new and sensational development
resulting from the failure of the Com,
mercial National bank Wilmington had
undivided attention.
(governor , Cooper and his brother,
Thomas E. Cooper, have been promi
nent in state politics for some years
and previous to the failure of the Wil
mington bank, both had further politi
cal aspirations. While W. B. Coper
never gained a place in the inner coun.
tils of the Democratic party, he won
the Lieutenant Governorship and- has
presided over three sessions of tho
legislature, the last session having
taken place since the failure of his
bank. Thomas E. Cooper never held
a state office but, was prominent in
party affairs, having at one time been
a. serious contender for the Democratic
committee chairmanship and later a
prospective ’ aspirant for. the National
committeemanship.
During" the last session the, legis
lature, which came immediately follow
ing, the failure, of the Cooper bank,
there' was considerable talk of the pos
sibility of Lieutenant Governor Cooper
resigning as a matter of political wis_
dom. S'And today with criminal actio
facing him. several prominent in party
affairs were of the opinion that he
ought to resign, although there was
no outspoken demands to that effect.
The resignation of the Lieutenant Gov
ernor would place the Senate president
pro tempore, who is W. L- Long, of
Halifax, next "in rank to the Gover
nor.
Rumors as to possible federal action
against the Coopers had been current
here for several monies but develop
ments on yesterday came as sensa
tional surprise. .
Tin ited States Marshall Ward went
to WUmiln'arton.. day before yesterday,
and ‘ yesterday -bad. the wsrrot* issued
by the federal commissioners there.
District Attorney Tucker was at his
home In WhiteviUe and the only ln_
tlmatlon of impendng afcton came n
the form of a “tip" over the wires from
Wilmington late last night.
Thomsi.s E. Cooper faced criminal
proceedings in Wake' County Superior
coUjt about six months ago when the
bank of Apex issued a warrant charg
ing him with, the perpetuation of ■ a
fraud. The .case was compromised on
reaching trial. -
WOMAN GOLFERS’ TEST TODAY
ASHEVILLE; A,ug. 16.—Mrs.. Dozier
^owpde's, of Atlanta, and Miss Deane
Vanlandingham, of Charlotte, will con
test on the links of the Asheville
Country club tomorrow for champion*
ship honors in the ladies' invitation
golf tournament. Mrs. Lowndes, run
ner-up in the southern woman's tourna
ment in 1922, holds the woman’s record
of 87 on the .local course'.
Mrs. Lowndes defeated Mrs. N. P.
Maddux, Asheville, 2 up. in the first
flight today. Miss Vanlandingham de
feated Miss E. Massie, of Macon, Ga.,
3 and 2.
RALEIGH, Aug. 16.—$30,000 for re
pairs on the state capitol will be ex
pended in the near future, according
to an announcement made here today
by Secretary of State W. N. Everett.
State to Borrow $5,000,000
On Short Term Note to Use
To Finance Building Plans
Governor Morrison Meets Coun-j
cil of State for Loan
t Conference
RECENT ATTACKS MAY
HAVE INJURED CREDIT
morning Star Burean,
313 Tucker Building.
Ey BROCK BARKLEY
Raleigh, Aug. 16.—Governor Morri
son was expected to reach'Ralelgh to
night fpr a meeting tomorrow with
the council of . state , .when formal
authority will be given Treasurer B. j
R. Lacy to issue $5,000,000 of short]
term notes to cover the calls of state j
institutions for . building programs: ,
Mr: Lacy is expected to seek to dis
pcse of the notes oh the New York ,
market. What effect the late, attack |
r testates! financial condition will j
have on the offer, has been a matter of
speculation among state officials. New
York bond arid financial publications
have made note of the attack. An
editorial from the bond buyer was in
the hands of officials today. It com
ntains of .the controverted condition of
the trepaupy ahd denotes fluctuations
in state bonds. , * ... .
The injury of the state’s credit has
been one ,ot the sources-of worry to
Goyernor -Morrison Since .tfif attacks
on 'the financial condition -first de
VeSeveral of the state institutions, in
cluding the university And State col
lege, have made calls-upon the gov
ernor afid council of state- for perman
ent improvement appropriations pro
vided by the last - legislature. Build
ing work is under way on _ the new
program at several of them.;.. ....
■........ - — ■ —'
182,000 Pounds of Leaf
Sold at Whiteville For
Top Prices at Auction
(Special to The Star)
WHITEVIIiLE, Aug. 15.—The am...
tion warehouses sold 182,000 pounds
at an average of $26.75 a hundred here
today.
Planters from six counties sold to
bacco on the local market today, many
of • them passing through a number oi
neighboring tobacco • markets in order
to obtain tjt<i higher prices paid here,
according to the warehousemen, and
even va larger amount of tobacco will
be sold here tomorrow And throughout
the goming’weeks. ■ , .
Some , farmers who have sold tobacco
oh both the local a.nd .ieignboring mar
kets declare the Whiteville market to
be ,at least $5 a hundred higher .than
competitors. Although practically three
fourths of .the warehouse - floor space
was. filled with the weed today to
night every floor is empty. All of . to.
day’s purchases; being packed up o,
shipped, out preparatory . to another
big break, tomorrow.
i- ■ PICNIC BOAT CAPSIZES
ATLANTA. Ga„ Augl 16.—Severa
children were missing shortly after a
small raft capsized on a lake near here,
tonight during a water pageant given
•iij honor, of the delegation . attending
the v National Asssofciation of Deaf
Mutes in. convention here . The lake is
being dragged. ■
.WEATHER FORECAST BY STATES
WASHINGTON, Aug. 16.—Virginia,
cloudy and 1 moderate temperuture
Friday and' Saturday. -S? j' .>
80 RALEIGH CLUB MEN
Aa
- FORT BRAGG CAMP
j£N. BOWLEY'S GUESTS
See Engineers Build Pontoon
. Bridge and Sleep in Guards’
Bunks ’
FAYETTEVILLE. Aug. 16.—Eighty
Raleigh citiSBns, tonight bunked in.
military barracks at Fort Bragg after_
completing a whin of entertainment’
which made up the'first day of their
two-day visit to the world’s; greatest
artillery training camp as the guest of
General A. J. Bowley.
The visitors, represent the four civic
clubs of the'capital city, Rotary,. Civi
tan, Kiawalns and Lions. And among
their number are niaiiy of Mae fore
most business and professional men of
Raleigh. Their visit is a part qf Gen-,
eral Bowley!s program to make the
people of the state better acquainted
with Fort Bragg and what it js ac
complishing. Seventy-five. Kiwanians
from Greensboro , were guest of the
post commander yesterday,
i Oii arriving at the reservation this
afternoon the. Raleigh men were met
by Lieut. Colonel E. (3. Hartshorn, who
will be in charge of their entertain
ment during the two.days. The sight
seeing began forthwith when the visi
tors watched' the - Fourth Engineers
throw a pontoon -.bridge across . Ray
nors pond. They were then escorted
to the officers, club for an informal
; gettogether meeting and; later. Inspect?
ed a camp of shelter tents pitched by
company D of t the - Eighth Infantry.
This same company from the . crack
Infantry regiment sent to Fort Bragg
to help train tbs ,C. M. T.'C. student*
gave a perfect demonstration of guard
mount, one of the prettiest phases of
military life. This was followed by an
evening parade by the provisional regi
ment of th6 citisens" military training
corps,, made up of, 800 young men from
all parts of the south.
At 6 o’clock the. guests were assigned
to billets. After "chpw” which was
partaken of In. true army style, the
Raleigh men witnessed flights' by
planes from the 22nd aero squad at
Pope field. 1
Tonight the visitors were guests of
honor at the biggest boxing show ever
held at Fort Bragg. Two Raleigh boys
were on the boxing program, Joe
“Puncher" Palmer, and Kid Lopes, a
member of the C. M. T. C. and the men
from the capital city-rooted their head*
.vs4:
Two Governors to Open
v Catetwba River Bridge
CHARLOTTE, Aug-. 16.—Governor
Morrison, of North Carolina, and-Sen
ator Dial and representative Stevenson
of South Carolina, were in ' Charlotte
tonight, ready to~be formally escorted
to the new “Buster Boyd” bridge over
Catawba River, which will be formally
opened tomorrow, opening a new high
way connecting the two states..
On the program- for addreses are Gov.
Morrison, Gov. McLoed, of South Car
olina, Senator Dial, representative
Stephenson, representative Bulwlnkle,
of North Carolina, and others. It was
estimated tonight that ten thousand
or more people from the two states
would attend the celebration which
will be featured by a mammoth bar
becue dinner.
The bridge costing *103,000 w$p built
jointly by York county, South Caro
lina and Mecklenburg county, North
Carolina.
4 and 5-Power Treaties
to Be Ratified Today
WASHINGTON, Aug. 16.—The. five
power naval treaty negotiated" at the
Washington Armament conference and
the lour-puwer pact treaty concluded
here in December, 1921, will become
effective at noon tomorrow with the
formal exchange of ratifications at the
state department. Arrangements fof
a simple ceremony that will mars the
deposit'of ratifications were completed
tonight.
i Secretary Hughes will act on behan
of the United States. H. G. Chilton,
charge d’ affairs of the French embassy
for France. Senor Augusto Kosso;
charge d’ affairs of the Italian em
bassy, for Italy, and Ambassador
Ma?anao Hanlhara for Japan.
Each of. the foreign government rep
resentatives will deposit with Secre
i tary Hughes ratified treaties asa will
receive from the state department a
formal acnnowledgement or 7*3: «e-.
posit. The.roeeting will oe- neia-in me
diplomatic room cf the state depart
ment at noon. --
Governor Speaker at
Soldier Day Gathering
NEWTON, N. C., Aug. 18.-^-With Gov
ernor Cameron. Morrison as the princi
pal speaker, "Soldiers’ Day" was cele
brated Here today. The celebration be
gan 20 years ago as an annual affair.
It was attended by thousands;'
Further Gasoline Guts
May Follow Crude Drop
NEW YORK, Aug. 18.—Present priees
for gasoline "i?an,V. only be temporary
although turfite# cuts ■may reasonably
be expected if Crude oil • prices are
again reduced, W. C. Teagle, president
of the Standard Oil company of New
Jersey,’ dediarea, today ip.; a formal
statement. ' * '
' ; • -- ’’'i's.'- ' V ' ; • •' ... -.it

G,0, P.OFSJIIETO
SUPPORTGOOLtDGE IN
NATIONAL MEETING
I
President Will Meet Durham
Men Inviting Him to Mor
gan Memorial' .
WASHINGTON, Aug. 16.i—The sup
port of the Republican organisation of
North Carolina, was pledged today to
President Coolidge by W. B. Bramhan.
state chairman of North Carolina and
Col. I. N. Meekins, an official cff tho
alien property custodian’s office and a
leader among North Carolina' Republi
cans.
Chairman Bramhan and- Colonel
I Meekins made arrangements during
their call upon Mr. Coolidge for a recep
tion of a delegation from Durham,
August 23 to. invite the president to
attend the dedication .in that city of the
| Samuel Morgan memorial, a plot of
i ground near Durham, where the final
surrender of the armies of Gen. J. J.
Johnson andiSherman,took place. The
Durham delegation, will be composed
of representatives of 'the civic associa
tions of the. city.
"The appointment of C. Bascom
SlemP as secretary to the .president
was decidedly pleasing to the Republi
cans of North Carolina,” said Mr.
Bramhan.
"It also was pleasing to the south
generally, because we .feel that Mr.
glemp understands dur problems and
in his office will, be helpful to our sec
tion of the country.”
DURHAM WEEDS PRESIDENT
By H E. C. BHYANT
WASHINGTON, Au*. 16.—Chairman
W. G. Bramhan of the Republican com
mittee and Col. Isaac M. Meeklns, of
Elisabeth City, now connected wjtji that
alien.property custotR^'C *.offtta» ~!h
, New' York,' called ira, «£>. t’sesldent
Coolidge today and asked him to re
ceive a delgatlon of Durham, N. C., to
invite him to the "Bull City," for the
celebration, of the surrender of Joe
Johnson. ,
Messrs. 'Bramhan and Meeklns said
when .they left .thfwhite house that
they felt sure that Mr; Coolidge would
have the North Carolina delegation to
the next national convention. They
I virtually pledged it to the president.
! Chairman Bramhan . is delighted with
I the selection of Mr! Slemp as secretary
1 to the president.

Miss Barbara Whitney, daughter of
Harry Payne Whitijey, New York mil
lionaire, Is engaged to Barlie McKee
Henry,, of Rosemont, Pa., captain of
Harvard varaity. crew, 1924.
Bodies Found in Pond
^ FstiulyTragedy
SP^RTAhTBURG, R C. Aug. 16.—
Samuel W. Rogers of Pacolet, shipping
clerk "Of the' Pacolet manufacturing
company,. and his three sons, were
drowned in an abondOned rock quarry
pool/near Pacolet this afternoon. The
tragedy was not known until near |
nightfall, /when the bodies of Mr.
Rodgers and an infant son were found
floating in the' pool of water by a
negro water boy.
The child had a firm grasp upon the
hair of his father head.
Building of State Water
Terminal Here Bears Wide
Interest, Says Kirkpatrick
I Speaker Tells Kiwanians of Ad
' vantages Which Would Ac
cure to State
“The .building* of. this great terminal
is not* a local proposition, Dut eears
a state-wide signif icance,” declared.
Col. T. I* Kirkpatrick of Charlotte,
speaking here last night before the
Klwanls state convention on the sub
ject, "Building of a State Terminal at
Wilmington, N. C.” “Incidentally,” he
add, “it wifi benefit Wilmington, but
the' whole sthte will participate and
share alike, lh this great enterprise.
We should call upon and demand Of
our representatives in the legislature
that they provide necessary ways and
means fqr the construction’and, main
tenance of such a terminal, and the
-governor of the state should be given
the heartiest cooperation and- most
loyal support in launching tnts great
ecOnomlc undertaking.
Colonel Kirkpatrick, who is district
governor of North Carolina Lions clubs
and president of the Charlotte cham
ber of commerce declared that It was
but fitting that this great organization.
.Kiwanis, should be the champion of the
state port at Wilmington for it car
ried out its motto, “We Build." He as
serted that'Wilmington, “Pearl by the
Sea,” was Justly entitled to any bene
fits and honors which the citizenship
of the state saw fit to bestow upon
her. He sketched briefly the history
of the seaport and the devotion of-its
people to the state anil nation in critical
times, declaring that the pages of
American history “contain ho greater
gets of patriotism, courage and devo
tion to duty than that exhibited by the
people of Wilmington." , .
“North Carolinians today %nd since,
the establishment of the common
wealth,” he stated', "have been asking
the source of all prosperity and havt,
refused to wait <tor ah answer. , An
economic and rapid distribution and
transportation of our artificial, agri
cultural, mining, and manufactured re
sources constitute the basis of our
state prosperity and happiness.”
Continuing the speaker asserted that
without vision 1 there could be no ac
complishment and that had North Caro
lina been without its brilliant galaxy
of leaders she? "today would not hold
first place in the galdxy of common-*
wealths and occupy the position as the
queen state of . the-union upon whose
fair brow rests the jeweled diadem of
the nation.”
•One of the Insolvable quadratic
equations,” he said, "has been and is,
,why have the' citizens of this great
state,‘backed , up by Its tremendous
wealth, failed, refused and neglected
to provide themselves with a great
harbor and terminal at Wilmington and
to connect up this terminal by adequate
and sufficient railway* lines with the
trans-mountain counties, of • western
North Carolina," where God in his infi
nite wisdom has stored undreamed ,of
wealth for our happiness and prosper
ity.
"We have had enough of talk about
the; great fundamental principles of
government. : What we need in this
hour is a practical application of the,
rules, of government to the needs of
the governed. The-way to proceed is
to proceed.—the way to do things is to
do them. Impossibility lies in the
Book of. Fools.’
“The taxpayers stand ready, a,hle and
willing to cooperate and pay the neces
sary tax .to complete our great stats
highway system, to educate the boys
and girls of North Carolina, and to
provide ourselves with adequate trans
portation facilities necessary to com
bat the exorbitant high freight rates ]
from which we have been suffering all I
these years, and which have cost the'.
taxpayers a sum sufficient to meet all
of our needed improvements and de
velopments.
“We have made up our minds that
thus far and no further will we Suf
fer ourselves to be unjustly exploited,
over-burdened and robbed of the fruits
of our labors' by being compelled to
pay a tax tariff on freight rates not
commensurate with services rendered;'
or be kept in a position where we can- |
not-export and import our manufac-■
tufed and raw products to home and !
foreign markets on a competitive basis i
with the ' sister states of the union I
and to foreign ports. , ]
•' "The gods help those who help them
selves and If, we egpect to relieve our
selves ‘'of these ‘ unwarranted condi
tions we must put- up or shut up.- 1
make the declaration without fear of I
contradiction that the time has . come {
and is now at'hand, when no dema
gogue or reactionary is powerful!
enough to withhold from the grasp
of the people of the state any move
ment or expenditure of any funds
which may be deemed necessary, to
build for North Carolina a great termi
nal at Wilmington, thereby relieving
ourselves of excessive freight rates
"#htc.hyfor all these years have made
us^’Hie ’hewers of stone and the drawers
of water.’”
The speaker then entered into a de
tailed descVptlon of the Immense re
sources of the state In terms of money
and nature as well as mentioning its
progress In manufacturing as compared
(Continued on Page Two.)
Misapplication of Funds and ,
, Making False Entries are ^
Alleged — .5®
CLYDE LASSITER HELD • ' ^
ON ABETTING CHARGES
■ - ' '' . ■.,*
Examination Waived and All
Give Bonds Before U. S. ^
Commissioner Williams
^ yip:? 'vV'.fS’ij-;
Resignation of Lieutenant GflTenn»?
W. B. Cooler M momentarily eipffted,*
following hla arrest in Wilmington lath*.
Wednesday night In connection nlth i
the failure of the Commercial National . '
Bank of Wilmlnston, which cloned ttn
doors lent December. . J
Warrants also were served on Horace a
C. Cooper, son of W. B. Cooper, Thomas
E. Cooper, a brother of the UentenaUt ,
governor and Clyde Lassiter, a local
automobile man.
The warrants charnel conspiracy to
misapply bank funds, and making-false
entries on the books of the Instltu- ;• I
flon. ■, \y, ’ - ■>
Avrataged before United States Com
missioner A. S. Williams, the quar
tette waived examination and was v
bpnnd over to await grand Jury action. ■ -
M tHc fall term of federal court.
w. B. Cooper is specifically charred i ?
with entering Into conspiracy with one
T. B, Cooper to defraud the Commercial
National bank of certain funds and ^
tain funds and monies, the property of , ■
the bank. His bopd was set at $5,000.
Thomas B. Cooper, the hank’s presl
dent, was arrested on two ehnrsres, one v
of which Is lor the misapplication
funds and monies of the bank, and thdK&jS
other With conspiracy with W. p. ,•
Cooper to defraud the 'financial Instltu
tlbn ,ef certain funds and. monies, the
property of the bank, and aiding and
ntion of bank funds. He In under
two bonds of A5,O30 each. .. . - ,
' 'Horace C.‘ ^Coocer, , bank cashier, la *S’
faced with a Worse of. having missp- . f
.piled the bank’s funds and monies and
of -mi*lil|n$rs--Anfl ■ Causing ■' ■ to . be" made, ; -
ialse. entries in the bank records. The
commissioner set the cashier’s bond at
$3,o«o. - ■ *'
The warrant served bn Clyde W. Dae
alter charges the automobile man with %t
nidlhg and abetting T. E. Coper in tha.
misapplication of funds of the Commer
cial bank. Be placed bond In the sum ‘ -
of $1,000 -
WABR^TJ SERVED WEDNESDAY 'ft|g
The kondumcn for the arrested men';' •
are. for T. E. Cooper, MnrshalftW. Star- •*
key, R. G. Grady and Dr. W. Houston
Moorei for W. B. Cooper, D. L Goreift
f«jr Horace C. Cooper, D, L. Gore) and '
for Lassister, C. D Weeks. . 'ftft
The warrants .were Issued and sign- 1ft?'
ed by United States District Attorney
Irvin B. Tueker on July 31, 1023, but
were not served until Wednesday .night' .}
because of the absence from the'city of ftft
T. E. Cooper, it being the deslre.of the "• -'
federal officers to serve them ail at the ^
name time. • • . . ft "ft. .ftp
Marshal Ward arrived from Raleigh
with the warrants in his possession.. .
last night at ftiOS o’clock. After a short ft ft
conferejge - with Commisisoner Wll
Hams the Coopers and Lassiter ware ."ft
called to the office of the commissioner . ft.i
and the warrants served. When the
preliminary: hearing was ordered im
mediately after the warrants had been ,
served examination , was waived by tWK:;|
four men. Tbeir bonds being placed) ft
all were allowed to go, ..
WILLIAMS REFUSED STAR
Commisisoner Williams, who refused! • •
until this morning, to give uny infor
mation regarding the arrest of the
men, stated at his office this morning ft
that’he had been Informed that Marshs], .,
Ward would arrive , here last night to -ft
mage the arrests. He also stated that/
he granted D. L. Gore the courtesy of
allowing him to sign the .bonds of' W» -ft .•
B. COoper and Horace Cooper before ft ft
the arrests hnd been mage.
. W B. Cooper and Thomas E. Cooper
are brother*) Horace ,C. Cooper is a son '
of W. B. Cooper,' and Clyde Lassiter is
said to be- a business associate, of the
Copers, D. L. Gore, bondsman for tV. *"
B. Cooper -and- -Horace C. Cooper
father-in-law of W. B, Cooper. w;
Commissioner Wtlltams explains that
those of the quartette who have bee*,;.
Arrested for conspiracy face charges ; ft
for violation of section 37 ot the Unit
ed States penal code, and those arrest- i ft.
ed for.: the misapplication of bank I ft
funds, /and the aiding and abetting In jj
the misapplication of funds, are al-! ft
leged to have violated section E209 eti.
the United States revised statutes -, |
• W.' B. Cooper and T. E .Cooper hsva|
been in the- banking ‘ business in ,lkh? .
cite for many years. WbSn the Com- ft
ptereial National bang was closed De-f
cember 31, 1S3Z T. B. Cooper had but ‘ ft
a few Months before succeeded W. n.' . •
Cooper as president of tb« ■‘’•stltution..
T. E. Oooper was: formerly vice . presl--ft ft
dent of the Merchants National bank of
Raleigh. . -ft’ ,
ft When the fear warrants were drawn, |
T. E. Cooper was away from Wllmlng- ■ ■
ten, he having departed from the city
shortly after the failure of hla bank ,
few visit te-Texas and Mexico. Re- ft*
eently he pefnrned from (be west and
until but n few days asm is reported ta'
have beck visiting . relatives in Sonth
.Carolina. —ft-. •• • .: - ~*-4 -• : ft
COtTJlsEL jrpT AXmXCCQ ,
It I)*1 not been intimated. who- the
defendant* -will employ to represent
them in their trial heiere Federal ''
Jadffe H. 6. Connor, when thelr oaae#
are called for trial during the Novem
her session of United State* district /
eonrt. District Attorney Tocher will
prosecute for the government, and
(Continued, on Page Two.) «