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The Atlanta Constitution,
Wednesday, 13th August 1913,
PAGE 2, COLUMN 1.
Miss Hattie Hall, a stenographer for Montag Brothers, was put on the stand, following Accountant Pollard. She was used by the defense to show that Frank had made plans for a large amount of work on April 26, and on cross-examination Solicitor Hugh Dorsey asked her if she had not made the remark that when it became necessary to use her as a witness, she had been given a raise in salary. She denied this, saying that she had got a raise on August 1, but that it came as the result of a promise made months ago.
"Do you ever do work for the National Pencil company?" asked Mr. Arnold.
"Yes."
"Ever go over there?"
"Yes."
"Did you ever go there before April 26?"
"Yes."
"Did you see Mr. Frank on April 26?"
"Yes, first at Montag's, and later in his office."
"Tell us about it."
"Mr. Frank came over to Montag's about 10 o'clock and said he wanted me to come over and do some work."
"Did he say he had much for you to do?"
"Yes," replied the witness, "he said he had a good lot of work for me to do and that he himself had a great deal to do."
Judge Overrules Objection.
Mr. Dorsey objected to the remark about what the witness said Frank had asserted about the amount of work he had before him.
"That certainly ought to go in, your honor," said Mr. Arnold. "It goes to show that he was preparing to do a large amount of work and tends to show his actions on that day."
A lengthy argument then ensued.
"Well, Miss Hall, he told you to come there; what happened then?" asked Mr. Arnold.
"He came over to the factory and I had found at that time that I could get off to go over to the pencil factory and I told him I would."
Reached Office at 10:30.
"What time did you go over?"
"Between 10:30 and 11 o'clock."
"Was Frank there when you got there?"
"I can't say positively. I think so."
"How long did you have to wait for your work?"
"Just a few minutes."
"How many orders did he give you to bill?"
"There were eleven, I believe."
Then looking at ten orders produced by the defense the witness declared that these were the ones, with the exception of one which Mr. Arnold stated had been lost. "Were orders sometimes acknowledged as soon as received?"
"Yes."
"Were these done that way?"
"Yes."
"Were there any people there while you were?"
"Yes, several people came in, all of whose names I don't recall."
"Well, tell us about them."
"A woman came in and talked to Mr. Frank. Her son or some close told later was Miss Corinthia Hall, and then Mrs. J. A. White came in."
No Work on Financial Sheet.
"Did Frank work on the financial sheet that morning?"
"No, not that morning."
"Would you swear to the identity of Frank's handwriting?"
"No, I would not swear to it."
"This look likes it?" showing her the financial sheet.
"Yes, it looks like it."
"In addition to your other work, did Mr. Frank give you any dictation?"
"Yes."
The witness was then shown carbon copies of letters and stated that Frank had dictated them to her, eight in all.
"Where did you do this work?"
"I took dictation in the inner office and did the typewriting in the outer office," she stated.
"During the time you were there was Frank doing any work on the financial sheet?"
"He was not."
"What time did you get through?"
"By 12 o'clock when the whistle blew."
"What did you then do?"
"I started on out and got part of the way down the steps and found I had left my umbrella and came back and as I passed the time clock I noticed it was two minutes after twelve."
"Did you see a little girl there at any time?"
"No, I did not," replied the witness.
Solicitor Hugh Dorsey then took up the cross-examination.
"What time did you leave Montag's?"
"Sometime between 10:30 and 11."
"Did you call Frank over the 'phone, or did he call you?"
"I called him."
Salary Raised August 1st.
"Miss Hall, when did you get a raise in your salary?" the solicitor next asked, giving the court room a start as he sprung what might have given a sensational turn to the entire affair.
"I got a raise on August 1." she replied.
"Did you ask for it?"
"I did not," Miss Hall replied, showing by her expression and tone of voice that she bitterly resented the implication.
"Didn't you make the remark last night at a soda fount that you got a raise in salary as soon as they saw they would need you as a witness?"
"I did not say that and I do not go to soda founts," the witness replied tartly.
"Well, didn't you say last night that you got a raise when they found out they would need you as a witness?"
"I certainly did not make such a remark. I had been promised a raise on August 1 since last December when I went to work for Montag Brothers, and I asked for it on July 1 and they told me I could not get it until August 1, as originally promised."
"Oh, very well," was the solicitor's only comment.
"Miss Hall, didn't you swear before the inquest that on the Saturday morning previous to the murder that you helped Frank make out the financial sheet?"
"Yes, I did, but I thought then that the average sheet was what they called the financial sheet. I afterwards saw the financial sheet and then I knew that it was not that that I had helped upon."
"Oh, yes; you discovered your mistake, did you?" commented the solicitor. "Well, did that average sheet have anything to do with the financial sheet?"
"Yes; it furnished part of the data for it."
"Was Schiff there on that previous Saturday morning?"
"Yes, he was there putting money in envelopes, getting up the pay roll, I think."
"Did you go in the inner office except when you took dictation?"
"No, I went in there to get the orders."
"Well, Miss Hall, didn't you tell at the inquest that you only went in there to take dictation?"
"I may have said that, but since then I have remembered getting the orders."
Admits Being Rattled.
"Well, will you please tell the jury, if you can, why your memory is so much better today, months afterwards, than it was at the inquest when everything was fresh in your mind?"
"Well, I was simply rattled at the inquest; it was the first time I had ever been in a court and I couldn't get my thoughts together."
"Well, did you help Frank on that sheet, whatever it was, on Saturday, April 26?"
"No, I did not. Mr. Frank said that he could not do the work on the financial sheet until Herbert Schiff finished getting up his work. He had the boy telephone Mr. Schiff and he thought that he was coming down to the office to get up his part of the data. I remember Mr. Frank saying that he would not mind Mr. Schiff going off and laying off, if he would only get up his work before he went."
"So, he said he could not do the work until Schiff did his part. All right, you may come down," said Mr. Dorsey.
"One minute," said Mr. Arnold. "You say that Mr. Frank called Schiff and said he wanted him to get up his share of the work?"
"Well, he had the boy call him."
"I object to that," said Mr. Dorsey.
"Oh, well, I'll withdraw; it's already before the jury," replied Mr. Arnold.
"Tell us about your raise, and how you got it."
"Well, when I went to work for Montag Brothers last December they promised that if I stayed there they would give me a raise by August 1."
"Did you ever do any work on the financial sheet?"
"No."
The witness was then excused.