1753 Sheet – Supreme Court Georgia Appeals of Leo Frank, 1913, 1914

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Frank and asserted that he was a very bad man. I told him that I knew absolutely nothing against Mr.Frank's character. Mr.Dorsey insisted that I did, and persisted in the statement that he was of bad character. He asked if I had ever been in Mr.Frank's office. I told him that I had on several occasions, always on business errands connected with the work I was performing at the factory. He then asserted that I had been in Mr.Frank's office, with him alone, to keep dates for purposes other than business, to which I replied that it was not true. He finally openly insulted me by affirming that I had had sexual intercourse with Mr.Frank in his office or some room or place in the factory. Mr.Frank kept denying the charge of bad character, and I told him that I had been to this room with Mr.Frank. I was shocked by the direct, broad insinuation and affirmative statement of Mr.Dorsey, and I told him that all such statements and illusions were lies, and that I had never heard of any such thing ever occurring in the factory, or elsewhere, in which Mr.Frank and any girl employee of the factory were parties to, and I state now, after mature deliberation and thought that I have never heard such insulting language by direct speech and innuendo, by any of the commonest laborers in and about the factory, as was used to me by Solicitor General Dorsey when in his office, believing at the time that he possessed some sort of right to thus accuse me and insult me; and under this belief, I was obliged to take his insults. He is the most scandalous statements, by direct speech and innuendo, without openly resenting them further than to deny every single one of them.

I wish to refer to my evidence, as given on the stand at the trial of Mr.Frank, as to my answers to questions of Mr.Dorsey where in I was made to say that I had heard Mr.Frank call Mary Phagan by her first name "Mary". Upon reflection, I wish to explain my answer, as although repeated, was due entirely to my nervousness and fright. I had been badgered and bullied by Mr.Dorsey and as a matter of fact, I had been subjected to an indignity where in I ever heard Mr.Frank address Mary Phagan by name, and this is the verious truth. I could not recall or cannot recall now, under calm deliberation that I ever heard Mr.Frank address Mary Phagan by name, as I have never seen him speak with her at any time or place, except when instructing her how to perform her work better and more rapidly while at her work in the factory. Referring back to my first call on Mr.Dorsey and where he had questioned and talked to me for about half an hour, at the conclusion of which I was directed to go into a large room, adjoining I believe where Mr.Dorsey talked to me, where there were twelve or fifteen other girls and women - all employees in the factory. I was called by Mr.Dorsey, according to my understanding among these girls, I remember Carrie Smith, Myrtle Cato, Maggie Griffin and Dewey Howell. I remained there until about 12 o'clock when I went to the courthouse and took the witness stand.

I will also state that before I went over to the courthouse, I was in the same room where the girls above described were, when we were told by Mr.Dorsey to go right ahead and tell everything that we knew and answer his questions right off sharp. After the lecture I didn't see Mr.Dorsey again until I went on the witness stand in the court room.

While remaining in the large room with the twelve or fifteen girls, before I was called to go over to the courthouse, there was a great deal of talk and gossip among the girls there, some of whom said they knew nothing against Mr.Frank and that they were timid and were afraid that they would be sworn when they went into court. Maggie Griffin, however, appeared to welcome and relish the idea of going on the witness stand and told several times how she was going to "just tell everything that Mr.Dorsey wanted to know", when she went on the stand. Dewey Howell said she did not know anything about the case. Mary Dagon, or anything concerning the case and Maggie Griffin volunteered to tell them what she had to say, and did tell her and rehearsed to her side of the room. I heard Maggie Griffin tell Dewey Howell that she must say that she knew Mr.Frank and knew that he was of bad character, and to tell everything bad she could think of about him, and to say that she had seen Mr.Frank with