In Indiana

"I will go through with what I have started. I purchased the county and state officials involved in this investigation in open market. I paid an excessive price for them. Afterward they railroaded me to prison. Now I am going to turn them over to the state of Indiana for a while."

So, last week, through Attorney Robert Moore of Michigan City, Ind., announced David Curtis Stephenson, who recently (TIME, July 18, 25) began throwing verbal and documentary bombs at various Indiana officials from his life-prisoner's cell in the Indiana State Prison at Michigan City. Mr. Stephenson, irate at getting no help in his attempts to escape serving his sentence for the murder of Madge Oberholtzer, began his disclosures of Ku Klux Klan rule in Indiana by holding a long conference with Prosecuting Attorney William H. Remy of Marion County, Ind. Then he released certain checks to Indianapolis papers--checks made out to Republican Indiana statesmen, politicians, including Governor Ed Jackson. Last fortnight the conference and check excitement had somewhat died down but last week Mr. Stephenson opened fire again and the Indiana situation experienced three new developments:

Stenographer. First Mr. Stephenson sent word to Miss Mildred Meade, his onetime stenographer, to tell Prosecutor Remy all that she knew concerning the Stephenson regime. What Miss Meade told Mr. Remy has not been made public.

Black Box. Then Mr. Stephenson gave L. G. Julian, onetime business associate and also custodian of the much discussed "black box" in which the bulk of Mr. Stephenson's documentary evidence was believed hidden, permission to turn over the black box to Prosecutor Remy. There were really two black boxes, both of which the Prosecutor received. The contents of the boxes were not made public, but it was announced that they included, among other papers, checks for $21,000 and for $24,000. Mr. Remy appeared pleased at the evidence disclosed.

Grand Jury. Finally Mr. Stephenson himself testified before the Grand Jury now engaged in investigating charges of corrupt politics in Indiana. Taken from Michigan City to Indianapolis under prison guard escort, Mr. Stephenson spent more than five hours before the Grand Jury, smoked cigars with gusto, was then motored back to jail where no cigars are permitted. The jury also heard testimony from Mis? Meade and had previously been given the evidence found in the black boxes. After hearing the Stephenson story the jury refused to adjourn, although the term of criminal court for which they were sitting ended last week, but voted to continue their investigation through August and were expected to return indictments in September.

There have been two previous juries investigating Indiana politics. The first (in 1926) returned no indictments, for though the vote in favor of indicting was 4 to 2, a vote of 5 to 1 is necessary for action in Indiana. Mr. Stephenson had refused to testify at this jury sitting, had also, from a prison cell, predicted the 4 to 2 vote. One Thomas V. Miller, one-time Stephenson attorney, said that Stephenson's refusal to testify had resulted from an interview with one Jack Maroney, U. S. Department of Justice agent and friend of U. S. Senator James E. Watson of Indiana. Mr. Miller said that Mr. Stephenson was promised "immunity and free legal counsel if he wouldn't testify till after the election."

The second grand jury was dissolved (in the spring of 1927) after one of its members claimed that he had been approached with a bribe to refrain from indicting Mayor John L. Duvall of Indianapolis. It was said that the present jury was working in close co-operation with Prosecutor Remy and indictments were confidently expected.