Mr. Cole.

Yes.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Was this prepared by you or under your supervision?

Mr. Cole.

Yes, sir.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Is it an accurate photograph of 788?

Mr. Cole.

It is.

Mr. Eisenberg.

May this be admitted as 789, Mr. Chairman?

Representative Ford.

It may be admitted.
(The document referred to was marked Commission Exhibit No. 789, and received in evidence.)

Mr. Eisenberg.

Mr. Cole, before you discuss your conclusion, the handwriting on 788 seems to have a slight blur in some parts. Could you explain that in any way?

Mr. Cole.

Yes; it is my view that this document has been in contact with moisture which affected the ink of the handwriting. Such contact might have been through an effort to develop fingerprints.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Was it or is it discolored at this point at all, do you think?

Mr. Cole.

There are only two small areas of discoloration on this document, one of them being along the upper edge just above the figure "9," and the other along the right edge just opposite the figure "5." This indicates to me that at one time this document was more deeply stained but has been cleared up by some chemical bleach.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Was it in the same condition when you examined it as it is now?

Mr. Cole.

It was.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Mr. Cole, would you explain by use of charts 784 A, B, and C, and the photograph 789, why you conclude 788 was prepared by the author of the standards in this case?

Mr. Cole.

On the photograph, 789, I invite attention to the capital "K" of "Klein's," which compares favorably in form to the "K's" of exhibit---of chart A, items 13 and 14, with the exception of a larger circle at the center of that "K" on the right side of 789, which is not reproduced in the standards, but it is my belief that this writer might well produce such a circular form when a letter is somewhat larger and more freely made.

Mr. Eisenberg.

On what do you base that belief, Mr. Cole?

Mr. Cole.

That that would be a normal result of greater freedom and a larger writing, it would produce a circular form rather than an angle.

Mr. Eisenberg.

Is this based upon your experience with questioned documents and making analyses?

Mr. Cole.

Yes, sir; now, in that----

Mr. Eisenberg.

Excuse me 1 second. Just to elaborate on that. Do I take it that your experience is such that you have found you can predict forms of letters based upon the samples you have before you, predict forms which may be used in other samples by the same author?

Mr. Cole.

Well, within certain narrow limits. That is, having information about the range of variation in the body of standard writing, it is reasonable to make a small allowance for the production of forms not actually illustrated there, as long as they are consistent with the forms that are actually available for examination. In other words, I would regard it as a consistent thing in this writing to occasionally produce a circle at the center portion of a letter "K"; it does not, in my opinion, represent a difference of writing habit.
Now, in that same word we observe a habit heretofore mentioned of increasing the amount of forehand slant in the letter "i"--that is in "Klein's" of the photograph 789--which has previously been observed in the standard writing. Several examples have been pointed out. For the present, I will mention the one on chart A, item 1 in the word "obligations," the second letter "i" there shows an increased forehand slant. The same is true of the "i" of the word "firm" on the same line.
The combination of letters in the word "sporting," that is, the combination "port," are illustrated in the standard writing, chart A, item 2 in the word "support," item 3 in the word "port," in item 4 in the word "transportation," and here we find very close agreement in all details of those letter forms. With respect to the letter "p," the absence of an under extension, that is, the