Constantine republican. [volume] (Constantine, Mich.) 1836-1838, 1838-07-25
CAUTION.-"Tho public are hereby eau

NAUTION.-"T public are hereby eau
~ toned against placing any reliance on Ger.
tifcates signed officially by" J. w. Coflinborry,
| as Recorder of Dcods for St. Joseph county, Mn,
for no 10 incompetent to disohargo tho dutios of
his Office to the public with fidelity and correct
ness or he is dishonest and capable of being made
the tool of designing men, as will appear from
reading his "Caution," published in the Con-
stantine Republican of April IS, 1888, and con-
tinued for several weeks thereafter as follows, to
wit:
"CAUTION.--Th public are hereby cautioned
against placing any reliance on certain certif
| Gates signed officially by mo, which wire given
| to Jonathan and Simeon b. Brown, and one gi-
ven to Edward and Hiram Pierson, dated about
the 10th or 18th day of March last, setting forth
that certain interests in the st. Joseph Canal,
and Lockport Manufacturing Association were
| free from incumbrance.
~ hereby notify tho pubic that there arc
mortgages said interests to largo amounts,
and that said interests cannot be conveyed or
mortgaged by any Of the members of that asso
citation, without the consent of all the members,
and that said certificates were fraudulently oh.
| tanned. ]. w. COFFINBERRY,
Register of Deeds for st. Joseph Co., Mich
Ccntreville, April 25, 1885,"
| And comparicg the same with said Cofiinber-
rvs letter to Thomas Fitzgerald, Esq. which l
have the privilege to publish, and is as follows,
| to wit:
Contrevillo, May 10 1885,
Dear Sir-Thc letter which 1 addressed TO you
some time since upon the subject of the mort
gage entered in my Office, by Messrs. Jonathan
and Simeon Is. Brown. TO secure Bank Stock in
tho Berrien County Bank was written in part,
under views of mine that are not iustifiable, if
Mr.. }. Browns construction of the mortgage in
the particular description of the mortgage be
correct. BY the description supposed that tho
whole OF the village was mortg,gcd, or their
proportional interest, but by his definition, only
that part is mortgaged which is laid out OH tho
premises described in tho mortgage, before the
description of the village; of this you will be abo
to determine, by examining tho description of the
lands on file in the Bank. A part Of the village
| is laid out on lands which are not described in
| the mortgage.
"The only incumbrance that remains of record
in my ofiice on the lands described i'm tho mort
gage from Mcssrs. Browns, is on tho 5. part of
the 5. w. frac. or. sec. 19-and the N. part of
the N. w. frac. or. sec. 30-both Il. 6, S. II. III,
west, balance of which yet due about $500, as
per information of parties, tina: sum is due from
| MIR. T.. Pierson to James Valentino, the same
premises are conveyed to the Lockport Associa-
| ton by decd of general warrantee since tho
date of tho mortgage from him to Valentine. l
am informed by Mr.. Pierson that he is about set
Ting the balance due on the mortgage. BY con-
versing with Mr.. j. Brown, and rctrospecting
the interrogations put by me TO him, when he en-
tered the mortgage for record, and upon my Off
cial certificate, together with his replies, ! sec
! how easily it was for me to msconccivo his con-
struction of the mortgage, where it describes the
village of Lockport and the 1874 lots set forth on
| the before described promises in his mortgage.
81 believed at the time of the ton, and
still do believe that Mr.. Brown was honest in
his intentions and / am frank to acknowledge
thatfr Of
posed that it embraced othor lands, which are
encountered to other persons Of the Lockport
| Association, but which on examination find not
to be the case, by his construction.
| Yours very respectfully,
JACOB w. COFFlNBERRY,
| Rec. ST. Joseph Co., Mich.
I. FITZGERALD, Esq, Bank Commissioner,
Michigan"
And also from extracts from Mr.. Edward Pier.
sons letter, dated at Lockport, st. Joseph coun.
ty, May %, 1888, and is as follows to wit:
| "Mr. Jonathan Brown: Sir-In answer to
your inquiries respecting a conversation had
with j. w. Coflinberry, Register of Deeds for St.
Joseph county, in rolition to an advertisement
inserted in the Constantine Republican, caution
ing the public against placing confidence in cor
tifcatcs he had given, one to you and one to
/ your brother, and the other TO myself and Hiram
Porson, as they were '.frauduently obtained"
sLoarning that this notice inserted in a
public newspaper, and it being both false and H.
beous, i Immediately went TO Centreville and
demanded of Mr.. Collinborry an explanation, and
the reasons of his giving the "Caution" to the
public. Tho answer was that George Buck and
Il Benjamin sherman had stated to him that there
were large membranes on the property that
you had secured TO the State, on account of the
Berren County Bank, and that you stated that
the village plat of Lockport was not located on
the property bought of Samuel Sands, and he co.
had discovered that it was, and as you had mort
gagged the whole of your interests in said village
you Of course included property that was prcvi-
ously incumbercd. By referring TO tho descrip.
ton of the property, included in your mortgage
to the state, he &C.. then acknowledged that he
deceived, and probably misunderstood you, thatyou
stated no part of the village plat included in your
mortgage extended on tho Sands purchase and
that you explained the situation of tho mortgage
on the Valentine property, correctly as he had
evidence 10 show, and that there was no othe
incumbrance on tho property and that he wal
satisfied that the statement you made him wa
true and honest, and that he co. bad been i'm
posed on By false statements made to him b.
y Buck and Sherman. then requested Of hin
CO. as the statement he had published was false
: and as he was convinced of it, that no wou
! make a rccantation of the false charge, an
give il the sanio publicity that he had given hi
''Cauton" to the public lie co. agreed that h
would SEQ Buck & Sherman, and as he had bee
j. induced 10 make the charge through their fels
It representations. They (B. ~ So with hi
Z ought to sign and publish proper correction
}. OF the charge, bat agreed that if they (B. g. S
s. refused TO comply, he {Cofiinberry) would pull
h ish correction, and certify that the charge wa
ID false and that he (C) made IL on the false fej