Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1849-11-15
The Susquehanna County Bank
Excitement

dhu 0APiosseu alobg Win our hopes tnat lne
failure might not prove total and permananl
one, a, least so far as to pleclude the ultimate
redemption of its issues, our fears that II might
be so while We forbore the expression of any
severe comments on the supposed crimlnsIny of
lis officers under whose Management, things
were brought 10 SO bad pass, until fur her de-
velopmenis should show ,oho was chiefly to
blame, and how much censure was deserved.
Since then, committee appointed by the
Directors has been making searching inves-
liga,ion into the affairs Of the Bank and The
late management, of lis concerns, which has led
10 the caiasirophe and so far as the result has
We, been developed, We are informed tha, the
affair wears very dark and discourag ing specl.
The public are generally aware we presume
that most of the stock Of this Bank was pur-
chased few years ago by one Ansel ST. John,
Broker in Wall ST., New York, and that
Thomas p s., John, relative of his, has since
been The Cashier ill quite recently Though
a small portion Of the stock has still been held
by cillzeEs Of this vicinity. several of whom
have continued 10 hold the Office of Directors,
and one of whom, VIM. l.. Post, Esq has been
continued as President OF the Bosrd. YET t. P.
81. John, representing large majority of the
siock-some say as six or eight 10 one, over
all the rest put together has had almos, The en-
tire control Of the whole concern since he has
been here, and having SO much the staff in his
own hands. refused from the first 10 give the
bonds required by law for faithful management
as cashier and although j, is alleged ,ha, he
has lately retired from the office, giving place
10 Mr.. De Lama,er as cashier, il is alleged on
the other hand that the former has had the
management Of all the proceedings from which
The late result has flown, the latter merely
acting under his instructions in all that he had
10 do in the matter.
But the excitement Of the community in this
place and the surrounding country has been
intense for the past week or ten days. Indeed
there has been cause for il for the injury in
fc,ed and The suffering which i, has or proba-
| bly, must yet cause 10 the whole business COM
muniy, and 10 the laboring poor especially, is
| inc alcuIable. No less than fifty or sixty thou
sand dollars i, is estimated is afoa, in this
coun,y-much of il in sums of from five TO
twenty dollars in the hands of comparatively
poor men, who have sold all their disposable
stock and produce 10 raise money TO pay heir
taxes and provide necessaries for The coming
winter, and much of it has jus, been paid over
10 female school teachers and others for their
lion in This region, it has been ascer,ained thai
thousands upon thousands Of it had been put
in circulation recently in The Western states
TO buy wheat, -four. &c. Even bul few days
before the explosion, and when i. Is thought
the old cashier at least must have kno,on it was
near a, hand, very large sun of this money
was paid to Col. Townsend Of this county,
with which to purchase cattle in Bradford coun
Ity. These transactions with other circum-
stances greatly exasperated The public mine
with the suspicion ,ha. The most criminal anC
fraudulent specula,ions had been prac,iced, ant
high handed game of wholesale swindllns
and fraud played upon the public for some time
back.
Such has been the Indignation excited lha
threats of personal vengeance were not unfre
quently murmured, toward the officers of the
Bank, Qhough Lynch law could scarcely be
tolerated here) some persons not discriminating
between those who have been its acting agent:
aud the Board Of Directors in general, whose
greatest fault now appears 10 have been the
remissness in duty, in allowing The cashier (al
though he represented vast majority of lh'
s,ock) 10 control every thing. and paying 81
little attention TO the transactions themselves
Others in The community around us have in
considerably visited their denunciatlons upoI
all the stockholders, ,hough some of them mus
be the greatest sufferers by the calamity, ant
Others have madly showered their Impression
upon all Mon,rose, as if the whole town wer
involved in the fraud and infamous disgrace
, though many of US have had nothing to do will
It but 10 share heavily in the loss and injury in
ficled.
AS il was known lha, Mr.. T. P. ST. Joh
} was preparing TO remove ou. of the state,
was thought proper on Saturday night last 4
, secure his being held accountable for his shar
, in the doings, since should he be suffered Il
{ go away without, unbounded censure might b
visited by the community upon others concerned
! and he was accordingly arrested and held i
custody by the Sherif---bail to the amount q
{ $40 600 being required. So intense was III
> feeling excited that groups of men were gath
ering here and there during the evening, an
: many of them being collected in the street nea
: his residence a, the time Of the arrest, qne
] procession followed on toward the Court-hous
and Jail as he vas conducted lhilher; and a
> though We are happy TO say for the credit {
our Iaw.abiding community, no signs of person
al violence were offered, the ebullilion Of excl
; ted feelings was manifested in heavy ,Teadln
of footsteps, insulting groans and Kisses an
sundry attempts a. call.humpian music with d.
D vers discordaat instruments as they approache