Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-12-13
TIE OLD TENNESSEE BANK.
A Card from the Trustee, Samuel
Watson.

| n H8nuGt
Watson.
To tho Union and American:
In your paper of the I'd inst. you publish
a report of the committee appointed by the
last Legislature to investigate the affairs of
the Bank of Tennessee. You head this
report, amongst other headings, as follows:
"Eight Years of Financial Blunders and
Mismanagement," 'sGrave Discrepancies
That Demand Explanation" You also
say, in your remarks preceding the report,
"a great deal remains to be known, if, in
deed, it can ever be learned"
These headings and these remarks show
the impression made upon you by the COM
nittee's report, which impression you have
aided the committee in making upon 9TH
es. These impressions, being exceeding
ly injurious 10 me, must ask space in your
paper TO place myself right before the
public.
cannot promise to be brief in my COM
munication, but will be as brief as it is
possible to be consistently with clear and
full statement of my management of the
Bank of Tennessee; and l respectfully
ask an indulgent public to give my COM
munication, though long it will be, a pa
tent and careful reading.
Why the committee has laid before the
public its report before its investigation was
finished, do not know. A similar report,
without the details of this one, was laid be-
fore the public in one Of the neighboring
| counties, by one of the committee, / pre-
sumo, but without his signature, some
months since. The effect of these reports
is to prejudice me in the public mind, and
TO induce the incoming Legislature to take
active steps to remove me from my position
as trustee. L do not mean to say that such
was the intention of the committee, but
such is certainly the tendency Of the pub
LEGATION of their partial report. The COM
mittee admit that their report is not CON-
plete.
They appointed a subcommittee to con-
tinue their investigation. At or soon after
the appointment of this sub-commit> ee,
the Chancery Court ordered the Clerk and
Master to appoint one or more competent
persons to investigate the affairs of the
Bank of Tennessee. The sub committee
say that this was dsne at their request. |
was not aware before, that the Chancellor
acted upon the advice of the sub-commit-
tee, but do know that instructed nv at
torneys to make an agreed case with the at
tOrneys of the State, and instructed them
to agree to everything that would facilitate
thorough investigation of my trusteeship
An agreement was entered into and drawn
up in the form Of a decree. 1t was sub
United to me fol my approval, and the de-
cree was not entered until did approve it.
Under this decree the appointees of the
Clerk and Master were authorized to act in
conjunction with the committee or MEN,
bers of il.
The subcommittee did not think proper
to act with them, but left the investigation |
with these appointees, with the understand |
ing that when the Investigation should be |
finished the appOintees should report the |
same to the Legislative Committee, and if |
they should not disapprOye the same, they !
should adopt it as part of their report.
1t may be said that there has been DELAY |
in the investigation by the appointees of |
the Clerk and Master; if so, il is no fault of |
mine. II. L. Claiborne and George Sesy |
were first appointed to make the investica- |
tiOn. 1t was some time before they entered |
upOn it, and after prosecuting the work for |
some weeks or months, they found that it |
intenered too much with their own busi-
ness and they gave it up. J. B. Shankland |
and j. G. Rye, the former cashier of the |
Columbia branch of the Bank Of Tennes- |
see, were then appointed, and have been,
and still are, diligently at work examining |
the old books OF the bank, and investigat- |
ing my accounts and every item of my |
trusteeShip, a kind of investigation which |
l have earnestly sought for. By such an
investigation | am willing to stand or fall, |
but am not willing and it is not Just, |
that l should be Judged by an incomplete |
and perhaps partisan investigation.
The charges made by the Legislative |
committee against me directly, or inferable |
from their report, are:
l. That the Chancery Court ordered me |
in June, 1872, TO make anitemized and de- |
tailed report of the assets received by me.
and of my doings as trustee, but that | |
have never made such report nor complied |
with it in the least
This charge is untrue. When the decree |
was madeknOwD to me, had taken passage |
for the East, TO try sea bathing, under the |
advice of my physician, for an injury re- /
ceived in being thrown from my buggy. | |
delayed my trip, and made a full report of |
my bond and coupon account, which was |
told was the information particularly de- |
sired. L banded this report to John C.. |
Thompson and James Quarles, who were |
then acting as attorneys for the State in aid |
of the Attorney General. They advised |
me that the report was satisfactory. On |
my return from the East, | commenced an |
examination of all the assets Of the bank, |
all the accounts, and all of my acts as |
trustee. wrote to every one of my agents |
and attorneys to forward me reports of the |
Claims in their hands. l was interrupted |
in this work by another trip to the seashore,
advised by my physician. On my return, |
l still continued the work Of preparing nv
material for a full and detailed report, and
was so engaged when the committee met
for their investigation. | told the commit
tee how l was engaged, and said to them
that, If they would wait until could COM
plete my report, it would save them a great
deal of time, and give them the infOrna-
ton wanted in a satisfactory shape, but
they thought it best TO 90 on with the in
yestigatiOn. After the appointment of their
subcommittee, l told this subcommittee
that | could not give hem any of my time,
for that was called upon by the attorney for
the State for my report, and that l must
finish it. / accordingly did so, and made
out full and detailed report, such as l sup
posed would be compliance with the de-
crees Of the Chancery Court. In that report
| gave a full statement of the bills and
notes paid in full. / did not give in the re-
port q detailed statement of The bills and
notes partially paid and wholly unpaid, but
stated that they were all recorded in large
book, and asked that that book should be
made part Of my report, TO be produced
whenever required.
My first report to the Chancery Court was
made in 1866, and have made numerous
reports since. In my reports have never
given detailed statement of bills and
notes, because it has never been required of
me, and because 1t has not been done even
tOthis day by the trustees of the Union and
Planters banks, whom thought safe guides
in business matters. / have, however, in
my reports given detailed statements of all
moneys paid out by me for salaries, attor-
ney's fees and other expenses (Which reports
have always been approved.)
SECOND CHARGE OF COMMITTEE.
2. The committee charge that when they
met / was not prepared to make full ex-
hibit Of the affairs of the bank, and was
not prepared to settle with them.
l was prepared to settle with them if
they had had the authority. | am prepared
now andever have been prepared to settle
~ trusteeship, account for everything and
turn over all assets in my hands to those
authorized to receive them.
was prepared when the committee met
to make a full exhibit of the affairs of the
hank / WAS not urenarad To make a do |