The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-01-10

made to get ct least q shew OF security for
the loans, but in many cases evcn this can
not be said. But even at Beaufort loans were
made with no collateral whatever, and
ers' pay, !" Pacific railroad Shares" $l3, 600
in "ciaims" against the State of South
Carolina, "sheriRs coat, II "taxes" and
| county certificates !" altogether $3.50 ,673,-
%. At Jacksonville, Fla, we find $l23.-
$3.50 due, and among the securieties are
BIC, GOO In Memphis and FL Paso Railroad
bonds (which never had any value, lover
| draftsn of the cashier, thirteen cargoes OF
lumber, Endorsed note, cicy lots, ETC., etc.
At Memphis, Tenn, we see there 10 loaned
SOL ,s75, 46, some of which went for real es-
tate mortgages in Arkansas, and there is q
little item OF $40. 42s 80, with the remark,
"Staves shipped to Europe by Stnrtevant,"
whatever that may mean. At vicksbnrg
large sums were lent on no security
whatever, and at Montgomery, Ala, the
principal business of the bank seems to
have been to cash "orders on the Board
of Health for services rendered"
So much for the 'sloan" business at the
branches. The depositors' money might
as we'll have been thrown ont of the win
dows. It is unnecessary to say that the
agents appointed were in almost every
case dishonest or utterly ignorant and in
competent. The Commissioners say that
at several of the branches where no loans
kept, and such confusion exists that it will
never be possible to prepare correct
statement of the actual assets and liabili-
ties of the concern. These books seemed
to have had in almost every case an unfor-
tunate tendency to show an excess of liza
bilities over assets, none of them being SO
bad in this respect as the principal Office in
Washington, where there is deficit OF
$50, 900.
Wild and reckless as was the manage
ment of the branch offices of the bank, the
story of the misdeeds of the local mana.
gers is far more creditable than that of the
managers of the "parent bank, >" as the Wash
ington Office is called. Of this there is moth
ing to be said, except that it was character
| ICED by incompetence at first, and outright
| swindling, persistently followed out during
| the last four years. The report of the
Comm issioners does not attempt to give an
| inside history of the management of the
bank, but only of its present lamentable
condition. 1t is very doubtful whether
that history can ever be fully known. The
business of the bank seems to have gone
on without any great amount of stealing
until 1870, when the ring went to Congress
and got an amendment to the act of incor-
poratiop, legalizing the purchase of the
real estate occupied by the bank here in
Washington and authorizing loans ON real
estate in the District, but not to exceed
one-balf the value of the property. It
appears, however, that the bank people
had not waited. for the passage of the
amendment, but began as early as Decem
Der, 1869, to loan on local lands. Thus we
find an entry of sc, 600 on December 81
1869, loaned to Thomas L. Hume. The
list of real estate loans teens with entriei
which on the face of them are outrageous
risks, and can never be collected. Tht
biggest items are, of course, the loans t.
the Seneca Sandstone Company, to thu
Howard University, and to the Younl
Mems Christian Association. The FIRST go
$62 200, the second $4,000, the thirt
$33 600. The names of prominent real es
tate agents who were partners of the rim!
, are scattered over every page. 5.
} Brown & Son, notorious operators got $40,
900 in one lump. T. Roessle & Son. tn
) proprietors of the Arlington Hotel, $2s,
COO on furniture NJ. V. Brown, $2l 600 o.
, fancy lots; George Mattingly, $i5, OOo
: speculation. $4,000; Washington Clab,
: $2s 900; John W. Hunter, 1000; Mar
!, Ann Coyle and others, 1886, 600; Eva
: Lyons S34, 600: A. Langdon, $25, O0(
1 These are q few of the larger loans, aud il
almost every case they are speculative: In
r deed the whole real estate business OF tn
t bank seems to have been carried on with
view to "bulling the market. The officer
did not by any means coDfine their opera
, tions to the District, for we find that
somewhat noted Maryland rallroau opera
a tor, Samuel T. Suit, got $24, 600 on hi
3 home farm in Prince Georges County. MI
q Robert Douglas, formerly private ecre
: tary to the President, and now Unite
: States Marshal of North Carolina Obtaine
Q So, 500 on a plantatian in Rockinghar
: County in that State. And then there wa
t the outrageous Seneca stone fraud. Nike
n mp with the other names of the patrons {
o the bank are those of prominent ring cor
: tractors. A single entry will suffice to sho'
b how real estate and piety were combine
d by these cody bankers. on the 18th
o January, 1874, we find ga, 900 loaued
d Robert T. Fleming, one of these contrat
t tors, and secured by 100 shares Youn
9 Mems Christian Association, approve
Q bills against the trustees of the colore
# schools, amounting to 800, OIL ,95, and rel
# estate notes against trustees of colore
k schools, "a, O55. On the same day he OF
It tanned $22 900 on other securities. Case
a in which the loans exceeded the total valu
), of the real estate pledged can be pickle
: out by scores. It is a rascally list froI