The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1883-10-17
The Haven Case.


Last May J. M. Haven was removed from the
office Of treasurer of the Rutland railroad cor
poratiOn, an flee which he had held some
seventeen years, and j. ii. Williams OF Bellows
Falls appointing acting treasurer. Subs quent-
ly J. M. Haven was arrested and put utder
bail to answer the charge OF having Issued a
large amount Of spurious stock; he was also
put under bail TO answer the charge Of having
embezzled some $40, 600 OF the cash OF the cor
poratlon. When the grand jury met 1t pre-
scented indictments against Haven for the issue
OF spurious stock, but did not indict anybody
for the embezzlement of the missing cash. The
failure TO indct any ody for the emb' zzlement
oil The missing cash OF the corporation WAS a
surprise to the community, especially since we
cannot learn that any searching effort was
made to slit this alleged crime to the bottom.
one at least OF the new board inquired whether
he would be summoned az witness and re-
ceived reply in the negative, nor do we learn
that any member Of the new management was
summoned to testify in the matter The COM
munity we're greatly disappointed to learn
that $4,000 could be so skillfully stolen from
the treasury OF \ corporation as to leave no
trail behind, which an earnest, active acute
prosecuting officer could follow up to the pre-
sumably guilty party with sufficient directness
as 10 justify an indictment II the prosecu.
ton did all that an able and indefatpable fl
Ger could do under the circumstances, then tho
responsibility must attach to the defective char
acter OF our judicial machinery, for We do not
treasury OF any corporation so mysterious,y as
to defy the discovery of an indictable perpetra-
tor of the crime. So much for the fact that
the state confessed its failure to fiud the fellow
who tapped the treasury to the amount of
$40 900 This week J. Nj Haven was tiled on
the indictment for the issue of a certificate Of
3 ITO shares of alleged spu ious stock To =. W.
Clement M Haven, as indicted on this par
ticular certificate was, on Thursday, promptly
acquitted In accordance with the change OF
mh In mot hav nlad oil o uioa
according to the evidence. 1t was show that
when Haven issued this particular certificate
OF stock to satisfy his contract with CT, meDt,
he actually held bona fide shares to entirely
cover this particular transaction and Glenn
ent received from Haven these bona fde
| shares, which we're turned into the transfer
flee to off set the certificate issued to Cltmeut.
| The judge ruled that while the evidence showed
| there had been an over issue of stock, the par
| ticular certificate upon which this indctin ent
was brought, represented genuine stock bel ng-
| ing to Haven, which was turned into the trsns-
| fer Office for cancellation and completed bona
fide transaction In brief, the judge ruled that
the certificate issued to Clement stood for genu-
| inc stock owned by Haven, and actually turned
over by him to the transfer Office for cancells-
| ton. There wa an actual delivery Of genuine
| stock for the certificate issued and no indlct-
ment could be maintained that this particular
| certificate stood for an issue of spurious stock.
| The charge of Judge Veazey was clear on this
point, and the jury could not do otherwise than
promptly acquit Haven as indicted. Now
what? 1t is GEAR that there has been an over
issue of the stock to greater or lesser amount
| by rody; it il clear that there has been q
disappearance Of S400 of the cash of the cor
poration, for which somebody is responsible.
The corporation are interested to know who
has "stuck" them with a loss OF $40 900 and
the spurious stock, for which somebody Is re-
sponsible We should suppose some prosecu-
tons ought to grow out of this acquittal Of
Haven rs indicted, for, while the court ruled
that the certificate issued to Clement stood for
genuine stock, the court said that It was In
| evidence that there had been an overissue of q
certain amount OF stock by somebody. To
plain people it does seem rs II an energetic and
acute prosecution on the part of the corpora
ton might be rewarded by the knowledge Of
who stole $4,000 from the Rutland railroad
corporation and who issued the spurious stock
that 1t is in evidence somebody has uttered.
II the judicial machinery and its engineers are
good for anything, it would seem as If two great
crimes could not be committed in Vermont
without bringing the authors of them to JUS
tice. 1t is curious legal net that is woven &c
fine as to catch all the poor little minnOws, but
cannot catch a fat pike, or if it catches him ID
so weak that 1t cannot keep him from bursting
the net at the first trial. We understand that
the railroad company propose at the proper
time to prosecute every one who has taken any
money from their treasury unlawfully, or over
issued any tock.--Ruttand Herald