New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-01-06
THE GREAT SUGAR FRAUD.
EVERYBODY BECOMES RETIcENT IN RE
GARD TO THE "REFININGn SCHEME.
MR. s,'LLER AND Mr.. ROBERTSON SOMEWHAT
IcPEFUL IN SPITE OF THE DrscLos-
UBEs MADE-MANY ExPLANA-
TIoNs. BUT NOT MUCH CLEAR
nm, ,rrIr ,t,.c .cnrrn

*
TIoNs. BUT NOT MUCH CLEAR
ING UP OF THE MYSTERY
So far "A regards the affairs OF the ElectriO
Sugar Refining Company, yesterday was day Of
confusion, contradiction, chaos. 1t wns impossible
to believe half Of the rumors circulated by common
gossip, and at the same time it was ha I'd to reject
entirely that could not he directly sub
stantiated by proof but could scarcely have been
fashioned in a single night out of airy nothin S.
Under the circumstances the most feasible cx.
pedient to be adopted by the anxious was an ap.
peal to heade uarters for light and more nth,
and constant stream Of visitors aoclSed I, the
Office of the company at No. 60 Wall-st u.
Robertson, the treasurer. was there alone du ing
most Of the day Lawson n. Fuller kept bim M
pany for little, but Mr.. Robertson bore the b.unt
OF the questioning. lie answered hundred Of
queries In more or less satisfactory way. lie
made public for the first time the names OF the
directors OF the company. lie made STATE memo
concerning his own connection with it. told some
facts that were not generally known on Fridey md
corrected. the imperfect particulars first obt med
by the newspapers regarding the exact disposition
of the shares.
The general impression conveyed by long
conversation with Mr. Robertson was tha, he
was agitated by several conflicting impul.c. if
not motives. 1t astounding to read tho
various speeches attributed to him, and proh, bly,
from what a Tribune reporter gathered, co oct
ly, in the evening papers. He denounced the
electric refining scheme as fraud; yet he
said that it might not be altogether f.,ud.
In the Tribune reporters hearing he pooh h-poohed
q statement of Mrs. Freund's case sent over
the wires from her as being base less. and yet
on gancing over it he said that her claim, therein
tad 20, haua
granulating grape sugar was absolutely correct;
and that Sawyer and Knowlton her lawyers, were
such reputable men that they would not be as
sociated with any fraud for the highest of fees
CONTRADICTORY STATEMENTS.
He said that he had made money and not lost 10
by the company, as Cotterin aud he had bougho
and sold the stock adyantageously on the Ex-
change; and yet that the statement publ he'd
in The Tribune, that he had bought So 900
worth Of stock in Liverpool in November was
correct. But he explained that he had not lost
that, but had sold it in order to make
first deposit Of $3.50 as part of the
sum of $4,000 to be paid by the COMPANY to
Mrs Freund on securing the secret That
money, he said, not to be paid all at once
Mrs Freund was to receive 81, 900 down. $50 900
d few days afterward, and the company, or its
chief officers, gave a guarantee for the bal nee,
100000
Naturally enough, when Mr. Robertson told this,
Of his visitors asked him if any of the shire-
holders Of the company had put in claim for
the $4,000, and if, in case Of the claims bling
made, he and Mr.. Cottcrill were prepared to sur
render It, He answered that there had beer no
claim made, and ne did not consider that he hii to
give up the money. It was his and Mr.. Cote ills
be explained. Then, after moments paus, he
added that he felt as if he would like to live
the money to the shareholders, seeing that mat
ters had turned out badly for them but 10
would be difficult or impossible, he felt to make
the payments in q way that would be satisfac ,ory
to all of them
HE DID NOT RECOMMEND THE SHARES
Not soul among $50 shareholders, except
perhaps three,' remarked Mr.. Robertson " can
say that have recommended them to buy shares.
Where we were all deceived, If we were deceived,
is, am inclined to believe by Mrs. Freund trying
to defraud by keeping back something
Mr. Fuller agrees with Mr.. Robertson in this be-
lief. He thinks that there is really secret
process known to Mrs. Freund.
The Electric Sugar Refining Company is not so
young as was generally stated yesterday. II was
first organized on October 13, ss3, with r. ".
Woodward as its president Mr.. Woodward died,
and il is said that at the time of bis death il was
found that he had not been true the interests
of the company to its own. About a
year ago. when the electric refining process be-
gan to attract much attention, the company
was recognized with Mr.. Cotterill as president
and Mr. Robertson as vice-president. Mr.. Robert
son still has a private Office in Liverpool bu: he
said yesterday that Mr. Cotterill, though o.igi-
nay q London sollcltor had been in the United
States for about twenty years. The othcr
members Of the Board OF Directors of the pIes mt
company are Elisha Sniifen, the architect; L.w-
son NJ Fuller, w. F.. Howard, Mrs. Olive Il,
Frcund and w. Cotterill, jr son Of the president.
Mr. Sniffen was made superintendent Of the
Brooklyn factory, but he not allowed TO enter
the secret rooms. The general public yesterday
showed considerable anxiety 10 crafty their curl
osity. by taking a peep into the refinery and
many of them crossed Fulton Fe-rv indulging
vain hope of seeing this Temple Of Mysteries.
But the place was kept tightly closed as at any,
time in It's history. Mr.. Robertson even sefuscd
all requests made by reporters for permission. to
examine it for themselves. When pressed for q
reason he said that the company was in,cs.i-
gating' over there. and the- didn't want their
own line of inquiry interfered with.
THE PRESIDENT NOT YET RETURNED.
Mr. Cotterill had not returned from Mich ,an,
and Mr. Robertson said he did not know when
the president would return. lie was heard E. m,
though. over the wires. lie intimatcd thrt no
going ahead with his inquiries, and asked
Robertson to send him a cor. of a certain icfter
which he wrote TO Robertson from Liverpool IN
January 5, 1886. Cotterill was an that
time vice president Of the company The lcf:er
enthusiastically described the haDly-panly- cx-
perments made by Professor Freund, which
yesterdays Tribune referred to as sugar m 10
rialization seances' II anybody doubts the d .s;h
Of Cotterills early devotion to the new system lei
him read the following
Il would only say in conclusion, that from
two years constant daily intercourse with ihs
Professor being at his house almost daily nd
having had the most intimate relations with his
family, and having availcd myself OF the oppor-
tunities thus offered Of testing the good faith
of the parties, and carefully watching every
circumstance l am as satisfied as I know that
the rises and sets daily, that the Profc sor