Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1892-02-07
A. P. Luckett Arrested Yester.
day for Alleged Perjury.
CASHIER SMITHS STATEMENT
As to How the Unpleasant Affair at First
Originated.
The Story of the Bankers Connection
With the Fort Worth Land Com
pany's TrOubles-The Arrest Pro-
duced a Decided Sensation.

| Something of a furry was occasioned in
| business circles in Fort Worth yesterday
| when it was announced that A. P. Luckett,
president of the Merchants national bank
| had been placed under arrest on q perjury
| charge, having been made by W. NJ. Ber-
ring, secretary of the Fort Worth land
company. The complaint was made be-
| fore Justice McClung, and who after the
| arrest of Mr.. Luckett held him to answer
in the sum of $1,000.
The affair grew out of the suit decided
Friday in the district court of the Mer-
chants National Bank VS.. the Fort Worth
Land Company, in which MIR. Luckett, as
president of the bank was interested.
The point at issue, of course, will be fully
developed on trial, pending which the &C
cused is under bond; signed by A. B.
Smith. Col z. W, Taylor and Robert Nc
Cart, Mr.. Luckett's attorney. 1t is I'm
necessary to state that Mir. Luckett stands
high in the city and elsewhere, and the
charge preferred against him was nothing
short of huge surprise.
CASHIER SMITHS STATEMENT.
Mr.. A. B. Smith, cashier of the Mer-
chants national bank, was seen yesterday
evening in regard to the charge made
against Capt A. z. Luckett, president OF
the bank. He said he had read the account
in the Mail and desired to correct certain
mistakes made therein. ITO begin with, -
said Mr.. Smith, 'sthe Merchants national
bank held two notes of SI4,62 each signed
by E E. Chase, payable to Jake johnson,
due on or before one and two years after
April /, 1890. Upon these notes the Bler-
chants national bank loaned MIR. johnson
an equal amount of money, taking his notes
for the same, holding the Chase notes as
described as collateral to Johnson's notes.
Before the maturity of Chase'S notes,
which was the purchase money of 1856 acres
of land in Riverside, he sold the land to the
Fort Worth land company, corporation
Chase organized with E. w. Taylor as vice
president and himself Chase as general
manager, the land company assuming the
payment of the two vendors lien notes exc
cuted by Chase to johnson which were held
by the Merchants national bank as collat-
eral to Johnson's notes. When the first Sl4,
CPS note of Chase's matured on April l, 1891,
which the land company had assumed pay
ment OF, Johnson'S note matured at the
same date in like amount. Johnson de-
manded that the land company pay the Chase
note, which would pay his note The
Chase note was presented to the land COM
pany atits Office for payment, which they
were unable to do. Whereupon, as cashier
of the Merchants national bank. 1 pro-
posed: to .,Ir. Taylor, as vice-president of
the land company, and Mr.. Chase. as the
general manager, fas Mr.. johnson was
owing the bank too large an amount, and if
the land company had paid their note TO
Johnson, which we held as collateral, in
money, it would pay an equal amount of
Mr.. Johnson's Indebtedness, and as they
could not pay in money l had The land COM
pany execute note for the amount of the
Chase note. due April l, 1891, which they
had assumed, and held the Chase note as
collateral TO the Fort Worth land company
note, which latter note was an asset Of the
bank. I then cancelled and delivered to
johnson his note for q like amount. At the
time the bank attached the property of Mr..
Chase we delivered the two notes of Sl4,-
625, which were lien on the 335 acres, also
the $4,000 note'of the land company, with
other notes of Mr.. Chase's, TO our attor-
neys, Wynne, Mozart i Booty. They
brought attachment suits and asked for
foreclosure on the So, 625 notes, and asked
for Judgment on the land company's Sl6,-
coo note. At any time the land
company had seen fit to pay OF
the $4,000 note, they Of course could and
would have taken up the S14,625 note held
as collateral, and so stated on the $4,000
note. Our attorneys were the judges how
the suit should be brought and we relied
entirely upon them in the matter and have
full confidence in their ability. The court
has held that we could only have Judgment
against the land company on the Sl4- 625 and
interest. which amounts to about $4,000.
These are the facts in regard 10 the $4,000
transaction, which can be verified by Mr..
Taylor and the books OF the bank. Mr..
Luckett's arrest for perjury IS in no way
connected with the above transaction, as
the Mail states it, but IS on account of the