Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1893-08-01
TEMPORARY loss.


Bosrux, July si-A large NUMBER u
banks in this city. throughout New Eng
Land and in New York have been defrauded
| BY duplication Of grain certificates issued
| by the now-defuact Northern f'seine f-ie-
yxror company Of Minnesota The amount
| in which New England banks are involved
il ts-twr~n Ssne0o and $61,ap. and the
,a,., sum secured from banking lnssita-
.ions hy these frauds is probably not lar
| from 81. ~. 0a
The los TO the hanks Is believed 10 Dc
only Temporary, for the stockholders OF
| the elevator company. who are liable uh.
der the laws o. Minnesota. have offered
| To reimburse the banks on q basis OF o.
| npr cen. in cash and the balance IN nve
/ annual nsyrusnts II Is believed that TINS
| otfer will he accepted and the matter thus
| adjusted. leaving the stockholders TO deal
| with the offenders,
| A, first Thought fraud on banks run
| ming up To 81 .uaeao in times like these
| seems like q matter of startling and mo
1 nentous consequence, but there IS
| NJ Reason to Year
/ .hs- any ~ ths. banks will be seriously az
feeted The loSs in New England is said
/ TO be distributed among nearly three score
| INSTITUTIONS : that the amount for which
| each iseausht Is very small, and the total
| sum lost will be paid back eventually,
| and more than half of it almost at once
When the banks get the o. per cent. in
cash. il will leave the amount which they
have 10 do without for time only u per
| cent. or between S-b1.ooo and S2So,Nb IN
| New England This makes the load on
each no more than frequently falls through
some small failure. Then again, the
/ sSinsiIe was discovered some time since,
| and is no ne,- complication for the banks,
| although the secret has been 50 Well
| guarded tina. it viii be news 10 the public
| 1t Is alleg,~i that the fraud was perpe'
tratei by employees Of the elevator conf
| pany, who
| Issued Duplicate Certificates
| for grain in the corporations elevators,
| One set of certificates was deposited as
| collateral! IN eastern banks. and the Others
| dispo ei of liz the west On the latter, the
| grain was Withdrawn from the elevators
| aud the financial institutions awoke To the
| fact that Il .-ir certificates were only 50
| much paper. here being no grain hack ol
| them. The certificates were considered
good security. and were profitable paper
| for the ts.tk> when everything was all
| right.
| The Minnesota laws demand rigid sys-
TEN Of inspection Of grain in terminal ele-
vators, hut This government watchfulness
| did not seem 20 be extended to the elesa-
| tors along the railway lines, and il WAS
| during an investigation following the dis
| coyery Of this fact that the frauds were
| unrarthed.
TIE Northern Pacific Elevator company
| is a corporation distinct from the railway
| of the same name and owned over 100
| grain elevators along its lines, 1t was the
| grain in these siorehouses which
Was poubly Certified To.
The stock holders Of the company were
| AS much astaI;shed a. the holders of its
| certificates when the swindle was discoy-
ere-i. and n,ade offers Of settlement, as
| mentioned above.
The company was reorganized as the
Lake superior Mining company, Many
| If the. stock holders live in the east, and
Georg, Cook~ey, If David BOWS x Co of
| New York, was elected president. He de-
| clned. when asked about the frauds. to
discuss them. but admitted that the Ger
| tificates har, been duplicated.
A meeting was held In this city about 10
DAYS ago, at which the banks interested
were represented and the matter was dis
cussed The committee appointed TO i'll
| yestigate was composed of President The
ophilus King If the National Bank of Re
tiemption. President Ripley of the Ma
tional Hide aad Leather. President George
T4ittlefieli If the First National Of Proyi-
dence