The record-union., 1894-09-20
MILLIONAIRE RELIGIONISTS SUED.
EvangeIists Crittenton and Montgom-
cry as Miners.
The Story Told by a Placer County
Minister In HIS Complaint
Against Them.
Esan Francisco Call. Sept. 1eth.l

prominently ldenuhed with reIlgious
movements are involved in no particu-
larly favorable light is on the calendar OF
Placer County Superior Court. To-day
the time for filing an answer to the grave
charges made by the plaintiffs will ex-
pire, and within a month religious circles
will be deeply stirred by the expose the
trial assures.
The fight at law is over mine in Placer
County, variously valued at S250,OOO to
100000, but not so much over the prop
erty itself as the manner in which. it was
lost TO its original owners and how pos
session was secured by religious leaders
without paying for it. There are charges
of fraud and confidence operations, OBJ
tanning of unconscionable advantage over
the owners, and decetfully and falsely
violating conditions OF certain contracts.
The title OF the suit Is Thomas Z. Ster-
rett, John w. Sterrett and Samuel i.
Sterrett VS.. George ;. Montgomery, a.
w. bennett, Charles y. CritteHton, John
w. Martin. Phillip Kyle, Carrie Judd
Montgomery and Theodore Winters.
SO we'll known are most of these de-
PENDANTS through their conspicuous po-
tions before the public they hardly need
an introduction, Four OF them are mill
ionaires, and with one exception all are
leading salvationsts or evangelists.
George >. Montgomery is the million
aire Salvationist whose home is at Beu-
lab, in the Alameda foothills, where he
owns considerable land. A few years
ago he became an ardent Salvation sol
der, donning the uniform of private
and taking part in every class OF service
held here by the army. lie donated
strip of land at Beulah to the Salvation
Army, and upon it stands the Rescue
women. He is brother OF Charles
Montgomery, the hotel man and Peoples
Home Bank Director. Mrs. Carrie Judd
Montgomery is his wife, who came into
prominence as a faith-healer. Subse-
quently she entered the Salvation ranks
with her husband, and ever since their
names are associated with every special
service of the army in San Francisco and
Oakland.
a. W. bennett is the widelyknown
restaurant man who runs eating houses
from Il o'clock Sunday night to Y O'Clock
Saturday night in New York, Brooklyn,
Philadelphia. Baltimore, Boston and San
Francisco-fourteen places in all. And
yet he nndS time to give an extraordinary
attention to religion. Every morning
and night his employees meet for prayers
in rooms off the restaurants. Scriptural
texts, such as "Be sure your sin will find
you out" decorate the walls.
His srestaurants never open on Sun
days at any time in the twenty four
hours of the Sabbath. Charles \. Crit
tenton is the millionaire evangelist who
lives in the Palace Hotel. Phillip Kyle
will be remembered as Major Kyle. the
late Salvation Army leader in this city.
who was called to London a short time
since. Kyle, it seems, was ordered to
country he did not like, SO he threw up
the sponge and returned as a high pri-
Vate TO California. John w. Martin is an
inf has So1Hr Hrafi ion Alr-
Winters. who was made a defendant in
the suit through some legal technicality,
Is the celebrated horSeman of Nevada,
who has bred and owned more famous
horses than any other man in America.
Among old miners and pioneers of
California and Nevada the Sterretts are
as well known as any OF the men who
made the COmstock. The Sterretts are
old men now. Thomas is % years OF age,
John - and Samuel II. The last named
is a minister of the Gospel, retired
through old age and living in modest
little home on Howard street, near
Twentieth. John was a respected min
ing superintendent of the Comstock, and
his brother occupied like position long
ago in the best mines. After all their
years of honest tolllng only the Sterrett
mine III Placer County was left. 1t is
valuable property, though nothing more
than white elephant on poor mans
hands, as it absorbed money in taxes and
could yield no return unless operated
properly, To do this, however, required
considerable capital, which the Sterretts
did not possess. They were grown old
and unable to work the mine and their
limited stock of money had petered out
so they looked about in their perpleXity
for relief. The mine should go-that was
a settled fact-and when the proposition.
to sell was mentioned to George Mont
gonery negotiations began which are
now coming to d climax in the courts of
Placer County.
AS told in the voluminous complaint
fled by Attorney a. c. Ellis in Auburn
Courthouse recently, the story of how the
Sterretts lost all they possessed is fully
told. Rev. Samuel L. Sterrett and his two
brothers have sworn that the story is
true. They allege as follows:
For a long time before August %, 1892.
they were equal owners OF an undivided
four-fifths interest in the Sterrett quartz
mine in Canada Hill mining district.
Placer County, to which a United States
patent was issued IN 1883. Ir connection
with this mine are-"eXtenSions," the
''Sailor Canyon placer mine," mill site
on the American River, consisting of five
acres and certain valuable water rights
The property was vested in the names of
the Sterretts, Theodore Winters and Mary
a. Hobson. The mill site and first south
extension were in Winters name. Large
sums of money had been expended in
performing the necessary annual labor
on the mines, and in developing them and
protecting the right of possession. In the
aggregate the Sterretts claim that the
property is worth $3.50, 900.
In 1892 the Sterretts were advanced in
years and without means of subsistence,
nor had they strength to earn liveli-
hood. Rev. Samuel Sterrett was a friend
of George s. Montgomery, in whose in
tegrity and good faith he trusted impli-
city on account of the relations of both
TO the church and professions of friend
ship which he had expressed frequently
TO the Sterretts. Prior to August, 1892
they informed Montgomery of their finan-
cial condition aud circumstances and of
their immediate necessities. Rev. Samuel
Sterrett called his attention to the mining
property, and stated his brothers will
ingness to sell it. asking him to fully in
veStigate its character ana value, and in
the event he should be satisfied regard
ing the property requested that he either
purchase the mine or help them to dis
pose of it. They told him it was worth
$250,000
Montgomery visited the mines and
made a thorough inspection. Then he
told the Sterretts how he owned large
number of shares of the MonteZuma
Tunnel Company, which owned and
operated DRIFT placer mine in Tuolumne
County known as the Montezuma mine.
which was represented as being of great
value, and with developments upon it by
a bedrock tunnel had demonstrated that
the mine was wonderfully rich in gold.
Montgomery informed Thomas Sterrett
he had been told by man who had
worked in the Montezuma that gold had
been actually shoveled up under the
water. and that there was enough gold in
it to pay the national debt OF the United
States. But the mine was not then pro-
5,,,i,,c - lorer.a amounts of gold because the