Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-11-28
Some Methods Pursued by the Fl
deity Association Here.
WHAT THE SECRETARY SAYS OF THEM
A Former Certificate Holder Tells
of Her Experience.
w HY SHE DREW on Il


The officers were very anxious to learn
about the progress Of the case in Pitts
burg, their information regarding 1t being
secured entirely from the newspaper dis
patches. Secretary Tweedale said that
Judge Moulton had been sent to Pittsburg
last night with instructions to employ the
best lawyer obtainable to defend Mr.. Wall
in the forthcoming hearings. Secretary
Tweedale. who is Mr.. Wallis son-in-law
was exceedingly affected by the news that
the Pittsburg authorities We're confident
of making case against Mr.. Wall and his
associates His confidence in the integrity
of the company and the honesty of its
methods he expressed with much earnest
ness.
The Star reporter asked him If it was
true that agents of the company received
" Tor each person they secured as share
holder In the company and allowed the
collectors, who regularly visited share
holders and got their dues, 10 per cent OF
the amounts they collected He said
agents got only 81 each for new share
holders, but corroborated the assertion
that collectors received 10 per cent.
Securities for Loans.
Mr.. Tweedale reiterated his statement
made the other day that his company was
enabled to carry out It's promises to share
ing and reinvesting the receipts and COM
pounding the interest by such a course.
He showed the reporter bundle Of doe
uments, indexed upon their envelopes as
mortgages, given by various persons on
their real estate in return for loans made
to them by the association. A mental cal
culation OF the sums written-upon the COW
ers showed a total approximating $4,000.
Mr.. Tweedale said the documents only
showed few of the investments
made by the company, and that their ex-
istencc would be proved when the cases in
Pittsburg came to trial The secretary
also said that none of the local share
holders had shown any apprehension re-
garding their Investments with the com.
pany by reason Of thesPittsburg affair and
the publicity growing out Of it.
Mrs. Queenan's story.
Some of the former shareholders in the
Fidelity Association, however, do not hes
itate to, express themselves about 1t and
the way 1t did business with them. One
of these was seen late this afternoon by a
Star reporter.
She is AN Intelligent, WELT o-do and
responsible cofored woman, who lives at
No. COB 6thiostreet northeast. Her hus-
band Is James III. Queenan and he is en-
ployed at Golden's restaurant on 9th and
streets northwest.
Mrs Queenarf said she had been induced
to invest ain ten shares of the Fidelity
Building and Loan Association in 1891, by
the representations of an agent of the COM
pany, whose name she believes was Cum
bingham. His headquarters were at 18th
and c. streets. Cunningham told her a
very attractive story, she claims. He said
that If she would enter the association she
would be allowed, after paying her dues Tor
six months, to get enough money on loan
from the concern to buy any piece OF prop
erty she might select, the company taking
deed of trust on it to secure itself. but
continuing to pay her six per cent on the
money invested in shares.
Il was much taken with the idea, SAID
Mrs Queenan, las L wanted my own home
and l thought the company paying me in
terest Oh the money l put In, 1t would be
lust as coed as the savings bank at 10Th
street and New York avenue. where l had
kent II before So / subscribed to ten
shares of it. l subscribed in my husband S
name. Here is the certificate l got"
A Stockholders Certificate.
Mrs. Quecnan handed the reporter pa
per- of which a copy follows:
The Fidelity Building and Loan Asso-
citation of Washington d. c.
Class \.
This certifies that James H. Queenan,
22S Massachusetts avenue northeast, WASH
ington. ID. C., is hereby constituted stock
holder of The Fidelity Building and Loan
Association, and holds ten shares of the
maturity value of 500 each. Said shares
are issued subject to all conditions as set
forth in the bylaws and articles Of the
Given under the seal of this associat ton
this second day of November, 1891.
HARRISON DINGMAN.
AL.ONZO TwEEDALE. President
Secretary.
Others Who Subscribed.
1.-The thing seemed to be so good" con-
tinued Mrs. Queenan,. that talked about
it, and my father, George Alfred Ware
n NJae
sachusetts avenue northeast, subscribed to
five shares and my mother to one.
Mrs. Nelson. who lives next door to my
father and also owns her home, subscribed
too, and among other who did so about
the same time and who went in because
they were promised the means to buy OF
improve homes were Mrs Brown of LIST
street and North Carolina avenue, the
Misses Lucas of B street northeast Mrs
Smallwood, who is now in Boston, where
her husband is working, and a Mr.. Majors
who lived at 18th and NJ streets. They
all found that the loan promised would
never be forthcoming, and they all drew
out, as 1 did, losing a part of what they
$40 a month on them for eight months
Once l didn't pay until three days over
time, and they charged me 81 penalty.
Tried to Get a Loan.
after 1 had been in six months I in
quired about getting 4 loan. A man named
York and his wife, who live at North Caro-
lima avenue and 6ti, street, represented the
company up here and ] did my business
with them. They told me to pick out the
property and they would go and see it.
/ selected a piece, but they were always
too busy to look at it. They then offered
me piece of property belonging to the
company on Wyle street, which 1 didn',
want. All the other stockholders 1 knew
were being treated in the same manner
so 1 made up my mind to get my money
out. They tried to stop me doing this by
telling Inc didn't really understand low
the company or association was maEaged
and 1 confessed ! did not. 1 told them
all / knew was that l had been fooled
into joining it by the agent, who said the
Fidelity Association was started for the
purpose of making it possible for poor
people, and especially poor colored people
to buy homes and pay for them easily, and
that j wanted my money.
II took a, seat in the main Office of the
association and after / sat there pretty
near all day and they saw wasn't going to
leave they paid me $50 out of the sol had
put in. All the others / have mentioned
lost about the same proportion of their sub
scriptions.
Some other People Who Had Trouble.
my father owns his property said Mrs.
Queenan, in conclusion, land he wanted to
borrow money On it to improve his house.
York said the property would be appraised,
so it's value could be known. York APP